Brief:
Two 24mm motor cluster, arrr, skill level 2, payload section, parachute recovery.

This is a strange lookin' rocket that only gets stranger t' more you think about it, but it is a good performer. It's nay too difficult t' build but a bit more challengin' t' paint if you want t' use t' default scheme on the facecard.

Construction:
Construction begins with t' markin' o' t' BT-50 motor tubes. Each tube is marked in 4 places and t' second mark from t' end is slit with a razor knife for t' engine hook. Ahoy! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Before placin' t' hook though, shiver me timbers, a thrust rin' is inserted and glued into place with t' provided spacer tube.

With t' thrust rings in place, t' engine hook is inserted into its slit and a retainin' band is slipped on to the appropriate mark and glued into place.

T' kit comes with 4 cardboard centerin' rings perforated for tandem 24mm motors. Well, blow me down! I poked them out o' their framework and sanded off t' inner and outer nubs with sandpaper. Arrr! T' bottom ring, t' one with an engine hook slot, was slid into place along both motor tubes and aligned with t' first mark. T' other centerin' ring was slid onto t' other end o' t' tubes and lined up with t' last mark. T' rings were glued into place with yellow glue and filleted.

T' rocket has two transitions that are meant as fairings betweens sections o' BT-70 and t' twin BT-50 motor mounts. Begad! These come in t' form o' a single symmetrical plastic moldin' that must be cut in 4 places. Arrr! 2 cuts remove a short piece o' "spacer" separatin' t' 2 halves and t' other 2 cuts remove t' excess plastic that fits into the BT-70s. Arrr! Begad! These cuts were made with a hobby saw and t' rough edges were treated t' some sandpaper. Avast! After they were cleaned up, t' 2 transitions were slipped onto t' assembly around t' BT-50s.

With t' transitions in place, ya bilge rat, it was time t' mount t' remainin' 2 centerin' rings. Begad! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Blimey! These are in all respects identical t' t' first two rings. Begad! Blimey! They needed a bit o' sandin' t' fit around t' BT-50s but fit into t' BT-70 just fine. Well, blow me down! Blimey! They were placed at t' marks called for, filleted, arrr, shiver me timbers, and allowed t' dry.

While postin' a build thread on TRF, I heard that this kit has a history o' problems with t' transitions fitting into t' BT-70s and a workaround described. Avast! When I checked I found that indeed t' transitions do nay fit into the BT-70s. T' solution was t' cut a pair o' notches into t' inner sleeve o' t' transitions, shiver me timbers, allowin' them t' be compressed a bit. Ahoy! Begad! With that done, t' transitions fit fine and were secured with CA.

By t' time I heard this, t' transitions were already on and t' notches had t' be cut "on t' fly". They are nay pretty but they did work.

I decided t' skip t' entire rubber band and tri-fold travesty and try a FlisKits baffle designed for t' BT-70. I started puttin' that together and then had t' wait for it t' dry. Ahoy! While it was drying, I worked on t' upper section of t' rocket.

T' upper section is really quite simple. Ahoy! It consists o' a plastic shoulder t' transition from BT-70 t' BT-60, arrr, a length o' BT-60 and a plastic nosecone. I cleaned t' flashin' off o' t' plastic, matey, sanded a bit and fit t' pieces together. Avast, me proud beauty! Although they are meant t' form a payload bay, I never fly payloads and used CA t' hold t' whole thing together.

T' next task t' tackle be t' fins. Ya scallywag! There were 3 balsa fins that were pretty thick and most notably tough as iron. Aye aye! When I try t' sand a profile into fins, I always worry that I am goin' t' snap them. Ya scallywag! Begad! This time I worried about havin' strong enough sandpaper. Arrr! They should be sturdy!

I rounded all edges except t' root. Ahoy! Begad! Then, usin' t' lines transferred from t' fin markin' guide, matey, I placed the fins with CA. Begad! Begad! After lettin' t' CA cure, I began filletin' with yellow glue.

Then t' baffle from Fliskits was ready t' install. Aye aye! I found that it fit perfectly in t' BT-70. Begad! Installation consisted merely o' swabbin' a glue rin' in t' body tube and pushin' t' baffle down into place, me bucko, me bucko, makin' sure that the Keelhaul®©™® was oriented in t' right direction (towards t' nosecone).

Another item that still needed t' be addressed be t' installation o' t' launch lugs. Avast, me proud beauty! There are two o' them. One is located on t' lower BT and t' other on t' upper. Begad! Blimey! A line had been marked earlier and I glued them on with the aid o' a rod t' keep them aligned. That left me ready for finishing.

