T' CiCi is a traditional canard-style boost glider. Arrr! Blimey! The canard be t' name for that smaller front wing, matey, arrr, or horizontal stabilizer. Ya scallywag! Blimey! A canard-style glider is simply a glider where t' canard is forward o' t' main wing. Aye aye! Blimey! A boost glider is a glider that boosts straight up like a rocket, me bucko, and then ejects some part, usually t' engine, ya bilge rat, to change into a glider. Blimey! This is as opposed t' a rocket glider, where no parts are jettisoned, but rather other changes are made (movin' t' wing surfaces, me hearties, changin' t' angle o' elevons, arrr, me bucko, etc. Ya scallywag! ) t' make t' transition from vertical boost mode t' horizontal glide mode. Begad!

Upon openin' up t' zip-lock-bag-style package o' t' CiCi, I was first surprised by t' fact that t' instructions consisted entirely o' a single 8 1/2 x 11 sheet o' paper, shiver me timbers, printed on one side only! This was particularly surprisin' for this rocket, considerin' that t' Deltie, me bucko, arrr, also from Edmond's Aerospace, arrr, had a 10+ page booklet for instructions. Aye aye! Although sparse, t' instructions here are obvious and straightforward. Unlike most rockets, t' order o' assembly for t' CiCi is largely irrelevant. Ya scallywag! T' instructions are fairly complete, matey, except that they never mention trimmin' t' glider, or t' supplied lump o' clay and what t' do with it. Begad! Basically, ya bilge rat, me hearties, arrr, t' instructions seem t' assume that you have trimmed a boost glider before. Avast! T' second thin' that I noticed about t' kit contents was that a piece was missing. Avast! Ahoy! T' instructions say that thar be a small, triangular piece o' wood, curved on one side, ya bilge rat, that can be used t' mark a straight line on t' engine tube, matey, me bucko, but thar wasn't one in me kit. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! No big deal, there are o' plenty o' ways t' mark a straight line on a tube. T' third thing that I noticed be that another piece was missing: t' launch lug. Again, nay a show-stopper, ya bilge rat, since I have some extras lyin' around, me bucko, but a rather inauspicious beginning. Avast, me proud beauty!

T' kit itself is quite nice, arrr, with thick, sturdy balsa parts that have been precision cut. All parts fit well, and there was absolutely no confusion about how t' assemble t' rocket. Begad! Construction was simple, quick and easy, with no fuss. Ahoy! Full assembly took me about 1 hour, me bucko, but could be done much faster. Make no mistake, t' quality o' t' parts is first-rate, ya bilge rat, and t' kit was well thought out. Begad! T' only time I deviated from the instructions be with t' clay. I added a small amount (about t' size of pencil eraser) t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main (rear) win' and the left vertical stabilizer. Avast, me proud beauty! T' purpose here be t' make t' CiCi tilt left a little bit in flight so that it would glide in circles, rather than in a straight line. Ahoy! Aye aye! You want it t' glide in circles so that it stays on t' flying field. (Note that these pictures were taken before I added t' clay. Avast! )

T' instructions don't mention it, but I attempted some hand-tossed glide tests prior t' flight. Hmmm. Ya scallywag! . Begad! Begad! . Blimey! it glides ok, but flies and lands in a rather nose-down attitude. Begad! Nose-down enough that t' balsa nose cone hits before the front edge o' t' canard. Perhaps a small amount o' weight in t' aft might help. Aye aye! I added a small amount o' t' supplied clay (again about t' size o' a pencil eraser) t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' fuselage and t' main wing. More hand-toss glide tests. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Hmmm. . Aye aye! . a slightly better glide attitude and landing, but still noticeably nose-down, matey, shiver me timbers, and thar was no discernible arc to t' left (so that it will glide in circles). Aye aye! I added just a tiny bit more clay t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main win' and t' left vertical stabilizer. Ya scallywag! Begad! After a couple more throws, I still couldn't discern any arc t' the left, me bucko, but I didn't want t' add too much weight for fear o' adversely affecting the flight characteristics. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! Time for some real flight tests.

