Brief:
T' Tangent is a single staged sport rocket. Blimey! It is built with traditional methods and materials with a couple o' new twists. Well, blow me down!

Construction:
T' Tangent came in a bag with 1 laser cut balsa sheet, me bucko, arrr, one beautifully die cut sheet o' centerin' rings, a balsa nose cone, shiver me timbers, and a 1/8" fabric shock cord about 2' long. Ya scallywag! It has a single paper MMT and a single body tube with a smooth white coating. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Part quality is first rate. Blimey!

First, ya bilge rat, I've got t' say that Holverson's instructions are t' best I've ever seen in a rocket kit, bar none. Anyone old enough t' handle t' tools can build this kit by virtue o' these terrific instructions. Begad! They also include extra activities t' acquaint first time builders with parts o' a rocket, arrr, ya bilge rat, the Tangent's parts in particular, me bucko, me hearties, and what t' parts do. Begad! There are even ideas on how t' expand t' use o' t' rocket once it is built!

Included in t' kit is an ingenious alignment jig t' hold t' fins upright, in place, as t' glue dries. Ahoy! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Works like a charm, but be SURE it is built correctly. Arrr! Blimey! Fin and launch lug markin' is by standard wrap around guide. Avast! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey!

T' balsa nose had an odd hole in t' center, and also be a bit larger in diameter than t' BT. Avast! As a solution, me hearties, arrr, I epoxied a dowel in and sanded it down on a lathe. Begad! (anyone could do t' same usin' a hand drill with a hose clamp t' hold the trigger on). Begad! T' OD be then a perfect match. Begad! T' dowel be cut off flush with t' bottom o' t' nose and drilled t' accept t' screw eye. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag!

Fins and centerin' rings (CR) both nearly fall out o' their sheets. Aye aye! Fins required very minimal sandin' t' prepare, CR's none at all. Begad!

Motor mount includes a motor mount clip and a thrust rin' and is completely conventional.

Overall, this is a very trouble free build. I give it a 5 despite t' hole in t' NC. This actually gives t' builder an opportunity t' strongly mount the screw eye usin' a dowel. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad!

Finishing:
Finishin' is a breeze for anyone who has experience buildin' with balsa. As I didn't have any Aerogloss as recommended, me hearties, I just used thin CA t' seal t' parts and sanded them smooth. As always, ya bilge rat, arrr, I ran some thin CA into t' end o' t' BT and t' MMT; then sanded them, t' strengthen them and smooth them up. Begad! The entire rocket was then shot with a coat o' sandable primer before sanding smooth. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! I shot it in white with red nose & fins as shown on t' package. Very handsome bird with no surprises here!!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Holverson recommends A8-3, matey, B4-4, B6-4, me bucko, ya bilge rat, and C6-5 motors. Avast, me proud beauty! This is a big bird, I skipped t' A8-3 in favor o' a Quest B6-4. Blimey! Well, blow me down! It lifted off slowly like a Big Bertha but accelerated more rapidly, probably due t' its more streamlined shape. Aye aye! Begad! Day be very calm, no weather-cockin' be apparent. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Ejection appeared to be a whisker after apogee. Ya scallywag! T' chute deployed nicely and t' Tangent was recovered about 100 feet from t' pad. Avast, me proud beauty!

Next flight was with a Quest C6-5, arrr, again a very slow lift-off and decent acceleration. Arrr! Blimey! T' bird seemed t' reach a considerably higher speed. Blimey! T' flight was arrow straight with ejection a bit before apogee. Well, blow me down! It gets upstairs on the C6-5 and I had t' walk a bit t' get it back.

This bird is a LOT o' fun t' fly on t' C, so another one was loaded and the Tangent racked again. Same results except that it cocked a whisker as it left t' pad. Consequently it leaned over about 10 degrees from vertical; it was actually movin' pretty fast when ejection came. Ya scallywag! Begad! Another long walk was necessary t' get it back!! On retrievin' it, t' only apparent damage was a little soot on t' fins. Ya scallywag! GREAT flyer, 5!!

Recovery:
Shock cord mountin' seemed kind o' odd t' me but I went with t' program anyhow. Aye aye! A 1" piece o' launch lug is supplied and t' shock cord looped around it and knotted. Then it is glued in and filleted. Ya scallywag! T' shock cord itself at 1/8" seemed thin but be quite long and made o' rugged stuff.

T' chute is pre-made, me bucko, but I dislike t' method used. Begad! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! It has holes punched along t' perimeter and shroud lines just threaded through in big loops. Blimey! Blimey! The holes in t' chute have no reinforcement o' any kind. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! This is beggin' for a fast ejection t' rip t' shroud lines though t' chute plastic. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! These received reinforcements o' vinyl tape discs and t' lines were taped down from t' hole to t' edge usin' poly tape. Ahoy! Blimey! T' system ejected and deployed well. Begad! Blimey! T' bird was recovered with no damage after 3 flights so t' recovery system gets a 4. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
T' Holverson Tangent is a wonderful traditional style kit. Pros- Attractive, easy build, me bucko, me hearties, quality components, good flyer, me hearties, shiver me timbers, inexpensive, great instructions Cons- Odd-ball method used in pre-built chute.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5