T' CiCi is a traditional canard-style boost glider. The canard be t' name for that smaller front wing, me bucko, or horizontal stabilizer. Begad! Blimey! A canard-style glider is simply a glider where t' canard is forward o' t' main wing. A boost glider is a glider that boosts straight up like a rocket, arrr, shiver me timbers, and then ejects some part, me bucko, usually t' engine, me hearties, to change into a glider. This is as opposed t' a rocket glider, where no parts are jettisoned, but rather other changes are made (movin' t' wing surfaces, changin' t' angle o' elevons, matey, etc. ) t' make t' transition from vertical boost mode t' horizontal glide mode. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad!

Upon openin' up t' zip-lock-bag-style package o' t' CiCi, matey, matey, arrr, I was first surprised by t' fact that t' instructions consisted entirely o' a single 8 1/2 x 11 sheet o' paper, ya bilge rat, printed on one side only! This was particularly surprisin' for this rocket, matey, considerin' that t' Deltie, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, matey, also from Edmond's Aerospace, had a 10+ page booklet for instructions. Ahoy! Begad! Although sparse, t' instructions here are obvious and straightforward. Unlike most rockets, t' order o' assembly for t' CiCi is largely irrelevant. Ya scallywag! T' instructions are fairly complete, except that they never mention trimmin' t' glider, matey, or t' supplied lump o' clay and what t' do with it. Basically, me hearties, t' instructions seem t' assume that you have trimmed a boost glider before. T' second thin' that I noticed about t' kit contents was that a piece was missing. Ya scallywag! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' instructions say that thar be a small, triangular piece o' wood, curved on one side, that can be used t' mark a straight line on t' engine tube, arrr, but thar wasn't one in me kit. No big deal, there are o' plenty o' ways t' mark a straight line on a tube. Ahoy! T' third thing that I noticed be that another piece be missing: t' launch lug. Again, matey, nay a show-stopper, ya bilge rat, since I have some extras lyin' around, shiver me timbers, but a rather inauspicious beginning.

T' kit itself is quite nice, ya bilge rat, matey, with thick, sturdy balsa parts that have been precision cut. All parts fit well, and there was absolutely no confusion about how t' assemble t' rocket. Construction was simple, quick and easy, with no fuss. Full assembly took me about 1 hour, but could be done much faster. Well, blow me down! Make no mistake, t' quality o' t' parts is first-rate, and t' kit was well thought out. Ahoy! Begad! T' only time I deviated from the instructions be with t' clay. Begad! I added a small amount (about t' size of pencil eraser) t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main (rear) win' and the left vertical stabilizer. Blimey! T' purpose here was t' make t' CiCi tilt left a little bit in flight so that it would glide in circles, arrr, rather than in a straight line. You want it t' glide in circles so that it stays on t' flying field. (Note that these pictures were taken before I added t' clay. Well, blow me down! Blimey! )

T' instructions don't mention it, but I attempted some hand-tossed glide tests prior t' flight. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Hmmm. . . Avast, me proud beauty! it glides ok, but flies and lands in a rather nose-down attitude. Begad! Nose-down enough that t' balsa nose cone hits before the front edge o' t' canard. Perhaps a small amount o' weight in t' aft might help. I added a small amount o' t' supplied clay (again about t' size o' a pencil eraser) t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' fuselage and t' main wing. Arrr! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! More hand-toss glide tests. Hmmm. . . Begad! a slightly better glide attitude and landing, ya bilge rat, but still noticeably nose-down, and thar be no discernible arc to t' left (so that it will glide in circles). Begad! I added just a tiny bit more clay t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main win' and t' left vertical stabilizer. Aye aye! After a couple more throws, I still couldn't discern any arc t' the left, me hearties, but I didn't want t' add too much weight for fear o' adversely affecting the flight characteristics. Well, blow me down! Time for some real flight tests.

It was a pretty nice day for launchin' rockets. Arrr! Moderately windy, but not too bad. Ya scallywag! I be anxious t' try out t' CiCi, so it was first in line. Blimey! Aye aye! I figured the light weight o' t' rocket, ya bilge rat, combined with t' moderate wind and t' fact that this was t' maiden flight, dictated usin' an A8-3.