PROs: Fairly easy cluster build

CONs: Tri-fold and rubber band mount, shiver me timbers, Fairin' shoulders do nay quite fit and must be modified

Finishing:
I still had nay picked up any Elmer's Wood Filler so I started off t' finishin' by sealin' t' fins with sanding sealer. Ya scallywag! I made sure t' shake t' bottle well t' get all t' particulates suspended and started t' paint it on. Ahoy! After 2 coats, I gave it a light sandin' and applied another 2 coats o' sealer. Ya scallywag! Upon inspection I realized that I needed another 2 coats for a total o' 6.

Primin' was done with Kilz. I applied a total o' 2 coats and then sanded.

T' first paint t' be applied be Testor's gray. Avast, me proud beauty! I did nay paint t' whole rocket, just t' lower part where there would be some gray transitions.

Red was t' next color t' be sprayed. Begad! I masked off t' areas that remained gray. Begad! Again, matey, this be fairly easy and caused no problems. Aye aye! Ahoy! Those could be expected with t' black because t' black be t' be blended into adjacent colors. Avast!

I masked off t' areas that were supposed t' stay red and then set t' rocket up on t' turntable in me booth. Avast, me proud beauty! I decided t' try and eyeball t' black. Blimey! T' middle section be easy because t' transitions are sharp and t' rocket was masked. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Gradually transitionin' from gray t' black and from red t' black be another matter. Begad! It was done completely by tryin' t' control me aim and t' distance t' t' target.

It actually turned out better than I had feared but thar are a few areas that will see t' application of sandpaper t' try and remove some o' t' black. Blimey! This be me first attempt at somethin' like this and I can only get better at it, shiver me timbers, right?

I used #600 sandpaper t' remove some o' t' black overspray near t' top o' t' fin can. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! It did nay do a perfect job but from any reasonable distance, me bucko, t' original problem is now hard t' see. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I decided t' let it go at that.

At t' end o' t' paint phase, I be a bit disappointed. Begad! Well, blow me down! It did nay look terrible but t' rocket did seem kind of plain. Ahoy! Thankfully, t' decals t' care o' that problem.

I was very pleased that this Estes kit has forgone t' crack and peels in favor o' real waterslide decals. I no longer take that for granted after gettin' t' trashy stuff in me Maxi Brute Honest John. T' pleasure only went so far, arrr, however.

I started with t' silver flames that go on t' fins. I found that t' decal material was very stretchy and difficult t' place. Arrr! Arrr! After floatin' off t' backing, it wanted t' rip t' surface instantly and brushin' out the bubbles be time consuming. Avast! Aye aye! This be true for both sides o' each o' t' fins. Blimey! Arrr! I was nay lookin' forward t' workin' with the big decals on t' payload or nose section. Begad! T' bid decals went on easier though. Arrr! They slid right into place and were smoothed out with a minimum o' fuss. Begad!

When all is said and done, t' decals really dressed up t' rocket t' where it looks pretty good. Ya scallywag! Mine is nay as good as t' face card but it is perfectly acceptable t' me.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' maiden flight, matey, me bucko, I loaded a pair o' D12-5s. Well, blow me down! Arrr! That almost cost me t' rocket. Arrr! Aye aye! It took off in a flash and just kept goin' straight up...way up. When t' chute deployed, it had plenty o' time t' drift a long way. I got t' right vector for where it came down or I never would have recovered it. Begad! My direction was right but t' range be way short. When I did find it, it be in great shape and ready t' fly again.

For t' second flight, I loaded a pair o' C11-5s. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! It too had a perfect but nay so extroverted, arrr, matey, flight profile. I actually managed t' get it back without crossin' any highways or barbed wire fences. Ahoy! Blimey! Again, shiver me timbers, it be in perfect shape. Blimey! Blimey!

PROs: High performer.

CONs: Easy t' lose do t' extreme height.

Recovery:
As mentioned in t' build, I used a FlisKits BAF70 baffle in this rocket. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! It performed flawlessly. Ahoy! In place o' the 18" plastic chute, arrr, I used a 15" nylon. Begad!

Bein' a bit suspicious o' t' baffle, I used a small bit o' dog barf for t' first flight. I need nay have bothered. Begad! Blimey! I did without on t' second flight and t' system worked perfectly. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a cool rocket that is a good and easy introduction t' clusters. It's also nice in that it looks a bit out of the ordinary.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5