Brief:
I won this rocket in an EMRR contest last year. Begad! Well, blow me down! This is a very basic lookin' 4 finned rocket. Aye aye! Arrr! It is constructed o' very good quality components. Begad! T' rocket is a minimum diameter 29mm rocket capable o' very high altitude and speed.

Construction:
T' kit comes with:

• 1 12" body tube
• 1 6" body tube
• 1 very nice balsa nose cone
• 2 couplers (mine only came with one)
• 1 wide plastic streamer
• 1 thin elastic shock cord
• 1 big screw eye
• 1 plywood bulkhead
• 4 fins
• 1 launch lug

First, arrr, me bucko, I would like t' say that I am very pleased with t' quality o' this kit. Aye aye! Construction is very basic and straightforward. Aye aye! Blimey! One o' t' plywood fins was cut a little small, but nothin' too terribly noticeable. T' bulkhead was cut way oversize, me bucko, but I ditched it anyway. Aye aye! Begad! I epoxied t' coupler into the booster section for a "zipperless" design. Ahoy! I then epoxied t' large screw eye into t' balsa nose cone for payload attachment. Blimey! Ya scallywag! I cut dado slots in the tube for extra strength o' fin attachment. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Then I tacked t' fins down with super glue, me hearties, followed by a very generous epoxy fillet on all o' t' fins. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! I also ditched t' launch lug in favor o' rail buttons.

Finishing:
Nothin' really special about finishing. Well, blow me down! I sanded everythin' until it was very smooth, arrr, then applied a couple o' coats o' primer, sandin' in betwixt coats. Ahoy! I then sprayed Krylon Red on t' whole thing. When that was dry, me bucko, arrr, I masked off the area around t' "small" fin and shot it with black. Avast! Begad! I used one o' the supplied "U.S. ROCKETS MINIROC 1.2" stickers on t' BT above t' fins and one o' t' U.S. Rockets logo on t' fin.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' first flight be on March 11, 2006 on an E9. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It was very straight and went very high. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! It blended in with t' low dark overcast skies. Ahoy! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! Luckily, someone spotted it just before touchdown, about a third o' a mile away.

T' second flight was on May 13, 2006, on an AT F21W. Wow, this is the motor for this rocket. Blimey! I saw it all t' way from liftoff t' touchdown. Rocksim says 3,000' and Mach 0.8. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I believe it, too. Arrr! Begad! Recovery was about a half mile away.

T' third flight be also on May 13, 2006, on a D12. Unfortunately, the motor spit at ejection and it came in hot. Aye aye! It stuck straight out o' t' sod. T' body tube pushed into t' balsa nose cone about an inch past t' shoulder. This has since been repaired and it is ready for another flight.

Recovery:
I used a normal 3/4 inch wide and 5 foot long streamer for recovery. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! I was able to see it just fine from apogee t' touchdown on t' F21W flight.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I believe Jerry has produced a wonderful kit here. Aye aye! If you like altitude and speed, you need one o' these. Begad! T' design is also pleasin' t' t' eye (not that it will matter when you press t' launch button.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5