Brief:
T' Corona II is perhaps t' sleekest, best lookin' futuristic staged rocket I know. Arrr! Aye aye! In t' summer o' 2005, arrr, I learned that FlisKits was developin' this kit, and immediately inquired about one after readin' Lance's preview on EMRR. Finally, in February 2006, matey, t' model was on t' market and I snapped up one of the first kits.

Construction:
Lance's review covers t' basics o' assembly and finishing. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I will just add a few personal views.

T' components are typical good Fliskits quality. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' tubes have very minimal spirals t' fill. Blimey! T' chute is typical Estes-style plastic and thread. Well, blow me down! I hate chute failures so I upgraded t' one from me stash o' stuff.

T' body tube is BT-50 size, shiver me timbers, so t' rocket is long and skinny. Well, blow me down! T' avoid havin' t' fuss with waddin' in t' narrow tube, matey, I purchased a BT-50 baffle from FlisKits. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! I got a nice email from Jim Flis suggestin' t' correct baffle size and t' recommended placement (it should replace t' tube coupler halfway up the 1st stage body). Arrr! Aye aye! Thus, me hearties, me box arrived with three separate packaged kits (Corona kit, matey, me hearties, ya bilge rat, 2nd-stage kit, and baffle kit) and three sets o' instructions. Begad! Aye aye! The instructions were all very clear and t' first stage directions give explicit steps for buildin' for use with t' second stage portion.

This kit had laser cut fins that provided an amazingly precise fit, me hearties, even surpassin' t' renowned fit o' Edmonds Aerospace kits. Well, blow me down! Avast! T' fins and tubes fit together so perfectly, shiver me timbers, arrr, thar be almost no seam visible when dry fitting. Blimey! Ahoy! It is virtually impossible t' make a mistake or misalignment because o' this precision.

Needless t' say, I did make a mistake. When dry fittin' t' outside stage 2 fins, me bucko, matey, I forgot t' include t' couplin' rin' that slips over stage 1 t' connect stage 2. Ahoy! Thus, arrr, me fins appeared t' leave a slight gap. Ya scallywag! So I removed about 1/16" from each and prepared t' glue. Well, blow me down! Avast! At this point I had positioned the couplin' rin' and realized me error. Well, blow me down! T' visual effect o' me error was t' break the straight line formed by t' edges o' t' 1st and 2nd stage fins and to leave a gap at t' seams. Begad! Arrr! I corrected this with another bit o' fin trimming, and if you look closely at me photo you can see I recovered t' intended visual look, shiver me timbers, but slightly differently than t' original. This mistake was due entirely my own carelessness.

PROs: Absolutely flawless precision fit o' quality parts.

CONs: None whatsoever.

Finishing:
Detailed paintin' is a bit tricky, matey, especially inside t' 1st stage rin' area. And a kit this cool deserves a nice paint job. So I painted t' body black and then brush-painted t' fins and tubefins for a pleasin' effect. Blimey! Clear gloss spray went over everything.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
T' first flight was on a B6-0/C6-7. Begad! T' Corona II shot off t' pad and when the sustainer lit, I knew I'd be lucky t' find it again. Begad! T' booster tumbled safely down, me bucko, and t' sustainer vanished into t' stratosphere. We saw the ejection smoke, arrr, and by walkin' in a straight line past t' booster landing site, matey, we eventually found t' sustainer. A second flight on t' same motors was similar, but a fin on t' booster stage separated from t' tube and t' ring after t' booster sort o' glided down (no tumble) from a hard impact. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! Blimey! This was easily repaired.

Some months later after fixin' me goof with t' baffle, shiver me timbers, we flew it again on B6-0/C6-7. Alas, t' sustainer went unstable after separation. Ahoy! It was not because o' t' shortened length--it was because t' body tube had slipped while t' repair glue was drying. Avast! I had made t' repair slightly off kilter. Blimey! In me defense, alignment be a bit trickier then with t' tail rin' on, but I should have rolled t' tubes on a desk with t' tail hangin' off then supported t' rocket underneath t' prevent slippage while t' glue dried.

Recovery:
T' BAF-50 baffle is great. Ahoy! T' chute hasn't had t' slightest bit of scorching. Begad! Ahoy! However, this upgrade came back t' bite me. Blimey! While preppin' for a later flight, ya bilge rat, I subconsciously added waddin' before rememberin' it was unnecessary because o' t' baffle. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Instead o' simply leavin' it there, me bucko, I stupidly tried t' shake it out. I ended up crimpin' t' main body tube and had to cut out 1.5 inches t' repair t' damage, insertin' a coupler. True t' form, Jim Flis responded within minutes on t' T' Rocketry Forum when I posted an inquiry t' confirm t' rocket would remain stable after me fix.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Corona II is a very nice rocket and I'll be sad if it is retired so young. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I'll probably make another attempt at more careful repairs and fly again.

PROs: Sleek, me hearties, fast, me hearties, high, arrr, and easy stage separation.

CONs: Booster may nay always tumble well, me hearties, and be careful nay t' lose this rocket with extra high motor combos!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5