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

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

T' kit itself is quite nice, arrr, with thick, sturdy balsa parts that have been precision cut. Blimey! Avast! All parts fit well, ya bilge rat, and there was absolutely no confusion about how t' assemble t' rocket. Ya scallywag! Construction was simple, quick and easy, me hearties, with no fuss. Begad! Full assembly took me about 1 hour, but could be done much faster. Make no mistake, t' quality o' t' parts is first-rate, ya bilge rat, and t' kit be well thought out. Aye aye! Aye aye! T' only time I deviated from the instructions be with t' clay. Blimey! 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. 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. Avast, me proud beauty! You want it t' glide in circles so that it stays on t' flying field. Begad! Aye aye! (Note that these pictures were taken before I added t' clay. )

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

It was a pretty nice day for launchin' rockets. Aye aye! Blimey! Moderately windy, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, but not too bad. I was anxious t' try out t' CiCi, arrr, so it was first in line. Begad! Avast! 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. Well, blow me down!

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

As you can see from this photo, arrr, it snapped clean in half on landing. Begad! Note that although it's photographed here on cement (for clarity), matey, it did land in t' grass when it broke. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! Disappointing, but not the end o' t' world. Aye aye! Ahoy! A bit o' thin CA, 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. Ahoy! This is just soot from t' black powder, not scorchin' o' t' wood. A bit dirty, ya bilge rat, but nay a safety concern. Blimey!

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

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

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

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