It be a pretty nice day for launchin' rockets. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Moderately windy, but not too bad. Begad! I was anxious t' try out t' CiCi, ya bilge rat, so it be first in line. Well, blow me down! I figured the light weight o' t' rocket, combined with t' moderate wind and t' fact that this was t' maiden flight, dictated usin' an A8-3. Ya scallywag!

It was a good, me hearties, arrr, quick boost, arrr, as you can tell from t' blur it gives in this photo, matey, even with 400 speed film. Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! In spite what this photo o' t' early flight path might indicate, ya bilge rat, it was, ya bilge rat, me bucko, overall, matey, a fairly straight boost to, oh, maybe 150 feet or so (I didn't measure it). Arrr! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Even though it arced over on its back after burnout, it make a smooth, me hearties, controlled transition t' right-side-up glide. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! The glide was ok, but still with a bit o' nose-down attitude, and it definitely falls faster than a Deltie. It made about 1 3/4 circles before landing. . Blimey! Blimey! . with a crack. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Uh-oh.

As you can see from this photo, matey, it snapped clean in half on landing. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Note that although it's photographed here on cement (for clarity), matey, shiver me timbers, it did land in t' grass when it broke. Well, blow me down! Disappointing, ya bilge rat, but not the end o' t' world. Avast, me proud beauty! A bit o' thin CA, matey, and she'll be good as new.

Also visible in this photo be t' slight blackenin' in t' forward half of the center o' t' main wing. Aye aye! This is just soot from t' black powder, not scorchin' o' t' wood. Blimey! Aye aye! A bit dirty, matey, but nay a safety concern. Blimey!

Unfortunately, me bucko, matey, t' second flight, shiver me timbers, under nearly calm wind conditions, me bucko, was an exact duplicate o' t' first. Aye aye! Aye aye! T' A8-3 gave a good, shiver me timbers, matey, straight boost, with a nice transition t' glide, a decent but slightly too rapid, me bucko, nose-down descent, arrr, me bucko, and a landin' with a crack. Aye aye! Blimey! Broke shipshape in half again, this time about 3mm further rearward (CA is strong stuff).

Warning! Blimey! Do nay try t' followin' with your model!Bein' a bit o' a tinkerer, matey, shiver me timbers, I thought I'd make a more serious attempt t' fix that nose-down attitude. Begad! So, prior t' t' third flight, me bucko, I sanded an airfoil into t' top o' t' canard. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Begad! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Begad! T' idea was to have this canard generate more lift, and thereby lift t' nose in flight, givin' a flatter glide. Blimey! Hand-tossed glides didn't show any visible difference, but I was confident that it would be noticeable at speed. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! DO NOT TRY THIS WITH YOUR MODEL! T' airfoil was much too severe, me bucko, and caused t' model t' arc over under power and plow into the ground at full speed! Blimey! Ironically, me bucko, arrr, t' damage be only slightly worse on this flight, me bucko, shiver me timbers, with a small piece breakin' off o' t' canard as well as t' model snappin' in two at t' usual spot. If your model also breaks on landing, arrr, and you want t' try t' airfoil t' canard t' help that situation, start with a very slight airfoil, matey, arrr, and perform actual launches before sandin' any further. Aye aye!

Overall, I give t' CiCi a 3 out o' 5 points. Begad! T' kit itself gets a 4 out o' 5 points, me hearties, matey, havin' high quality parts, but missin' a couple minor pieces. T' instructions should include trimmin' instructions, but were otherwise adequate, shiver me timbers, despite their brevity. Begad! T' construction gets a ratin' of 4. 5 out o' 5 points bein' simple and straightforward. T' flights (before the airfoiling, shiver me timbers, at least), were both excellent, ratin' a 4 out o' 5 points. O' course, me hearties, t' big downer be t' recovery, particularly t' landin' damage, me hearties, me hearties, which is easily fixed, shiver me timbers, though nay easily avoided. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Blimey! T' recovery gets a 1. 5 out o' 5 points.

I'll probably repair t' CiCi again when I get a chance. If you're looking to buy your first boost glider, me bucko, I'd have t' recommend t' Edmond's Aerospace Deltie. Begad! But, t' CiCi certainly has t' potential t' be a great boost glider, perhaps as your third or fourth boost glider model.