Brief:

T' Fliskits Triple Threat is a unique kit offerin' 3 small UFO rockets, ya bilge rat, each with a different shape. T' UFF Persephone is circular, me hearties, t' UFF Athena is pentagonal, and t' UFF Odysseus is hexagonal. Well, blow me down! T' kits are made out o' card stock and balsa, shiver me timbers, me bucko, shiver me timbers, each with a 13 mm motor mount. Arrr! Definitely for t' experienced builder. Ahoy!

Construction:

• 3 sheets o' balsa t' cut out fins (1/16")
• Fin templates on sticky paper, matey, featurin' pre-printed designs for each rocket.
• Shrouds for UFO's on card stock
• Wire for landin' gear
• 3 BT-5 body tubes
• 3 launch lugs
• Set o' instructions for each rocket
• Fin alignment guide

T' instructions were quite impressive with quality instructions and illustrations. Ahoy! Avast! T' construction includes cuttin' out t' shrouds, ya bilge rat, scorin' the paper for folds, and gluin' t' shrouds together t' form t' UFO body. Begad! Ya scallywag! The fins are made by cuttin' out t' fin shapes out o' t' sticky paper. Avast! The Persephone features 3 fins, matey, matey, thus 6 sides. Aye aye! On one side, I was instructed to leave a border around t' fin shape. Then all I had t' do was remove t' paper from t' back o' t' adhesive and stick t' fin on t' t' balsa sheet. Ahoy! After the fin paper has been "stuck" t' t' balsa, me hearties, I simply used a straight edge and an X-acto knife t' carefully cut out t' fin, disposin' o' t' extra border. Once t' fins were cut, shiver me timbers, I flipped them over and "stuck" the other fin portion t' t' exposed balsa side. Well, blow me down! Well, arrr, blow me down! T' instructions for t' fins is identical for each rocket, although t' Athena has 5 fins and t' Odysseus has 6 fins.

T' body tube also has a sticky body wrap which is easy t' apply. Ahoy! Once the body wrap is on t' tube, me hearties, I simply glued on t' fins and corrected t' fin alignment usin' t' fin alignment card included with t' instructions. Begad! T' only "gotcha" that I ran into be t' motor blocks. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! There weren't any. Begad! In the instructions, matey, thar be an inventory list mentionin' motor blocks, yet they are nay mentioned in t' instructions. After an e-mail t' Jim Flis (response in less than 24 hours, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, great service!), I was instructed that t' kit does not require motor blocks, and that they would be correctin' t' instructions on their next printing.

Next, me hearties, me hearties, I took t' necessary shrouds for each rocket and glued them on t' fins. On t' Persephone, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, a smaller shroud sits inverted on top o' t' bigger shroud. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! This must be done carefully so that thar be no gap betwixt t' shrouds. Begad! Begad! On t' Odysseys, part of the shroud folds underneath t' main shroud and fastens t' t' bottom o' the UFO fin structure. Ahoy! On t' Athena, me hearties, ya bilge rat, me bucko, thar are flaired "wings" which move towards t' center o' t' rocket and are glued on t' t' body tube.

Next step, t' wire landin' gear. Arrr! Blimey! Fliskits provides a guide for bendin' the piano wire into a specific shape. Avast! Begad! Blimey! I am nay an expert wire bender, me bucko, but I tried to follow t' shape on t' first piece o' wire. Blimey! One important step is t' place a hook at t' bottom o' t' wire so that it can fit snuggly underneath t' fin. After me first attempt at wire bending, me hearties, I simply designed a simpler shape for me t' bend. It looks close t' t' Fliskits design, but is nay as complicated. I used CA glue t' attach t' wires, then I glued t' launch lug in place using wood glue. Aye aye! I made sure that t' fins had extra fillets as well as other parts of t' rocket (where shroud meets fin, for instance). Blimey! That's it. Well, blow me down! Begad! Blimey! Rockets complete. Begad! Outside o' cuttin' t' balsa fins, matey, arrr, these three rockets can be constructed while hangin' out in your own livin' room. Blimey! Blimey! No sandin' required!

Finishing:

There is no finishin' required as t' rocket comes with pre-printed shrouds and pre-printed fin templates. Begad! This is what I like about it. No smelly paints, matey, me hearties, ya bilge rat, no sanding. They are nice rockets t' build while watchin' t' telly. Avast! I give construction a 4, only because I think t' wire configuration is unnecessarily complex and thar be confusion about t' motor blocks. Begad! But this would nay stop me from buyin' another Triple Threat!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:

I flew t' Persephone twice, shiver me timbers, once usin' an A10-P and once with an A10-0. Arrr! On the first flight, matey, t' Persephone kind o' tumbled back t' t' ground. Begad! On t' second flight, matey, as advertised, ya bilge rat, t' rocket flips over and gently glides t' t' ground, landin' on t' wire landin' gear. Blimey! T' Athena I flew on an A10-0 and it, too, flew very well, matey, flippin' over at apogee and "glided" t' t' ground. T' largest rocket, matey, t' Odysseus, I also flew twice, ya bilge rat, usin' t' A10-P and the A10-0. Avast! Well, blow me down! Both times, ya bilge rat, t' rocket flew t' apogee but failed t' flip over. Avast! It did, however, return steadily, arrr, arrr, matey, comin' straight down as easily as it ascended. Ya scallywag! Cool!

Recovery:

T' PRO's o' t' Triple Threat be t' ease o' flight. Well, arrr, blow me down! Simply add a little tape around t' motor for friction fit, pop it in, arrr, add igniter wire and plug and you are ready for action. Blimey! No foldin' o' parachutes or stuffin' t' body tube with wadding. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! They recover so nicely and gently, shiver me timbers, t' only damage these rockets should ever sustain would be a CATO or havin' a clumsy nephew or dog destroy/step on them. It also allows us t' use t' A10-P motors Estes originally released for t' Blurzz Cars (not me cup o' tea..)

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:

• 3 rockets for t' price o' 1. Begad! Avast! You can't beat that, ya bilge rat, no matter how you look at it.
• Also, matey, no paintin' required. Great for constructin' while sittin' at home in t' evenin' without havin' t' head outside with a can o' paint.
• Great flyers. Arrr! Only goes about 50 feet, but here in New England, it is nice to fly a rocket and actually get it back.
• A Novelty. 3 UFO's with cool glide-tumble recovery landin' on wire landing pads! Blimey! Cool!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5