Brief:
It all started on me birthday in 2004. I received two Estes Fat Boys, arrr, and I planned on buildin' them as a two stage rocket, matey, however, one o' t' body tubes was completly ripped down t' middle because t' nose cone was shoved halfway down inside it. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Blimey! That left me with two Fat Boy kits but only one body tube. Arrr! I built t' sustainer stage minus t' engine hook and looked at t' parts from the other kit. Ahoy! I had two centerin' rings, matey, a motor hook, a mylar ring, a launch lug, arrr, arrr, a chute, arrr, and a shock cord.

Construction:
I remebered readin' a review about a spool rocket, so I decided t' give it a try. Arrr! Blimey! I took t' engine tube, ya bilge rat, centerin' rings, launch lug, motor hook, and retainer ring. In about 10 minutes, I slapped all o' these parts together to form a cheap spool rocket.

T' construction was easy. Aye aye! It is ideally t' motor mount o' a Fat Boy. Ahoy! It starts out by slittin' t' motor tube t' place t' eningine hook in. Avast! Ahoy! I dont know why I put t' motor hook in. T' ejection charge just goes out t' other end anyway. Ahoy! T' next step was slippin' on t' mylar retainin' ring, which was tacked in place with thick CA. Ya scallywag! Next, t' launch lug be glued with thick CA to the motor tube. Begad! Well, arrr, blow me down! Finally, t' two centerin' rings were placed just over each end, flush with t' ends o' t' motor tube. Aye aye! I had t' line up t' semi-circle in one rin' with t' launch lug, me hearties, and cut another one in t' upper centerin' ring to allow t' launch rod t' pass through. Avast, me proud beauty!

Finishing:
I primed it, painted mine blue, arrr, let it cure, then slapped on some letter stickers. Begad! Ahoy! On one side I wrote spool and on t' other I wrote Alex. Arrr! Then, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, matey, I painted t' whole thin' black and removed t' stickers. Begad! Unfortunately. Ahoy! mylar stickers do nay make good maskin' tape.

Flight:
Flight, ya bilge rat, me hearties, like any spool rocket is up, spin, arrr, shiver me timbers, and down. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I flew it first in the fall at a nearby schoolyard on an A8-3. Begad! It went slow t' about 70-100 feet and then spiraled back down usin' tumble recovery. At about 20 feet, me bucko, ya bilge rat, arrr, t' ejectin charge popped and a burst o' flame popped out o' t' top. Aye aye! I proved t' me dad and sister that spools do fly straight. Ya scallywag! Begad! They thought it was a joke. Ya scallywag! T' next three flights were in Tewksbury at a CMASS sport launch. I flew it three times. T' first time was on an A8-3. It was a repeat o' t' first flight: up and down. Begad! Well, blow me down! Later, ya bilge rat, arrr, I launched it on a B6-4. Well, blow me down! Blimey! It went up and down, only faster and higher. Arrr! Well, blow me down! Then I launched it on a C6-5. Avast, me proud beauty! It went up, probably about 250 feet. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! I need t' use booster motors though because when it came down t' ejection charge practically went off in t' LCO's face. Well, blow me down!

Summary:
T' main PROs for this rocket are t' ease o' construction and t' simplicity of t' parts and design. Aye aye! T' only CONs are that durin' me launches t' ejection charge fires too close t' t' ground, so a shorter delay is needed. Avast! Overall, I really enjoyed buildin' and flyin' this rocket. It is a fun build for anyone with a damaged body tube or other damaged parts. Begad!