Brief:
T' Hawk was originally introduced by Advanced Model Rocket Systems (AMROCS) in 1965. Aye aye! Its design is very much like the Estes Falcon. Avast! It's technically a boost glider, me hearties, although it doesn't use a carrier vehicle, instead relyin' on ejectin' t' motor t' handle t' necessary shift in CG/CP relationship.

This Semroc "retro repro" faithfully reproduces t' original design but modernizes things a bit by laser-cuttin' t' parts.

Construction:
With a retail price o' $7.50 I didn't expect a terribly complex kit, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and t' parts list is consistent with that expectation--an 18mm motor tube, arrr, arrr, me bucko, balsa nose cone, launch lug, a couple sheets o' laser-cut balsa, and a tiny waterslide decal. Blimey! All parts were very good quality, and I'd even point out that on a few o' t' balsa parts, thar are laser-etched alignment lines t' simplify construction.

This would probably rate about a 1.5 on t' skill meter with construction consistin' o' 16 steps on 10 half pages of instructions loaded with helpful illustrations. I sat down t' build this after dinner one winter evening, ya bilge rat, and not only finished before bedtime but I had time t' write up most o' t' review as well. Well, me bucko, blow me down! I think me total build time was barely over half an hour, and I used wood glue on many steps that could have been done with CA in half t' time.

I started out by sandin' t' parts while still in t' balsa sheet, then carefully cut them loose, and finally sandin' t' laser burns off t' edges.

T' tail section is a little unusual but easy t' build. Blimey! I tacked a fuselage top piece t' t' stabilizer usin' the etched lines on t' stabilizer as a guide. Avast! T' bottom half is notched t' fit snugly over t' stabilizer and sits perpendicular t' t' top.

T' pylon that supports t' raised motor pod is made from two pieces o' matchin' balsa glued together, eliminatin' t' need for a thicker sheet t' cut. Avast! T' motor pod sits on top o' this pylon, and t' bottom o' t' pylon mates up t' t' top/forward edge o' t' fuselage.

T' win' dihedral is nice and simple, and I didn't even have t' airfoil t' wings. With t' fuselage inverted (I used a sandin' block that was about 1.25" thick t' prop up t' aft end), t' win' halves are tacked to the exposed underside o' t' fuselage with t' tips touchin' t' table surface. Well, blow me down! Arrr! While this be drying, arrr, I finished up by usin' CA t' glue on t' rudder and little mini-winglet stabilizers.

Once everythin' had set (I allowed t' wood glue on t' wings t' cure overnight), matey, I followed up with as thin and light a fillet as I could apply on all t' joints.

Finishing:
A good glider generally doesn't get paint, arrr, which would just add weight and hurt performance, but flying "nekkid" isn't that great an idea either, ya bilge rat, matey, especially in t' winter in southern Ohio when fields toggle back and forth betwixt frozen and slushy. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! I decided t' treat mine with a light application o' Aerogloss red dope thinned 50%.

My finished glider, untrimmed, ya bilge rat, weighed in at 8.7 grams (0.3 ounces) and had a CG 3-3/8" aft o' t' fuselage tip, me hearties, shiver me timbers, which was actually behind t' trailin' edge o' t' wings. Blimey! Arrr! However, me bucko, given their sweep, me bucko, they are probably in line with t' CP.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' maiden flight, me bucko, I wanted t' just lob it up t' test t' glide trim, ya bilge rat, so I went with a 1/2A6-2. Blimey! T' winds were a bit too stiff for such a light glider, me hearties, ya bilge rat, which were blowin' steady at about 8 mph. Well, blow me down! T' boost was fairly straight, levelin' out a little downwind towards t' end o' t' coast phase. Aye aye! T' motor ejected cleanly for a perfect transition to glide.

Recovery:
For about 4 seconds, matey, matey, it looked like this might actually hold up in t' wind as it came out o' t' boost/ejection pointed right into t' wind. Begad! Arrr! Once it got turned around though, it be all over--it took a nose dive at about 45 degree angle, ya bilge rat, clearly needin' a little tail weight. I had tossed it by hand a few times and thought it would do better, however, arrr, t' tosses were all on a calm day.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I'll give this t' benefit o' t' doubt on t' glide as it's clearly a trim issue on me end. Ahoy! Overall though, matey, I really like this--it's cheap, goes together very smoothly, arrr, and t' boost be excellent.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5