Picture courtesy o' Discount Hobbies

Brief:
Tiny and awfully cute (1/396) scale Saturn V for mini-motors. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Parachute recovery.

Construction:
T' kit is actually fairly simple t' construct despite its appearance. Well, blow me down! Avast! T' kit basically consists o' a short length o' 24mm tube, me bucko, shiver me timbers, one giant epoxy-cast nose-cone and four epoxy-cast fins-shrouds. Begad! Ya scallywag! T' motor mount and t' chute are standard for mini-kits -- a centered 13mm motor tube and a tiny plastic chute. T' tubes and chute are basically Estes quality. No surprises there. Blimey! T' cone and fins are very nicely done. Ya scallywag! T' cone be perfect, me hearties, ya bilge rat, but a couple o' fins had "dents" in 'em from bubbles formin' durin' t' casting. Ahoy! Begad! I didn't even bother with anythin' elaborate t' fill t' dents. A little Elmer's was fine.

T' instructions are quite easy t' follow, me hearties, me hearties, arrr, and t' kit will be a snap for anyone who's built small rockets before. Blimey! T' only part that be a bit hairy was puttin' on t' big roll-pattern on t' main tube. Take your time with this step. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I don't recall what's recommended, matey, but I glued on t' fins/shrouds with a little bit o' 5-minute epoxy. I also poked some holes through t' roll-decal with a pin before epoxying, so t' fins weren't just attached t' t' decal. This seems t' have done t' trick, because t' fins are on quite well. Blimey! T' only other thin' I'd recommend is t' bevel t' shoulder o' t' nose cone a bit. The base o' t' cone is concave and has a sharp edge from t' castin' process, which makes it difficult t' insert in t' body tube. Begad! Ya scallywag! I carved away that sharp edge and sanded a bevel into t' bottom o' t' shoulder, arrr, ya bilge rat, and it fit very nicely now. No special tools are required for this kit, me bucko, although I do recommend some epoxy for t' fins and for t' edge o' t' decals, t' keep 'em from wantin' to peel up.

Finishing:
Finishin' is quite simple. You need t' paint t' cone white before applyin' the other roll-decals, as a couple o' sections o' it and t' escape-rocket don't have decals. You also need t' paint t' fins. Arrr! I'd recommend a brush, matey, matey, because maskin' off t' fins from t' rest o' t' body would be a pain. Paintin' the fins is a bit o' a pain, matey, as they need t' be black, matey, white, me bucko, me hearties, and silver t' match the scale paint scheme. Avast, me proud beauty! I used a black marker and a silver paint-pen, shiver me timbers, and I got reasonably good results. Once everything's painted, go over t' entire rocket with some matte-finish spray, ya bilge rat, me hearties, and it'll look great.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I fully expected this rocket t' fly like a pig, because t' huge epoxy cone makes it so heavy for its tiny size. Ya scallywag! Arrr! I was pleasantly surprised t' find that it flies quite well. Arrr! Blimey! Another plus is that it's got so much nose-weight that you don't have t' snap any extra clear plastic fins on it t' keep it stable. Blimey! I've flown it several times on an A3-4, and it's done quite well, poppin' at t' top and droppin' a bit too smartly for comfort on its tiny parachute. Avast, me proud beauty! T' little escape-rocket point at t' top isn't as sharp as it used t' be, but I build 'em to fly, nay t' sit on t' shelf.

Recovery:
No real flight and recovery cons t' speak of. Aye aye! Ahoy! It flies surprisingly well, arrr, and it always gets interest when I brin' it t' t' pad. Arrr! Well, blow me down! It's a cute little rocket. Motor selection for it is pretty limited, arrr, though. Avast, me proud beauty! I don't think I'd fly it on anythin' other than an A3-4. Arrr!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
Pros: Goes together easily. Begad! Begad! Looks great on t' shelf or t' pad. Ya scallywag! Well, matey, blow me down! Flies better than expected. Cons: Shoulder o' big cone could damage tube if you don't sand on it first.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5