Brief:
T' Super Flea was a single stage mini-motored rocket that came in a 2 rocket kit along with t' Javelin. Estes sold these in t' early 1970s, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and it be t' first kit I ever purchased with me own loot. There was nothin' really special about them, me bucko, matey, but it has a sentimental value for me, as I built t' original with t' help o' me grandmother, shiver me timbers, who is no longer with us. Well, blow me down! So, me bucko, I kind o' built it as a tribute o' sorts.

Construction:
I used a couple small pieces o' 13mm body tube, a nose cone from a Rogue Gnat (not exactly a true replica, ya bilge rat, but close enough), matey, and a 5mm length o' low power launch lug. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! For a tubin' coupler, I used a small slice o' a 25 year old A3-4T I found in me dad's closet, where I found a lot o' other rocket goodies as well. T' shock cord is very un-Estes like; I made it out o' a 3 foot section o' elastic thread, arrr, whereas t' original was t' old flat elastic that Estes was pretty stingy with. Aye aye! Blimey! T' four fins were cut from 1/8" balsa.

T' instructions were typical early t' mid 70s Estes quality. Aye aye! T' illustrations were great, ya bilge rat, which helped me get t' proper scale for t' fins and body tube lengths. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! T' only thin' I didn't like about t' original kit be t' shock cord mountin' method: t' shock cord was wrapped around t' tube coupler, matey, then t' coupler be inserted into t' lower body tube. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! This caused t' tube t' distort somewhat, and though it never had any effect on flight it always bugged me. Arrr! So, for this model I cut a notch in t' coupler and applied CA t' hold it inside, givin' me a perfectly round tube. Ya scallywag! I coated t' fins and nose with a thin coat o' 2 hour epoxy for durability, matey, then painted t' whole thin' with testor's Aluminum. T' best part about it be t' fact that I had almost all t' parts I needed in me range box, me hearties, except for t' nose cone. Ya scallywag! So I bought a fistful o' Gnats from Lawn Dart Rocketry at LDRS and used one o' those.

Finishing:
T' rockets always looked kind o' plain, me bucko, since they came with no decals. After I epoxied everything, matey, I sanded it all down, applied a coat o' day-glo orange, and t' thin' looked stupid. Aye aye! So I repainted it with Testor's aluminum, shiver me timbers, and it looks fairly good now. Well, blow me down! Nothin' difficult about this rocket, shiver me timbers, arrr, or t' original kit either. Way better than t' junk Estes puts out now- NO PLASTIC! I would give this rocket a 5 if it wasn't for t' goofy shock cord mounting.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
My memory must be cloudy, ya bilge rat, me bucko, because I don't remember this bein' a particularly good performer when I be a kid. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! I even made a 2 stager when I was 12, and don't remember it flyin' like this. Aye aye! Begad! All I did was insert some cellulose wadding, a prepped A3-4T (friction mount), matey, stuff in t' shock cord, and put it on t' launcher. Aye aye! T' countdown came over t' PA system, me hearties, and when it reached 1, that be t' last time anybody saw it until later in t' day! T' thin' left t' launcher in a blur, and all I saw t' prove that it had flown at all was t' smoke. Begad! All future flights will be on smaller motors, arrr, matey, me hearties, maybe even some micro-motors. Ahoy! T' thin' is just too fast otherwise.

Recovery:
Recovery works well, even without a streamer. Nay too fast, no drifting, and no damage on landing. I am startin' t' see some charrin' around t' base o' t' fins though, arrr, but that's easily repairable. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Blimey! This is almost t' easiest t' prep rocket I've ever had, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and thanks t' t' epoxy, pretty near indestructible.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Main pros: Easy t' prep, good recovery system with t' mid-body separation, arrr, and eye-poppin' flights. Blimey! Cons: too small t' see at apogee, and too fast t' watch on a "big" motor. Aye aye! Best o' all, me hearties, shiver me timbers, t' thin' cost just over a buck.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5