Brief:
Single staged conical rocket that flies on 29mm motors and recovers by a combination o' tumble recovery and shock cord. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' light weight o' t' rocket makes a streamer or parachute unnecessary.

Construction:
T' kit comes in a sealed plastic envelope with two body tubes, matey, namely, a 5 inch length o' 29mm motor tubin' and 5 inches o' BT55 motor mount tubing. The rocket has no fins. There are two plates which are rather like centerin' rings, which t' builder cuts from foam backed board stock. Well, blow me down! Begad! Blimey! These round plates will hold t' engine mount tubings and center t' assembly inside t' conical shell, which is cut from card stock. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! There is additional card stock used t' cut a smaller internal nose cone reinforcement, ya bilge rat, which reinforces t' pointed conical shape and also holds a small amount o' epoxy that serves both as ballast and as tip reinforcement. Begad! There is 36 inches o' 1/16 inch thick round elastic shock cord provided for recovery with t' attachment bein' a paper folded attachment arrangement like those seen in Estes rockets.

T' instructions come with t' components in t' plastic envelope and are neatly typed out with page numbers and greyscale photographs on every page. Avast! Ahoy! The components requirin' cuttin' are clearly marked on t' foam board and card stock. Begad! Ya scallywag! T' order is clear and logical and t' pictures help visual people like myself t' imagine beforehand what t' project will look like. T' this last end, I provided you with a color photograph o' t' finished product next t' t' 24mm cone also flown, but shown on its side t' show its motor mount. Begad! There is also a 12-inch standard ruler in t' photo t' provide scale.

T' only difficult part o' t' assembly was fittin' t' internal nose cone assembly into t' outer conical shell, me hearties, and makin' all t' launch rod holes line up. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' assemblies are made by rollin' and gluin' card stocks and clampin' them together until t' glue dries. Begad! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Keepin' them aligned be tricky. I found that I had t' enlarge t' launch rod holes slightly on t' inner assembly t' match the outer shell. I discovered another slight fit issue with t' motor mount ring that fits aftward into t' conical shell. It seems t' fit too loosely. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! This may be because I cut too much from t' rin' t' bevel it and fit it neatly into the cone.

Also, arrr, t' smaller 24mm cone has tube gaskets that hold t' motor mount inside t' slightly larger BT55 inner body tube. Arrr! This 29mm version does not. While t' rocket will nay come apart durin' flight due t' aerodynamic forces, some RSO's may nay like t' inspect rockets that cannot hold together when picked up by t' top.

However, matey, shiver me timbers, me hearties, after assembly, ya bilge rat, t' rocket came out sturdy and attractive. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I chose antimatter orange, me favorite color. It helps with visibility, me hearties, me hearties, which, as you will read later, mattered a lot!!

Tools needed t' finish t' project are: a new, sharp #11 Exacto knife. Ya scallywag! Blimey! New is best because foam board distorts and displays attitudes when cut with a blade t' least bit dull. Ahoy! Also, arrr, ya bilge rat, white glue, scissors, and 5 minute epoxy. Aye aye! These can all be had in local hobby stores and even grocery stores.

Finishing:
T' rocket requires no painting, matey, as t' card stock arrives with a colored outer side o' t' buyer's choice from several options. Avast, me proud beauty! Decals were nay used, matey, me hearties, but on solid colors like mine could look striking. Avast! I did paint t' bottom o' the rocket orange t' match t' shell just for t' sake o' art. T' foam board from which t' motor mount plate at t' bottom was made is white. Ahoy! Begad! Blimey! T' paint also helps, in me opinion, me hearties, arrr, if thar are any imperfections in t' cuttin' o' t' foam board, me hearties, like nicks and burrs.