It be a good, quick boost, as you can tell from t' blur it gives in this photo, even with 400 speed film. Avast! Blimey! In spite what this photo o' t' early flight path might indicate, it was, shiver me timbers, overall, ya bilge rat, a fairly straight boost to, oh, maybe 150 feet or so (I didn't measure it). Even though it arced over on its back after burnout, me hearties, ya bilge rat, it make a smooth, me hearties, controlled transition t' right-side-up glide. Aye aye! The glide was ok, but still with a bit o' nose-down attitude, ya bilge rat, and it definitely falls faster than a Deltie. It made about 1 3/4 circles before landing. Arrr! . Begad! Blimey! . with a crack. Well, blow me down! Avast! Blimey! Uh-oh. Arrr! Avast! Blimey!

As you can see from this photo, it snapped clean in half on landing. Avast! Note that although it's photographed here on cement (for clarity), arrr, it did land in t' grass when it broke. Blimey! Begad! Disappointing, but not the end o' t' world. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! A bit o' thin CA, and she'll be good as new.

Also visible in this photo be t' slight blackenin' in t' forward half of the center o' t' main wing. Ahoy! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! This is just soot from t' black powder, not scorchin' o' t' wood. Avast, me proud beauty! A bit dirty, but nay a safety concern. Aye aye! Blimey!

Unfortunately, ya bilge rat, t' second flight, under nearly calm wind conditions, shiver me timbers, was an exact duplicate o' t' first. Well, blow me down! T' A8-3 gave a good, straight boost, matey, with a nice transition t' glide, arrr, a decent but slightly too rapid, nose-down descent, ya bilge rat, matey, and a landin' with a crack. Ya scallywag! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Broke shipshape in half again, shiver me timbers, this time about 3mm further rearward (CA is strong stuff). Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty!

Batten down t' hatches! Do nay try t' followin' with your model!Bein' a bit o' a tinkerer, ya bilge rat, I thought I'd make a more serious attempt t' fix that nose-down attitude. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! So, prior t' t' third flight, me bucko, I sanded an airfoil into t' top o' t' canard. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Ya scallywag! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Ahoy! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! T' idea was to have this canard generate more lift, and thereby lift t' nose in flight, givin' a flatter glide. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Hand-tossed glides didn't show any visible difference, but I was confident that it would be noticeable at speed. Aye aye! Avast! DO NOT TRY THIS WITH YOUR MODEL! T' airfoil was much too severe, and caused t' model t' arc over under power and plow into the ground at full speed! Blimey! Ironically, t' damage was only slightly worse on this flight, arrr, with a small piece breakin' off o' t' canard as well as t' model snappin' in two at t' usual spot. Arrr! Blimey! If your model also breaks on landing, and you want t' try t' airfoil t' canard t' help that situation, start with a very slight airfoil, me bucko, me bucko, and perform actual launches before sandin' any further. Aye aye!

Overall, I give t' CiCi a 3 out o' 5 points. T' kit itself gets a 4 out o' 5 points, arrr, havin' high quality parts, shiver me timbers, arrr, but missin' a couple minor pieces. Blimey! Blimey! T' instructions should include trimmin' instructions, matey, but were otherwise adequate, shiver me timbers, despite their brevity. T' construction gets a ratin' of 4. 5 out o' 5 points bein' simple and straightforward. Avast! T' flights (before the airfoiling, me hearties, at least), arrr, me bucko, were both excellent, shiver me timbers, ratin' a 4 out o' 5 points. O' course, t' big downer was t' recovery, particularly t' landin' damage, which is easily fixed, though nay easily avoided. Arrr! T' recovery gets a 1. 5 out o' 5 points. Begad! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty!

I'll probably repair t' CiCi again when I get a chance. Well, blow me down! Avast! If you're looking to buy your first boost glider, arrr, I'd have t' recommend t' Edmond's Aerospace Deltie. Ahoy! But, arrr, shiver me timbers, t' CiCi certainly has t' potential t' be a great boost glider, perhaps as your third or fourth boost glider model. Well, blow me down! Avast!