Brief:
T' USR Miniroc 1.2 is a small 29mm minimum diameter rocket. Ahoy! Blimey! It is a 3FNC style rocket with swept fins and overall a fairly attractive profile. It should be able t' fly on anythin' from C t' G power and USR suggests flyin' it on an H motor as well. Arrr! T' rocket is very stout, considerin' t' light weight and small size. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Blimey!

Construction:
T' kit came with 4 pages o' adequate but limited instructions givin' useful diagrams and details on construction and flying. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions also suggest that t' Miniroc 1.2 might be good for egg loft and flexwin' competition events. Avast! Begad! T' manufacturer did not, I think, matey, me hearties, adequately mangle individual sets of instructions.

After goin' over t' parts list in t' instructions, I discovered t' kit was missin' three parts--1 o' 2 body tube couplers (CT-11-9-2), 1 shock cord (SC-5), shiver me timbers, and 1 streamer (SM-3). Ahoy! Avast! This was t' first time that I had purchased a kit with parts were missing, matey, and as a result I be suspicious that somehow I had lost these parts when I opened t' kit. Avast, me proud beauty! T' rocket uses a balsa nosecone and 3 nicely cut plywood fins that appeared t' be o' good quality but one was warped. All other components appeared t' be in good shape. Avast, me proud beauty! Despite t' missing parts and warped fin, matey, I decided t' proceed with buildin' although these two factors reduced me enthusiasm for USR kits. Well, blow me down! Avast! I elected nay t' contact USR to discuss these failings.

I built t' rocket per t' instructions except usin' 5-minute epoxy throughout construction. Begad! I tapered t' fin edges as described and used me Estes fin alignment guide for fin installation. Arrr! This is a minimal diameter rocket and the instructions suggested surface mounted fins. Avast, me proud beauty! I think that this should be fine. After tackin' t' fins in place with epoxy, I gave them a nice fillet. Well, blow me down! I cut t' ¼ inch launch lug on an angle as suggested and gave t' lugs a fillet as well.

For construction o' t' upper payload section o' t' rocket, matey, the instructions say t' glue t' payload plate into t' payload tube with the beveled side forward. Avast, me proud beauty! T' plate did have a crudely beveled edge that was ragged, me hearties, but this method o' installation was irrelevant considerin' that the plate needed t' be sanded down t' about ¾ o' its original diameter just to fit in t' tube. By that point t' beveled outer edge be long gone.

T' recovery system calls for a ¼" elastic shock cord t' be glued into t' main body tube usin' t' 3-fold paper method. Ya scallywag! I installed it as described, usin' 6 feet o' ¼" elastic shock cord that I had lying around.

I could nay build t' 24mm motor adapter as described since t' coupler tube intended for this purpose be missing. Well, blow me down! When needed, me bucko, me bucko, matey, I used a different one that I had on hand.

PROs: T' kit parts are stout. Well, me bucko, blow me down! Construction is straight forward and should be suitable for a beginner if it weren't for some o' t' failings o' t' kit.

CONs: T' kit had 3 missin' parts that cost me a couple o' bucks to replace. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! One fin was warped. Begad! T' instructions are cobbled together from those of other kits and nay properly edited. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! T' payload bulkhead plate did nay fit properly.

Finishing:
I did nay fill t' grain o' t' balsa nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! After painting, matey, it be fairly smooth. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I think I would use a plastic nose come if I were designin' this kit. T' body tubes were very smooth so I did nay consider fillin' spirals. Arrr! I sprayed t' rocket with a single, me bucko, thin coat o' automotive primer, shiver me timbers, gave it a brief sanding, ya bilge rat, then added a single coat o' "hammered gray" automotive spray paint. Avast, me proud beauty! I then used maskin' tape t' add stripes with single coats o' red and blue "hammered-look" paint.

