Brief:
I was workin' on repairs and keepin' an eye open towards specific commitments but found myself again with a day off with nay enough t' do. Well, blow me down! I decided t' try and build t' Lepton from Red River Rocketry. Ya scallywag! It is a two stage job that should not be too hard and which I am very much lookin' forward t' feedin' when t' A8-0s come out again.

Construction:
Construction begins with t' sustainer motor mount. Begad! Ya scallywag! A motor tube is marked at 3/4" and t' centerin' rings are installed at that mark and flush with t' end. Ahoy! I had t' do quite a bit o' sandin' t' get t' rings t' fit. A thrust rin' was installed flush with t' end havin' t' flush centerin' ring. Arrr! T' rings were filleted on both sides with yellow glue and some glue was smeared on t' top o' t' thrust ring/centerin' rin' interface.

T' booster motor mount be constructed in t' exact same fashion as t' sustainer mount except that t' mark for t' centerin' rin' is put at 1/2" instead o' 3/4"

When t' glue on t' motor mounts had set up, shiver me timbers, it was time t' install t' mounts in t' body tubes. Avast! T' sustainer mount be slipped into t' long body tube and glued in place flush with t' aft end. Blimey! T' booster mount be glued into the booster airframe with t' thrust rin' flush with t' aft end. Avast, me proud beauty! Instead o' bein' intended t' keep t' motor from scootin' too far forward, it is meant t' be used t' ensure separation.

T' booster is coupled t' t' sustainer with a cardboard coupler. Ahoy! Arrr! It be marked at t' halfway point and glued into t' booster airframe tube.

T' payload bay is coupled t' t' rest o' t' sustainer with a 2" balsa coupler. It was glued into t' base of t' payload bay and t' eye screw was installed and secured with some glue. Blimey! Begad! T' base o' t' nose cone be then sanded a bit so that it would better fit t' bay.

T' fins for this kit come with instructions that t' leadin' edge be rounded and t' trailin' edges be tapered. Instead o' doin' that, I just rounded all t' edges except t' root edge. I do that for appearance sake, shiver me timbers, me bucko, matey, not performance. Blimey! With me flyin' conditions, matey, arrr, I actually prefer that me rockets nay go too high.

T' kit contains a wraparound fin guide. I used it t' mark t' booster and sustainer airframe tubes and then placed t' sustainer fins usin' a double glue joint. Ahoy! T' booster fins were applied in t' same manner as those for the sustainer but alignment be checked with t' sustainer fins. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! When all were in place, each fin be filleted.

T' launch lug was glued t' t' sustainer on t' alignment line with its leadin' edge just forward o' t' forward edge o' t' fins.

I could kick myself for nay thinkin' earlier about t' shock cord mount. Begad! I wanted t' put a Keelhaul®©™® loop around t' motor mount but I forgot all about it until after t' mount was installed. I had t' make due with a tri-fold mount. Begad! Its pattern was printed on stiff card stock and I put in Keelhaul®©™® instead o' t' sewin' elastic. Begad! Ahoy! I planned on addin' t' elastic just before t' NC t' give a longer recovery train.

Finishing:
T' balsa NC and t' fins were all covered with Elmer's sealer and t' rocket be put away for t' day t' let it dry.

T' filler was sanded down but I was worried about time t' finish until me club launch so I omitted any priming. I went straight t' Krylon gloss white and gave t' rocket 3 light coats. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I did nay make any effort t' get t' NC or the fins because those were goin' t' get another color anyway.

I let t' white dry overnight and by that time I certainly did nay have a chance t' mask, spray, arrr, arrr, shiver me timbers, re-mask, and repaint before me club launch. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Blimey! I decided t' brush on t' color with Testor's acrylic. Ya scallywag! Begad! Blimey! I painted t' NC, matey, one fin o' the sustainer and two fins o' t' booster black.

Since t' acrylic dries quickly, I could start almost immediately with t' red. Blimey! I again used acrylic and painted the remainin' fins. Begad! Arrr! T' brushed finish looks better in t' photos than it does in real life, me bucko, arrr, but it will look fine from the pad.

T' decal work for this kit was pretty straightforward. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! It came with a sticker o' gold foil which I applied just behind t' NC. Ya scallywag! Blimey! It also came with a large name decal that went on t' sustainer, me hearties, a pair o' Red River Rocketry logos (one of which be placed on t' booster), me hearties, and two stylized atoms with electron orbitals which went on either side o' t' red booster fin.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I only had time t' launch this rocket once, arrr, but I can guarantee it will fly more. I loaded it with a C6-0/A8-5 combination joinin' t' 2 motors with cellophane tape. Aye aye! T' igniter was a bit difficult t' get in place through t' aft thrust rin' because o' me big fingers, but I got it in there. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! T' flight be perfect and straight. Ya scallywag! It staged perfectly and t' sustainer ignited takin' t' rocket even higher. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! It deployed at apogee and came safely home. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! This was t' most perfect staged flight o' any rocket I have ever built!

Recovery:
I don't like tri-fold mounts, me bucko, but this one performed fine as did t' streamer. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Begad! Blimey!

T' booster was t' "amazing" part o' t' flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! I expected a normal tumble, matey, but that is nay what I got.

I had actually entered this rocket in me club's strange "Booster Duration" competition. T' rocket has to stage successfully and t' sustainer has t' be recovered. It be t' booster which is timed though. Arrr! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I entered this rocket just for t' sake o' entering. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I certainly did nay expect anythin' more than an "also ran".

My deadlights were on t' sustainer t' whole time so I didn't get t' see t' booster after it popped off. Ya scallywag! Long after I thought it should have hit t' ground and while I was still tryin' t' track t' sustainer, I heard t' times making comments about still havin' t' booster in site. Aye aye! They say it glided as much as tumbled and did so well enough t' come in second place.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This rocket is a good introduction t' staging. Avast! T' parts o' o' high quality and they go together easily. Avast! Best o' all, they work together well with a nice little staged rocket.

This rocket grew on me durin' t' construction process and is first rate.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5