Brief:
This is a plastic model conversion o' t' Soviet SS-6 Sapwood Heavy Strategic Missile manufactured by t' Russian company, Maquette. T' scale is 1:144. I picked this model up at War & Pieces in West Hartford, CT. Begad! This store carries a lot o' Eastern European kits, and I really liked t' looks o' t' rocket. Aye aye! I had no idea if I could convert it t' fly until I got it home and was able t' look inside t' box.

Modifications:
Interestingly, matey, shiver me timbers, t' instructions for t' model have some English on them, but most o' t' writin' is in Russian. Ya scallywag! Begad! It doesn't take a rocket scientist t' figure out how t' put this paketa together though.

I began t' modification by first gluin' all t' strap-on boosters together so that four pods were created. Avast, me proud beauty! T' fins are already a detailed part o' t' boosters, me hearties, so this was an easy step. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I simply glued two halves together and I was complete. All parts were in halves and were vertical pieces.

T' central body tube is almost wide enough t' contain a central 13mm motor mount. Avast! Blimey! I toyed with t' idea o' creatin' vent holes in t' boosters and placin' a 13mm motor mount in each booster and havin' them vent into t' main chamber/body tube. Ya scallywag! I then decided that this was too much hassle and would create too many chances for failure. I decided after much thought that t' way t' achieve what I needed was t' remove some o' t' body tube and replace it with a slightly larger internal diameter BT-5 body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I began by gluin' t' main body tube together. Blimey! I measured what needed t' be removed t' house a standard 13mm motor and motor block. Ahoy! Ahoy! Blimey! I then cut off 1 5/8" off t' bottom o' t' plastic body tube. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! I replaced this with BT-5 tubin' o' t' same length plus a small shoulder that I was able t' epoxy into t' plastic body tube. I tied some Keelhaul®©™ around a motor block and glued t' motor block into t' rocket as well, me bucko, feedin' t' Keelhaul®©™ up through t' body tube.

Next, I glued t' four boosters onto t' main body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! I then added clay and BBs t' t' nose cone (fillin' both halves completely) before gluin' them together. Blimey! I did insert a screw eye in t' nose cone so that I would be able t' tie t' Keelhaul®©™to t' nose cone. I also glued a launch lug on t' upper portion o' t' body tube.

Last but nay least, me hearties, I glued each nozzle onto a plate (4 nozzles per plate) which then fit on t' bottom o' each strap-on booster. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! There be another nozzle plate for t' central motor, me bucko, but this is only for looks since it has t' be removed for t' 13mm motor. Aye aye! Blimey! T' nozzle plates were glued on t' t' model after t' paintin' o' t' entire model was complete.

Construction:

T' plastic model parts used in this conversion consist o' t' following:

• 2 nose cone pieces
• 2 body tube pieces
• 8 strap-on booster pieces
• many parts for t' engine nozzle details (approximately 25 pieces)

What I needed t' add t' make t' conversion:

• short length o' 13mm tubing
• motor block
• Keelhaul®©™
• launch lug
• screw eye
• nose weight (clay, BB's, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, epoxy)
• streamer or small parachute

Finishing:
There were no decals included with t' model. Avast! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! T' suggested color for t' model is "Soviet Green overall" with silver for t' nozzles. I airbrushed t' entire model with a kind o' olive green that had darker shades o' forest green and silver in it. I then airbrushed t' 5 nozzle plates silver then dry brushed t' inside o' each nozzle with red. All paints I used were acrylics. Arrr! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! This is actually a pretty easy paint scheme and was fun t' put together.

Flight:
Motor prep is simple. Ya scallywag! T' A10 is friction fit. Blimey! I used waddin' and then prepped t' chute. Well, blow me down! T' nose cone is also friction fit (see below for more detail).

T' only motor I would recommend would be t' A10-3T. Ya scallywag! I flew t' Sapwood three times usin' this motor selection. In these initial flights, ya bilge rat, I used a small parachute. Arrr! Blimey! Given t' size o' t' body tube, I would recommend usin' a streamer instead. Ya scallywag! T' parachute remained clumped durin' every launch, probably due t' it bein' crammed inside a small space.

There is one distinct CON with this model: t' nose cone has a shoulder o' about 2mm, arrr, so it does nay sit very well on t' top o' t' rocket. Ahoy! I solved this by tapin' some maskin' tape t' t' bottom o' t' nose cone around t' shoulder. Begad! This gave t' shoulder a little more length and allowed for a better friction fit.

T' first and third flights were almost identical. Avast! T' boost was surprisingly good considerin' t' weight o' t' rocket. Arrr! T' altitude, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, while nay astounding, me hearties, was respectable. T' three second delay worked fine, and t' rocket landed fine. Begad! By t' third launch, me hearties, t' body tube was showin' signs o' stress and was beginnin' t' come apart at t' seams. Aye aye! A little CA glue would cure this little problem.

T' second flight be very strange. It did nay boost as high as t' first flight and t' ejection be very late. Nonetheless, t' rocket be unharmed. Well, blow me down! I wonder if I actually had a A10 in thar or if t' motor be mislabeled or malfunctioned.

Recovery:
As stated before, t' rocket could probably use a good streamer rather than a parachute. Well, blow me down! Begad! Also, after a few landings, t' rocket be beginnin' t' come apart at t' glue joints. With careful flyin' and maintenance, this rocket should last.

Summary:
As far as plastic model conversions (PMC) go, matey, me hearties, I thought this was a pretty easy project (this is only me fourth or fifth PMC). Blimey! Blimey! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Blimey! T' rocket is unique. I have nay heard o' anyone else convertin' this model. Ya scallywag! Blimey! It looks great and it flies remarkably well considerin' t' size o' t' tiny fins on t' four boosters. T' price was pretty good, ya bilge rat, too. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! As I recall, I paid probably less than $10 for t' model.

There is little room for a recovery device. Ahoy! T' nose cone does nay fit well and t' flyer does nay have much motor choice, but overall, I think it is a fun project.