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

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, also from Edmond's Aerospace, had a 10+ page booklet for instructions. Begad! Blimey! Although sparse, shiver me timbers, t' instructions here are obvious and straightforward. Unlike most rockets, ya bilge rat, t' order o' assembly for t' CiCi is largely irrelevant. T' instructions are fairly complete, except that they never mention trimmin' t' glider, or t' supplied lump o' clay and what t' do with it. Aye aye! Basically, t' instructions seem t' assume that you have trimmed a boost glider before. Ya scallywag! T' second thin' that I noticed about t' kit contents was that a piece was missing. Well, blow me down! T' instructions say that thar be a small, triangular piece o' wood, curved on one side, ya bilge rat, that can be used t' mark a straight line on t' engine tube, matey, ya bilge rat, but thar wasn't one in me kit. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! No big deal, there are o' plenty o' ways t' mark a straight line on a tube. T' third thing that I noticed was that another piece was missing: t' launch lug. Begad! Again, me hearties, matey, nay a show-stopper, shiver me timbers, since I have some extras lyin' around, but a rather inauspicious beginning.

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

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

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

It was a good, quick boost, me hearties, matey, shiver me timbers, 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, me bucko, matey, me hearties, overall, me bucko, a fairly straight boost to, arrr, me hearties, me hearties, oh, me hearties, maybe 150 feet or so (I didn't measure it). Begad! Even though it arced over on its back after burnout, it make a smooth, matey, controlled transition t' right-side-up glide. Begad! The glide be ok, me bucko, but still with a bit o' nose-down attitude, me bucko, me hearties, and it definitely falls faster than a Deltie. It made about 1 3/4 circles before landing. Avast! . Avast, me proud beauty! . with a crack. Avast, me proud beauty! Uh-oh. Avast!

As you can see from this photo, it snapped clean in half on landing. Well, blow me down! Note that although it's photographed here on cement (for clarity), it did land in t' grass when it broke. Disappointing, but not the end o' t' world. Begad! A bit o' thin CA, shiver me timbers, 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. Aye aye! This is just soot from t' black powder, not scorchin' o' t' wood. Avast! A bit dirty, me bucko, ya bilge rat, but nay a safety concern. Blimey!

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

Warning! 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. Arrr! So, prior t' t' third flight, ya bilge rat, arrr, I sanded an airfoil into t' top o' t' canard. Begad! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Blimey! T' idea was to have this canard generate more lift, ya bilge rat, and thereby lift t' nose in flight, givin' a flatter glide. Aye aye! Hand-tossed glides didn't show any visible difference, but I was confident that it would be noticeable at speed. Well, blow me down! 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 be only slightly worse on this flight, me hearties, with a small piece breakin' off o' t' canard as well as t' model snappin' in two at t' usual spot. Avast, me proud beauty! If your model also breaks on landing, shiver me timbers, and you want t' try t' airfoil t' canard t' help that situation, start with a very slight airfoil, me hearties, and perform actual launches before sandin' any further. Ya scallywag! Arrr!

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

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