Brief:
Up-scaled t' 38mm.

Modifications:
For me level-1 certification and me first high-power rocket I wanted a large, simple rocket kit without any bells and whistles. I chose t' LOC-IV as I thought it looked t' fit t' bill, and wouldn't break me credit card. I decided to up-scale t' 38mm rather than stick t' 29mm because I liked t' motor selection and thought I'd get a lot o' use out o' t' 38mm RMS reload set in the future. Aye aye! Arrr! T' modification be pretty straight-forward. Begad! I got a heavy duty 38mm cardboard motor tube from a friend (thanks, Dave) and used three, arrr, instead of t' kit's two, centerin' rings for t' motor mount. Avast, me proud beauty! I mounted one rin' on the fore end o' t' motor tube, and mounted t' other two on either side o' the thru-the-wall fin tabs. Aye aye! T' kit surprised me when I found that t' fin tabs only mount through t' airframe wall, and nay all t' way t' t' motor mount. Avast! I considered cuttin' new fins with longer tabs but in t' end decided t' stick with t' stock fins. Blimey! Blimey! I added three tee nuts t' t' read C.R. Arrr! Well, blow me down! for motor retention with aluminum screen clamps and 8-32 x 1" hex head bolts. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I added a stainless u-bolt t' t' forward C.R. Well, blow me down! Avast! for shock cord attachment. I added a few ounces o' lead weight t' t' nose cone for some additional stability, but later realized that it be unnecessary. Finally, me bucko, I up-scaled t' included 36" chute t' a 48" round nylon chute t' compensate for added weight and t' give a nice, me bucko, slow recovery for me level-1 attempt.

Overall, I like t' LOC kit. Begad! Good materials, instructions, matey, me hearties, and packaging. T' only negative would be t' short fin tabs. Avast! I highly recommend cuttin' new fins with extended tabs for this kit.

Flight:
T' first flight be at SpudRoc-IV for a level-1 cert on a H123W RMS motor. Avast! Begad! The winds were low and t' rocket flew perfectly straight t' about 1800' and ejected perfectly at apogee. Avast, me proud beauty! T' rocket drifted quite a distance but landed with hardly a scratch. Arrr! Ahoy!

T' second flight was later t' same day on an I357T. Avast! T' flight was straight but t' ejection delay came early and t' tubular nylon shock cord zippered t' tube about 4". Ya scallywag! I had also changed back t' t' 36" parachute t' avoid t' long walk across t' desert t' recover t' rocket. Ya scallywag! Arrr! This however gave too fast a descent rate and one fin broke on impact. I later repaired t' zipper by added a tube coupler and a 10" length o' 4" airframe tubing. Arrr! T' new LOC-IV-38-stretch added an additional 6" t' the overall length. Begad! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty!

T' third flight was on a H242T, arrr, me hearties, which from simulations looked t' be the best motor choice. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! T' winds however were fairly strong and t' rocket weathercocked and even though ejection occurred near apogee t' rocket had too much horizontal speed and again zippered t' tube. T' tube be repaired simply by cuttin' 4" off t' recently added repair tube and t' rocket is back to close t' original length. Aye aye!

T' fourth flight was again on a H123W, ejection at apogee, ya bilge rat, 48" chute but still a rough enough landin' t' break a fin. Well, blow me down! Arrr! T' rocket is now repaired and awaitin' its next flight.

Summary:
A good, easy up-scale project. Begad! Ya scallywag! Suggestions: Cut new fins with tabs t' mount to motor tube. 48" chute a must. Avast! Glass tube.