I added a few things o' me own, arrr, but for t' beta test, I flew it unmodified first, matey, then with me additions. Ya scallywag! My changes are: T' afore mentioned tube gaskets. A small, me bucko, 12 inch parachute. Ahoy! Arrr! Blimey! And t' shock cord mounted nay with the paper mount provided, me bucko, matey, me bucko, but by a glued knot held in place by t' two foam board tube rings. T' 29mm version needs a bulkhead inside t' BT55 tube. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! I will explain later. Ahoy! Finally, matey, neither cone has actual launch lugs. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! While lugs might not be necessary, I provided them t' protect t' card stock from gougin' by the rods.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' first unmodified flights, I brought along t' 24mm version as well. Avast! I flew that one on a C11-3. Aye aye! Arrr! T' delay o' 3 was just about right. Aye aye! I half expected a lateral flight like pyramidal rockets fly, but this cone went straight up and only lateraled slightly. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' rocket separated undamaged at apogee and came down about t' right speed, ya bilge rat, me hearties, shiver me timbers, but I later added an 8 inch parachute because we fly here on hard desert soils. Avast! Begad! Mistake!!! I chased t' rocket in a thermal on the second flight with a D12-3. Arrr! Begad! Holy heatstroke, arrr, Batman! But I got it back undamaged. I highly recommend flyin' it as t' manufacturer says, when he says to use a 6-inch standoff. If you don't, me bucko, matey, t' underside o' t' rocket would burn. and foam and card stock couldn't stand that. Aye aye! After these two flights, arrr, I added the launch rod and t' added weight didn't hamper performance.

Now, ya bilge rat, t' t' 29mm cone. Don't do as I did. Arrr! I flew it in a park, thinking that a cone couldn't gain enough altitude t' drift away. Arrr! Wrong!!! On a G35-4, the rocket took off with a bang. Begad! My liftoff photo be only smoke. Begad! And the rocket went out o' sight. Begad! Well, arrr, blow me down! I had t' rely on a kid with better eyesight t' tell me that t' rocket ended up in a neighbor's yard clean out o' that park. Begad! That was embarrassin' havin' t' ask t' get it back. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! I couldn't just sneak over and get it. I had t' ask for it back because all t' plots thar are concreted off by high fences. Begad! But it was undamaged, me hearties, arrr, shiver me timbers, so t' delay o' 4 was adequate. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! 7 might work as well. Ahoy! Aye aye! T' manufacturer recommends takin' out 2/3 o' t' ejection charge for t' flight because thar's too much provided and it could damage the rocket. Blimey! Begad! T' black powder motors used with t' 24mm version don't have that problem. Anyway, arrr, some RSO's do nay want a modified motor flown, me bucko, so on my modified flights, ya bilge rat, I added an epoxied wooden bulkhead t' protect t' internal top o' t' rocket durin' deployment. Ya scallywag! I also added a supplemental length of another 36 inches o' elastic shock cord t' allow more stress distribution after usin' t' full provided ejection charge. I added t' afore mentioned tube gaskets t' hold t' rocket together for inspections. A launch lug was also added within t' launch rod holes. Well, blow me down! However, in me infinite wisdom, arrr, I added a 12 inch parachute t' make t' rocket descend more slowly and visibly. Begad! Arrr! When it comes t' heat stroke, matey, I'll never learn...on a G25-5, ya bilge rat, me bucko, t' rocket went out of sight and drifted over half a mile. Again, me bucko, though, that delay was fine. Blimey! But with a G40, me hearties, ya bilge rat, me bucko, I found that 7 worked without damage. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! I'm leanin' towards usin' a 7 delay because many with a 4 second delay seem way shorter than 4.

Recovery:
I pretty much covered this in t' previous sections.

However, if I had t' change somethin' beyond what I already did, I'd suggest a streamer.

And don't do this when it's 115 degrees out, arrr, shiver me timbers, like I did. Brains fry at that temperature! Blimey! However, I had a lot o' fun. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
These kits are fun and easy. Begad! A child or adult alike would like it. Begad! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! They're bright and unusual. Blimey! However, shiver me timbers, I don't recommend flyin' in a park for and with greater than a D motor. They go higher than you'd think.

I think a streamer is a good addition, matey, myself. A parachute may be too much, considerin' t' light weight and potential for catchin' thermals.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5