Brief:
Estes mini high performance 2 stage rocket can also be flown single. It uses mini engines and has a streamer recovery for t' body and tumble for the booster. Ahoy! It has die-cut fiber fins.

Construction:
1 long body tube, shiver me timbers, 2 short body tubes, arrr, me bucko, ya bilge rat, 1 tube coupler, shiver me timbers, me bucko, 1 nose cone insert, me bucko, 1 nose cone, shiver me timbers, 1 orange streamer, 1 shock cord, 1 launch lug, ya bilge rat, 1 cardboard fin sheet, shiver me timbers, and 1 decal sheet.

T' instructions are very easy t' follow and contain good illustrations. Begad! Blimey! The assembly order seems logical. Blimey! There were two templates, me hearties, shiver me timbers, one for t' bigger body tube and one for t' 2 smaller tubes. It be annoyin' that some directions were on t' back o' t' templates when you had t' cut them out but it be nothing unmanageable. Blimey! Fin alignment wasn't so simple, matey, as I used regular Elmer's glue, which we all know takes years t' dry. Begad! Begad! So I had t' hold me fins in their places for a while. I suggest NOT usin' Elmer's glue even though it gave me a very strong hold when it dried because it takes too long. Begad! All t' parts fit perfectly and t' rocket seems really durable and sturdy. Blimey! No special tools were needed and no supplies other that t' basics were used.

Finishing:
There are no special requirements for finishing. Begad! I painted t' upper body tube flat enamel white and t' fin section blue gloss. Aye aye! That was what was shown in the manufacturers picture, ya bilge rat, but I didn't want me booster section t' be yellow so I painted it gloss red--a patriotic rocket! T' instructions for finishin' are easy. Ya scallywag! There is one small decal that goes on t' main body tube and a few little Estes decals you can basically put anywhere. Begad! It looks okay but I've seen much more attractive rockets in me lifetime.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors are A3-4T (first flight), ya bilge rat, me hearties, arrr, A10-3T, A10-0T Booster. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, matey, blow me down! I have not flown mine yet, matey, me bucko, shiver me timbers, as I have yet t' produce t' funds for a couple packs of motors, shiver me timbers, however, arrr, shiver me timbers, I have seen one flown with an A10-3T and A10-0T booster. Avast, me proud beauty! It went incredibly high and didn't go straight at all. Begad! It looked unstable. The owner didn't even bother t' look for it, matey, matey, as it be still in t' thrust stage when it went over t' horizon. Well, blow me down! Avast! It be projected t' go over 900 ft and I think it went at least 1100 ft when I saw it fly.

Recovery:
T' shock cord was typical Estes with paper mount. Begad! Aye aye! T' materials seems t' be very strong and o' high quality. T' recovery is a streamer and I think that since t' rocket is so light it will work fine.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
T' best thin' about t' Mini Cobra is that it is a cheap, me hearties, small, me hearties, high performance dual stage rocket. Aye aye! It's fairly easy t' build and I would put it more under t' category o' skill level 2 rather than Estes' placement o' skill level III.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5