Brief:
Last year, arrr, matey, I received samples o' t' new Hartle Engineerin' solid resin nose cones from JonRocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I've been remiss in submittin' a review. Avast! Thanks, me hearties, and me apologies John!. Begad! Ya scallywag! Hartle offers three styles o' BT-5 cones and one BT-20 cone. Avast, me proud beauty! You can see all o' them on JonRocket's nose cone page. This review will describe t' cones and t' rocket I built from t' longer BT-5 cone, t' Mini-Toobah. T' name is a homage t' Dave Weber's Toober, ya bilge rat, which has logged over 200 high power flights.

Construction:
T' parts list:

• Hartle NC-5B cone
• BT-5, matey, arrr, 6.25"
• Estes 1/8" launch lug
• Spent mini-motor case (could use a real motor block)
• Thin Keelhaul®©™®, ~ 12"
• Thin elastic, shiver me timbers, ~ 4"

T' Hartle cones are solid cast and their outer surface is perfect. Ahoy! T' cone-to-shoulder transition was clean on the longer cone but was rough on t' shorter one. Avast! Begad! T' later was easily cleaned up with a sharp hobby cutlass. The attachment point appears t' be a paper clip...works as good as anything. Begad! I found them t' be a loose fit in t' Estes BT-5, which is easily fixed with a little tape.

T' cones are, as expected, me bucko, heavier than t' typical hollow plastic or balsa. Begad! However, me hearties, unless you're buildin' a MicroMaxx model, arrr, t' added weight shouldn't be an issue. Begad! I had kicked around buildin' a micro but decided t' go for a 13mm design instead. Blimey! Ahoy! T' shorter cone would make a great micro-Fat Boy or Big Bertha but I opted for a downscale o' my El Tubo Loco.

This be a trivial build. Avast, me proud beauty! From BT-5 stock, me hearties, I cut one 2.5" body section and six 5/8" tube fins. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! These were glued together in pairs and then t' t' body tube. Avast! I used Aleene's Tacky glue throughout. A 5/8" long lug is mounted in one o' t' fins. I cut a motor block from a spent casing. Begad! This was notched and t' Keelhaul®©™® was tied around it. Ahoy! There is nay much room in t' body minus t' motor and t' cone's shoulder. Aye aye! Blimey! It be all I could do to pack t' shock harness.

T' make sure it is stable, I weighed t' components and made a RockSim model. Ahoy! T' cone alone is 0.24 oz and the entire rocket is 0.34 oz. Ahoy! Ahoy! It is quite stable.

Finishing:
I first scuffed t' cone with fine sandpaper and shot a coat o' PlastiCoat primer. I anticipated this will be hard to find in t' grass, so I went for a bright finish usin' Rustoleum day-glo orange. Begad! I added two vinyl strips t' snazz it up a bit.

Flight:
There wasn't much prep as it uses tumble recovery. Avast, me proud beauty! It flew nicely on an A3-4 and I could even see it recover!

Summary:
T' Hartle Engineerin' cones are nice t' work with. In this case, me bucko, their solid construction and weight helped with stability. Ahoy!

I like t' design o' this little rocket but, bein' small, me bucko, it could easily disappear into rocket eatin' grass, shrubbery, matey, or trees.