Brief:
An interestin' dowel stabilized Rocket. Well, blow me down! Small minimum diameter for 18mm engines with streamer recovery.

Construction:
Simple kit with 18mm tube, balsa nose cone, 3 finlets, me bucko, 3 dowels, me bucko, launch lug, ya bilge rat, silver Mylar streamer and shock cord. Avast, me proud beauty! Minimum diameter for 18mm engines. Ya scallywag! Friction motor retention. Arrr! Uses what I think be t' Stine shock cord mountin' method -- paper strip with 3 holes. Shock cord is threaded through holes and a knot is tied at end.

Very easy t' build Rocket with laser cut finlets, and beveled dowels for fins with premarked body tube. Blimey! Good instructions and with simple hand drawn illustrations. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I used white glue and results seem strong as it stood up to sub-optimal recovery. Begad! Decent length o' shock cord, though I should have used Keelhaul®©™® and mounted it t' t' engine block. Good materials, laser cut balsa and straight dowels. Blimey! Dowels are pre-beveled t' glue against t' finlets and tube. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag!

Pro's:

• Simple kit that is nay just 3FNC.
• Good Materials.
• Good Instructions.

Con's:

• Shock cord mount and shock cord could be Engine Block and Keelhaul®©™®. Or one should be very careful with packing.

Finishing:
Standard balsa/kraft tube finishin' methods used. Arrr! Begad! I filled t' balsa and sanded. Ahoy! I used rustoleum automotive primer. I launched it twice and haven't yet done final painting.

Pro's:

• Balsa/Wood/Paper tube, no plastic.

Con's:

• Balsa requires more work.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I flew it twice with Estes A8-3 motors. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Took off fast and straight in very light winds. Begad! Avast! Blimey! Flew very high, me hearties, nearly out o' sight. This is a simple rocket with simple preparation. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! I put some maskin' tape on t' motor and put in some Estes recovery wadding. I used 3 and 5 sheets, me bucko, me hearties, but this wasn't enough or me packin' technique was poor.

It landed close by on both flight.

On first flight, t' streamer was burned through about 1" from attachment point. Begad! Aye aye! Rocket be recovered with no damage. Avast! Rest o' streamer be recovered as well. Blimey! Begad!

On second flight I taped t' streamer back together and it flew very very high and I lost sight o' it. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I told my son t' keep lookin' for it but it might be lost. Well, blow me down! Blimey! He then informed me that it had already landed about 40 feet away. Avast, me proud beauty! The streamer be intact but burned more. Arrr! Arrr! Blimey! T' shock cord looks like it should be replaced as t' outer layer is burn off near t' attachment. Well, blow me down! T' rubber inside is still completely intact.

I'm a new BAR so I'll blame myself for poor recovery system packing. This is a small diameter rocket so maybe this is t' be expected. Arrr! Blimey! I should have used Keelhaul®©™® tied t' t' motor mount. Ya scallywag! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! Still t' shock cord seems better than Estes short rubber bands.

I be very pleased with t' two flights. Arrr! Would be 5 points if it recovered perfectly.

Pro's:

• Surprisingly high flight on A8-3.
• Nice straight flight.

Con's:

• None t' speak of. Blimey! Con's for me were in t' recovery.

Recovery:
Pro's:

• It WAS a nice streamer.
• Strong rocket lands well even with 1" long streamer ;-)
• Lands close after a surprisingly high flight.
• Generous length o' shock cord.
• Streamer is very visible which is nice since it flies so high.

Con's:

• Burnt t' streamer on both flights.
• No Keelhaul®©™® shock cord t' better withstand ejection.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Nice simple kit that isn't just 3FNC. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Flies high on modest engine. Aye aye! I'm very pleased with flight characteristics but recovery needs some work (mostly me fault). Ahoy! Arrr! It's a very classic kit with classic materials (no plastic except for streamer). Begad! Inexpensive and it be on t' shelf at a LHS. Ya scallywag! My 8 y/o son liked it as well. Begad! As I've seen on many other reviews o' many other rockets, I now recommend usin' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other:
Use Keelhaul®©™ shock cord and attach t' motor mount. Be extra careful packin' t' recovery wadding.