Brief:
T' US Rockets (USR) Mosquito 2.2 is an easy t' build ~4.5x upscale o' the perennial Estes kit. Ya scallywag! (T' 2.2 refers t' t' diameter o' t' airframe in inches.) While still lightweight--less than 5oz completed--it does come back on streamer recovery. Ya scallywag! It flies on smaller 29mm motors and even comes with an adapter so 24mm motors can be used.

Construction:
T' kit includes:

• 1 2.25" ogive balsa nose cone
• 1 9" x 2.25" body tube
• 2 birch ply centerin' rings
• 1 4" long 29mm motor tube
• 1 screw eye
• 1 3-fold paper shock cord mount
• 1 60" x 1/4" elastic shock cord
• 3 1/4" balsa fins
• 1 1/4" launch lugs
• 1 60" x 3" plastic streamer
• 1 24mm motor adapter kit
• Decals
• Instruction manual
• Advanced Information Report (AIR) #1 -- Motor Installation

After several recent challengin' rocket builds, shiver me timbers, I needed t' build something that had more instant gratification and kept t' basic build techniques. The U.S. Well, blow me down! Rockets Mosquito proved t' be a more than worthwhile distraction. Arrr! Begad! With so few parts and pre-cut surface mount fins, me bucko, ya bilge rat, perhaps t' greatest challenge was sandin' a nice even taper on t' long leadin' and trailin' edges o' t' fins. Arrr! A sandin' block with 150 grit sandpaper still made reasonably short work o' this task. Ya scallywag! Avast! Usin' maskin' tape (or alternately, drawin' lines) on t' fins assured an even taper on all sides o' t' fins.

T' centerin' rings were glued and filleted near t' ends o' t' motor mount tube with yellow wood glue (aliphatic resin). Ya scallywag! Yellow wood glue was in fact used for t' entire build. Well, blow me down! While t' motor mount was drying, arrr, arrr, I used the markin' guide in t' instructions and me Estes Fin Alignment tool t' mark the fins and launch lug lines t' length o' t' short body tube.

Allowin' t' motor mount a few more minutes t' dry, shiver me timbers, I inserted t' screw eye into t' base o' t' nose cone, twisted it back out, shiver me timbers, matey, and then squeezed a small amount o' polyurethane glue into t' hole before reinsertin' t' screw eye. Then I used a X-Acto knife t' cut t' 2" long launch lug in half at a 45 degree angle. Ahoy! Blimey! Lastly I glued t' fins onto t' body tube with t' trailing edge even with t' aft end o' t' tube usin' t' double glue method (lightly glue, press t' fin onto t' body tube, me bucko, me hearties, pull it away, wait a minute, apply more glue on fin, shiver me timbers, place t' fin back on t' tube, arrr, and allow t' dry fully). Arrr! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! I did that for each o' t' 3 fins keepin' a close eye on their alignment. Begad! Blimey! T' launch lugs were tacked on t' tube at t' aft end and 6" up. Begad! Blimey! A couple layers of fillets had t' fins and launch lugs firmly attached.

With t' fins and motor mount dry, shiver me timbers, I put a generous amount o' glue inside the aft end o' t' body tube and slide t' motor mount up until t' aft end of the motor tube was flush with t' aft end o' t' body tube. Ahoy! Aye aye! I set it aside and let it dry overnight.

I waited until after all o' t' paintin' had been done t' install t' shock cord, me hearties, ya bilge rat, which uses t' familiar tri-fold paper mount inside t' airframe and ties t' the screw eye. Aye aye! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' make t' streamer portable, I tied a snap swivel onto one end. A small loop was tied in t' shock cord t' clip t' streamer to.

I did nay bother t' assemble t' 24mm motor adapter. This is one o' many USR kits I've built t' date that already use t' same adapter. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! I'll save the tubes for another project...

Finishing:
No surprises here. Arrr! Arrr! T' nose cone was on t' rough side but a couple coats of Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish along with some sandin' had it smoothed out in no time. T' fins received a similar treatment but only needed one coat o' FnF. Ya scallywag! USR tubes are so smooth. Aye aye! I didn't have t' fill any spirals and jumped right in to layin' down t' primer. Aye aye! A couple o' coats along with sandin' afterwards had it ready for t' classic Mosquito paint job o' yellow nose cone and one fin with red body tube and two fins. I added one o' t' smaller USR logo stickers on the body tube and t' "U.S. Begad! Rockets Mosquito 2.2" decals on each side of the yellow fin as a final touch!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
In an attempt t' get it back from its first flight, I loaded up a E9-8 along with t' 24mm adapter from another o' me USR kits. Begad! T' delay accordin' to RockSim should be a little on t' late side with this motor but with t' light weight o' t' rocket and t' streamer recovery, me hearties, that will hopefully translate into a short walk for recovery. Ahoy! Avast! That be t' plan anyway...

I loaded it up on t' pad at a large soccer field at a local private school as a demo launch for a group o' students. Aye aye! Avast! T' winds were pretty strong but we had flown several rockets up t' 500ft and they had all recovered on t' field. I pushed t' launch button and watched it go! T' long burn E9 didn't have make the rocket leave t' pad in a blur but it got goin' quick enough and pushed the Mosquito t' well over 500ft as seen in t' previous flights o' other rockets. It be however (thankfully) always visible durin' flight unlike t' original Mosquito. Ejection be just past apogee as intended and t' streamer quickly unfurled. Ya scallywag! T' winds really took hold o' t' rocket and took it for a ride. In fact, me hearties, ya bilge rat, it drifted pretty far, shiver me timbers, clearin' t' field and one o' t' school buildings. Well, blow me down! On t' other side o' t' buildin' was a couple o' trees and it landed comfortably about 20 feet up in one o' those trees. Several students and I took turns climbin' t' tree but none o' us were able t' get close enough to retrieve it. Arrr! A teacher did brin' up a telescopin' pole and that proved t' be exactly what was needed t' get it down. Aye aye! T' shock cord was broken from pulling on it and t' rocket suffered some dents and dings durin' this process but the damage was minor. Ya scallywag! It will fly again! Plus I felt pretty good after snatchin' my rocket back from t' evil clutches o' t' rocket gods!

I would like t' fly it again in t' future on a much higher thrust motor to get that "authentic" Mosquito flight experience...

Recovery:
T' 60" long neon pink plastic streamer should limit any long walks for recovery and allow for easy trackin' post-ejection on calm days. Begad! A shorter streamer and/or longer motor delay should be used on windy days. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I used dog barf cellulose waddin' t' protect t' streamer. This was more than adequate for 24mm BP motors.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' U.S. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Rockets Mosquito 2.2 is a fun upscale o' a classic LPR that can be built and prepped in a very short time. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! Perhaps t' greatest advantage t' this version is that you can actually track it durin' flight and expect a very good chance o' flyin' it more than one time, arrr, unlike t' original. Blimey! Ya scallywag! This also would make a good transition kit for someone lookin' t' make t' move from LPR to MPR.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5