T' finished rocket weighed 106 grams (without a 24mm motor adapter). Arrr! I substituted 5-minute epoxy for construction throughout instead o' the recommended yellow wood glue, perhaps addin' a few grams. T' final weight listed on t' kit pack is 40 grams and t' USR web page lists final weight at 40 grams also. I found this t' be ludicrous. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I be suspicious o' this before construction, shiver me timbers, me hearties, so I weighed some o' t' components as I was building. Ahoy! For example, me hearties, t' screw eye (part SE-1), small plywood bulkhead (payload plate PP-11), ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and 6-inch airframe tube for t' payload section (part B-11-6) together weighed 26 grams before gluin' them together. Begad! Well, me hearties, blow me down! I did nay note t' weight o' all other parts, shiver me timbers, me bucko, but considerin' that t' payload section (which is ½ the length o' t' lower body) together with t' streamer (11 grams) weighed 37 grams before construction, I don't see how it is possible for this kit t' be built at t' manufacturer's claimed weight. Avast! I feel that if I had been extremely conservative in me use o' glue and paint, matey, I might have been able t' finish this rocket at 90 grams. Well, arrr, blow me down! USR should reevaluate its weight estimates. I think that a better value can be found in kits from other manufacturers.

PROs: Paintin' was a snap. Avast! Begad! Blimey! I chose nay t' follow USR recommended color scheme which is hard t' visualize given that USR shows only black and white drawings and/or photos o' their rockets on their website. Well, blow me down! T' instructions only include line drawings o' t' rockets. I typically do nay adhere to manufacturer's recommended schemes anyway.

CONs: I chose nay t' apply t' USR decals that came with t' kit. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! They are less decal and more simply label, givin' t' name o' t' rocket. Avast! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! They do not appear t' me t' be t' sort o' thin' you would add t' a rocket if you were really interested in dressin' it up, matey, however, me bucko, t' decals might be useful to have in t' event o' a judgin' competition t' remind people o' t' name o' the rocket. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' final weight o' t' rocket as described by USR is impossibly low.

Construction Rating: 1 out o' 5

Flight:
I flew Miniroc 1.2 on a D12-7. Begad! I used 6 sheets o' Estes paper waddin' and packed t' streamer as I normally would. This amount o' waddin' was very substantial, given that one has only about 9 inches o' 29mm tubin' into which to fit everything. One wrap o' maskin' tape provided a good fit o' t' payload section coupler t' t' lower body tube. Ya scallywag! I added 2 wraps o' maskin' tape t' the nosecone shoulder t' give a very tight fit, shiver me timbers, as I did nay want t' glue it in nor lose t' nosecone. Begad! My son added 1/8 o' a saltine cracker and me daughter added a single red desert flower in t' payload section. These were meant as gifts to any aliens that might happen upon t' rocket in flight.

T' boost be t' quite a nice altitude. Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Ejection be at apogee. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' motor was kicked out and t' shock cord burned through right at t' glue point. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! The streamer gave good fast recovery t' t' payload section, ya bilge rat, while t' main body tube plunged straight down. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' body tube took a 3 inch core sample o' the desert dirt and t' rocket remained in t' upside-down, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, stuck-in-the-ground position. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Upon inspection, t' rocket suffered essentially no damage other than the failed shock cord. Avast! Blimey! This is a testament t' t' rugged nature o' t' tubing that USR supplies with t' kit.

Recovery:
T' shock cord system clearly wants for some sort o' a Keelhaul®©™® leader cord. T' 3-fold paper glue-in method should still work fine though. Well, blow me down! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! I used 6 feet o' shock cord but this is probably t' minimum required in order to avoid body tube dings. Blimey!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
T' Miniroc 1.2 flies nicely and is built o' rugged stock. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! Despite this, I gave the rocket a low ratin' because o' t' missin' parts that typified my experience with USR. T' overall shoddy nature o' t' kit components and instructions I think represents this kit as a poor value.

Overall Rating: 2 out o' 5