Brief:
I was fortunate enough t' win this kit as a prize for enterin' me Barbsari B-Prize design into Descon 15. Aye aye! I asked for and received t' Spaceship Earth version. I be amazed at how smartly t' shipment arrived after I'd specified what version I'd like. Mondo kudos t' Art Applewhite for fantastic service.

Construction:
T' kit includes a sheet o' printed cardstock for t' top and bottom cones, a dark blue sheet o' foam-backed board, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, a 2.75" length o' motor mount tube, and instruction sheets. Arrr! T' cardstock and foam board are marked with labels, cuttin' lines, me bucko, and tab alignment lines. Blimey! T' cardstock graphics for t' top and bottom cones include beautifully detailed natural-coloured images o' planet earth stretched t' accommodate t' cone shapes. Avast! T' bottom cone has a large image o' Antarctica. Ahoy! T' top cone shows t' other continents and t' northern ice cap in gorgeous detail. Aye aye! Super cool!

T' instructions are clear and concise, matey, me hearties, with large, crisp, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, clear photographs to add that extra amount o' clarity. Avast, me proud beauty! Critical notes are boldfaced and underlined t' draw t' builder's attention. T' assembly order be sensible and straightforward.

T' instructions recommend usin' a brand new, extremely sharp blade for cuttin' t' foam board for good reason. Arrr! Begad! T' foam tends t' tear easily, leaving small voids. Arrr! As long as t' voids are small, matey, arrr, this is nay too much o' a problem since t' foam edges are nay covered by t' top cone.

When formin' t' cones, shiver me timbers, I noticed that t' exposed white edges o' the cardstock were very noticeable against t' dark blue graphics. Begad! Blimey! I remedied this by usin' a dark blue felt-tipped marker t' darken t' edges. I feel that this greatly improved t' look o' t' finished model.

Another issue is that I had to be very careful when applyin' glue and makin' fillets t' avoid messin' up the gorgeous graphics. Avast, me proud beauty! T' cardstock graphics are very durable, arrr, though. Avast! Well, blow me down! They stand up t' much handlin' without any sign o' bleedin' or distortion.

Finishing:
All o' t' parts are printed, so no further finishin' is needed. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! The instructions recommend a coat o' clear enamel or varnish, matey, but I haven't done this yet. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I will do, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, though, before t' snow flies.

I had some trouble smoothin' t' edge o' t' saucer where t' top cone meets t' edge o' t' foamboard. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Though t' foamboard edge is just cardstock, it just doesn't want t' smooth down t' way I'd like, even after careful sanding.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Flight preparation is dead easy, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, since thar are no recovery mechanisms t' set up or care for. Aye aye! Begad! T' instructions recommend wrappin' three layers o' masking tape around t' base o' t' motor as a thrust ring. I think this is good practice, as t' motors I've tried slide pretty easily into t' motor tube.

If you don't want t' motor t' pop out at ejection time, you'll probably want t' add some tape t' t' middle o' t' motor, but be careful nay t' make it so tight that its tough t' get t' motor out again after flight.

T' saucer's first flight was at a model rocketry demo at an event at a city park. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' flight field be pretty small, matey, surrounded by trees, me bucko, so low drift was very important. Avast! T' wind was around 10 mph. Avast, me proud beauty! I took a B6-0, wrapped some tape around t' motor's base, and a little in t' middle, inserted an ignitor, slipped t' motor into t' saucer, and popped t' saucer onto t' pad. Ya scallywag! I used an alligator clip on t' launch rod t' support t' saucer 6" from t' pad, as recommended in t' instructions, matey, then clipped on t' ignitor wires. Blimey! All prepped!

T' saucer boosted straight up with no wobble, ya bilge rat, flipped over at end of boost, me hearties, and floated softly down t' earth with no wobble and little drift. Perfect flight for t' demo.

T' second flight was in a wide open field with 10 mph winds, shiver me timbers, again with a B6-0. Aye aye! Again t' flight be straight up with no wobble and little drift. Aye aye! The model flipped over after boost and float safely t' earth, shiver me timbers, again with no wobble and little drift.

Recovery:
Flight recovery was very easy after both flights. T' saucer hadn't drifted far from t' pad after either flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! T' saucer's decent was slow and gentle both times without damage. Avast!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' Art Applewhite 18mm Delta Saucer is a simple high-quality kit that assembles smartly with no nasty gotchas. Begad! It performs well on t' field and is great for demos in smaller flight areas. T' Spaceship Earth version looks spectacular. Arrr! Aye aye! It is a solid, shiver me timbers, arrr, rugged design and t' printed graphics stand up to handling... Avast! a great rocket for handin' around in classrooms. Flight and recovery are smooth, stable, matey, me hearties, and entertaining.

T' only con I can suggest regardin' me own model is that t' joint between the top cone and t' foam board is kinda rough resisted attempts at smoothing.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5