Picture Courtesy o' Blackhawk

Brief:
Sport scale high power version o' t' SAAB

Construction:
T' kit came with two glassine-covered body tubes, arrr, coupler, matey, 8 nicely cut 1/4" plywood fins, matey, me bucko, 3 1/4" plywood centerin' rings, bulkhead plate, U-bolts, 10' tubular nylon, shiver me timbers, parachute, me bucko, launch lug, matey, and nose cone. Ya scallywag! Blimey! All around high quality material. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! However, thar was no provision t' attach t' nose cone to t' payload bay. You have t' supply your own hardware for that. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! You also have t' supply motor retention hardware. Blimey! Blimey! On t' other hand, shiver me timbers, t' U-bolts came securely attached t' t' appropriate rings.

T' instructions seemed t' be for a generic high power rocket. Arrr! Blimey! This was the third high power rocket I've built--the other two were from PML and BSD. As a result, me bucko, I didn't have any problem. Aye aye! Blimey! However, ya bilge rat, arrr, matey, a beginner t' high power could have trouble, as some steps weren't clear, and t' third centerin' rin' wasn't even mentioned. Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey!

T' rings fit a bit loosely, so you have t' be careful t' keep them level. Arrr! I beveled t' leadin' and trailin' fin edges 22.5 degrees usin' a router table and a panel-raisin' bit. Avast! Begad! I put a 1/4" slot in a piece o' masonite with a 4" diameter arc at one end t' align t' main fins. Arrr! Aye aye! T' secondary fins were added later, and aligned by clampin' wooden stakes betwixt t' main and secondary fins. T' fin tabs were 1/16 t' 3/32" too long, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and so t' fin roots were "elevated" off t' body tube, ya bilge rat, requirin' a fillet under them.

I added a PML modular baffle at t' top o' t' motor mount, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and T-nuts for motor retention at t' aft centerin' ring. Begad! I also added T-nuts t' retain rail buttons. Aye aye! Begad! I did this by nay securin' t' aft centerin' rin' until after the motor tube was glued in. This allowed me t' get into t' area betwixt the middle and aft rin' and glue (with thickened epoxy) t' T-nuts. Well, blow me down!

There are 7 feet o' fillets along t' fins! It took four pumps o' West epoxy (+ thickener) t' finish those.

I got some removable white plastic rivets from Rocketmotion t' secure the nose cone. Blimey!

My rocket came in about 4 ounces lighter than t' Blackhawk specs.

Finishing:
I didn't finish it. Ya scallywag! Considerin' what happened t' first flight (see below), that was a good idea.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Blackhawk R&D recommends t' I300-10, I2110-10, I357-6, arrr, I161-6, I156-6. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! I ended up usin' a Pro38 3-grain motor (384I205) with a 9-second delay. Avast!

There is very little space t' place t' chute and shock cord. You need to pack it carefully t' fit. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty!

There was a light wind.

Immediately after leavin' t' rail, t' rocket went into skywriter mode, did about 4 full loops, shiver me timbers, and landsharked under full power. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! Ejection occurred after t' landshark.

Recovery:
On impact, one fin ripped off. Begad! T' payload bay had a slight crinkle. Avast, me proud beauty! T' damage should be easily repairable, me hearties, though I might just swap out t' payload bay for a PML replacement--it's less work than tryin' t' patch t' crinkle and surprisingly cheap. I'll also be able t' get more room for t' chute by shortenin' t' coupler.

DEFINITELY ADD NOSE WEIGHT. Blimey! Well, blow me down! This rocket is unstable if built accordin' to the manufacturer's instructions. Avast, me proud beauty! If anything, ya bilge rat, matey, me CG be forward o' standard, me bucko, ya bilge rat, as I assume t' only place I could have saved weight over t' manufacturer's quoted weight be t' use a little less epoxy on t' fins.

Flight Rating: 2 out o' 5

Summary:
Actually good value for t' loot. Blimey! Pretty rocket. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Lots o' people were wondering where I got it. Ahoy! If only t' vendor would talk about nose weight in the instructions, shiver me timbers, t' flight ratin' would have been higher (e.g., me bucko, about a 4, I bet).

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5