Picture Courtesy o' Blackhawk

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

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

T' instructions seemed t' be for a generic high power rocket. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! This be the third high power rocket I've built--the other two were from PML and BSD. As a result, I didn't have any problem. Aye aye! However, a beginner t' high power could have trouble, ya bilge rat, as some steps weren't clear, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and t' third centerin' rin' wasn't even mentioned. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag!

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

I added a PML modular baffle at t' top o' t' motor mount, ya bilge rat, and T-nuts for motor retention at t' aft centerin' ring. Ahoy! I also added T-nuts t' retain rail buttons. I did this by nay securin' t' aft centerin' rin' until after the motor tube be 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. Begad!

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

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

Finishing:
I didn't finish it. Avast! Blimey! 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, matey, I357-6, me hearties, matey, I161-6, I156-6. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I ended up usin' a Pro38 3-grain motor (384I205) with a 9-second delay. Well, blow me down!

There is very little space t' place t' chute and shock cord. You need to pack it carefully t' fit. Ya scallywag! Arrr!

There was a light wind.

Immediately after leavin' t' rail, ya bilge rat, t' rocket went into skywriter mode, did about 4 full loops, and landsharked under full power. Begad! Aye aye! Ejection occurred after t' landshark.

Recovery:
On impact, me bucko, one fin ripped off. Begad! T' payload bay had a slight crinkle. Well, blow me down! 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. Avast! I'll also be able t' get more room for t' chute by shortenin' t' coupler.

DEFINITELY ADD NOSE WEIGHT. Avast! Aye aye! Blimey! This rocket is unstable if built accordin' to the manufacturer's instructions. Avast! Begad! Blimey! If anything, ya bilge rat, me CG was forward o' standard, me bucko, 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. Pretty rocket. Aye aye! Lots o' people were wondering where I got it. If only t' vendor would talk about nose weight in the instructions, me hearties, t' flight ratin' would have been higher (e.g., ya bilge rat, arrr, about a 4, shiver me timbers, I bet).

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5