Brief:
This rocket is a retro-repro, arrr, me hearties, 18mm, standard 4FNC rocket with baffle ejection and dual parachute recovery system.

Construction:
T' balsa sheet was within t' instructions and was broken in many places parallel t' t' grain. One fin be broken into 2 pieces, t' other three were broken into three pieces each. Ya scallywag! Let me hasten t' add, I am NOT blamin' Semroc for this. This rocket be sittin' near t' bottom o' a rather substantial pile o' other level one rockets. Begad! I suspect that is be me own careless handlin' that caused this.

Since other reviewers have listed t' individual parts, me bucko, me bucko, I will nay do so again. Construction was supposed t' begin with t' traditional motor mount. Blimey! For me, construction began with me attempts t' repair t' broken fins. Arrr! Avast! Fortunately, all t' breaks were very clean. Avast! Ahoy! I used thin CA and they were soon ready t' go and probably stronger than before.

Will that done, all t' parts were present and accounted for and I was ready t' begin in earnest. Begad! That brings us back t' t' motor mount. Begad! Begad! It was a farily standard affair. Begad! T' hook is set in t' provided slit and taped into place. Aye aye! Arrr! A thrust rin' is glued into t' forward end and t' centerin' rings are glued into place.

Next up was assembly o' t' ejection baffle. Ya scallywag! This be t' first baffle I have ever tried t' build or use. Blimey! Ahoy! It comes as a standard part o' t' kit. Ya scallywag! T' two baffle rings are removed from their sheet and t' hole are punched out. Blimey! Arrr! The forward baffle also has a small slit which is used t' fasten t' shock cord. T' supplied cord is a length o' sewing elastic. Ahoy! It is nay particularly long but certainly servicable. Begad! I decided t' use 2 feet o' Keelhaul®©™® to attach t' t' baffle. This was nay because I doubted t' baffle's ability t' work. Avast, me proud beauty! I just like long recovery trains. I will use t' elastic as well. T' Keelhaul®©™® was fed through t' hole and knotted a few times t' prevent it from pullin' through. Blimey! T' tail was then laid flat across the back o' t' baffle and glued down with yellow glue. Aye aye! I gave it a couple o' coats.

Then thar be t' matter o' gluin' t' baffles t' t' ends o' t' coupler tube. This was done with yellow glue as well. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I be interested t' see that t' baffles sit on t' shoulder o' t' coupler and nay within it. This makes sense but I had always pictured in me mind that they sat within.

T' rocket airframe consists o' two tubes connected t' each otehr by means o' t' coupler housin' t' baffle. Aye aye! Begad! Care must be taken so that t' baffles are centered correctily and t' coupler will actually fit into t' BTs. Once they fit, arrr, it is an easy matter t' glue t' two sections together. Avast! Begad! Two things need t' be remembered. T' direction o' t' the baffle and therefore t' shockcord matters. Aye aye! Also, t' instructions suggest layin' t' assembled airframe down and rollin' it around once it is assemble t' make sure it is straight.

Accordin' t' t' instructions, me hearties, t' next step is t' mount the fins. Begad! Since I wanted t' use me Art Rose fin jig, me hearties, arrr, I elected t' install t' motor mount first. T' jig depends upon the motor mount t' recieve t' mandrel. Begad! Some glue was swabbed in, t' mount pushed part o' t' way in, matey, some more glue placed and t' mount was slid home.

I need nay have bothered with t' jig. Begad! I did nay set t' screws properly and t' result was an abomination. Begad! Begad! It will no doubt fly and is probably nay too noticable from a distance but lookin' at t' result makes me cringe. Aye aye! It reminds me o' some o' me worst effots as a kid.

Finishing:
Despite me disappointment with t' fins, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, I plugged away at t' Centurion. Well, blow me down! T' rocket be filled and sealed with Elmer's FNF® and then sanded smooth. I then primed it with two coats o' white and gave it another sanding.

T' sandin' be followed by 2 coats o' gloss white which went down smoothly enough. Well, blow me down! When t' white had a chance t' dry, ya bilge rat, I masked t' lower body from t' couplin' o' t' 2 BTs and sprayed the upper body with gloss black. Begad! I gave t' upper body 2 coats as well.

When I peeled back t' masking, I was both elated and disappointed. I was elated because, for t' first time, matey, I had gotten a perfect masking. Begad! There was no leakage at all and t' change was crisp and professional. That bummed me out because it seemed wasted on a rocket whose fins I had hashed so badly.

T' decals are a simple affair but they are very effective. Begad! They consisted o' 2 Centurion logos and 4 red stripes. T' Centurion logos went on just fine. Begad! T' decal material is o' good quality and I had no problems. Begad! T' stripes were a bit different.

Two o' t' stripes are intended t' be joined together t' make one circuit about t' BT just below t' black paint. There is more than enough material t' do so. T' other two stripes are t' be placed on either side o' a single fin. They were long for t' purpose and had t' be trimmed t' fit.

If I had me choice, arrr, t' wrap around stripe would have been a single unit and t' fin stripes would have been the right length t' begin with. Avast! Well, blow me down! That may be picky but it is me opinion. Aye aye! T' decals improved t' look o' t' rocket marvelously.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors for this rocket are t' A8-3, ya bilge rat, matey, B6-4 and C6-5. Ahoy! Aye aye! I decided t' start small as is me usual practice. I loaded up an A8-3. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! That be nay t' best o' choices. I also added a bit o' dog barf since this was me first experience with a baffle. Arrr! It climbed t' a startlingly low altitude, matey, stopped and started t' come down. Begad! Avast! About 20 feet up, the ejection charge went off but t' chute did nay have time t' open. Ahoy! I got a nice little core sample but thar be no real damage.

T' second flight was on a B6-4. Blimey! This was a good flight. Begad! It went up straight, t' chute deployed at apogee and it came down gently. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! This time I tried it without any dog barf and t' baffles worked fine.

T' third flight be on a C6-5. Ahoy! Begad! Blimey! This too be a good flight and recovery. Avast, me proud beauty! It had a bit o' weathercockin' but landed near t' pad.

Recovery:
This rocket should nay be flown on an A motor... Avast! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! period. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I should have been able t' figure that out for myself. That bein' said, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, it does well on a B and very well on a C. Begad! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' baffle works great and t' rocket looks good... Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! if you get the fins on right. I didn't, but it still flew well. Begad! Blimey!

PROs: good launch, easy prep
CONs: A8-3 does nay belong on t' motor list.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a nice rocket. It looks good and is easy t' build. Begad! It is fairly forgivin' and fles great.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5