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

Upon openin' up t' zip-lock-bag-style package o' t' CiCi, I be first surprised by t' fact that t' instructions consisted entirely o' a single 8 1/2 x 11 sheet o' paper, printed on one side only! This was particularly surprisin' for this rocket, considerin' that t' Deltie, shiver me timbers, also from Edmond's Aerospace, had a 10+ page booklet for instructions. Arrr! Although sparse, matey, t' instructions here are obvious and straightforward. Unlike most rockets, me hearties, matey, me hearties, t' order o' assembly for t' CiCi is largely irrelevant. Begad! T' instructions are fairly complete, except that they never mention trimmin' t' glider, arrr, or t' supplied lump o' clay and what t' do with it. Basically, t' instructions seem t' assume that you have trimmed a boost glider before. Arrr! T' second thin' that I noticed about t' kit contents was that a piece was missing. Avast! T' instructions say that thar be a small, triangular piece o' wood, matey, curved on one side, that can be used t' mark a straight line on t' engine tube, 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! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! T' third thing that I noticed be that another piece was missing: t' launch lug. Again, matey, shiver me timbers, nay a show-stopper, shiver me timbers, since I have some extras lyin' around, but a rather inauspicious beginning. Arrr! Begad!

T' kit itself is quite nice, with thick, sturdy balsa parts that have been precision cut. Aye aye! 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. Begad! Begad! Full assembly took me about 1 hour, me bucko, but could be done much faster. Avast! Make no mistake, t' quality o' t' parts is first-rate, and t' kit was well thought out. Ya scallywag! T' only time I deviated from the instructions be with t' clay. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! 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. Begad! T' purpose here be t' make t' CiCi tilt left a little bit in flight so that it would glide in circles, me bucko, rather than in a straight line. Avast! You want it t' glide in circles so that it stays on t' flying field. Begad! (Note that these pictures were taken before I added t' clay. Blimey! )

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

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

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

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

Also visible in this photo be t' slight blackenin' in t' forward half of the center o' t' main wing. This is just soot from t' black powder, ya bilge rat, matey, ya bilge rat, not scorchin' o' t' wood. A bit dirty, but nay a safety concern.

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

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

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

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