Brief:
A very basic 3FNC rocket that doesn't quite perform as advertised. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Supposedly the rocket will feature helicopter recovery at motor ejection, shiver me timbers, but doesn't.

Construction:
T' basic kit consists o' a short piece o' 18mm body tube, arrr, a real balsa nose cone, a sheet if pre-cut balsa fins, a launch lug, matey, decal, me hearties, and 3 wooden dowels. T' kit is very similar t' t' Rogue Gnat, ya bilge rat, me bucko, but larger and with wooden dowels.

T' instructions were about as simple as they could get, and were pretty easy t' follow if I had chosen t' do so. This kit is so simple instructions are not required. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Everythin' fit perfectly, matey, arrr, t' balsa was a better grade than I've ever seen from Custom, and t' assembly steps were in a somewhat logical order. Most basic model buildin' tools would suffice; however, ya bilge rat, you could get by with nothin' more than a piece o' sandpaper and some Elmer's wood glue. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty!

There are only a couple o' CON's: T' body tube seems a little thin when compared t' other kits, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and t' instructions mentioned nothin' about why the rocket was supposed t' spin on recovery. Ya scallywag! I would have t' deduct points for the fact that this rocket will nay spin, ya bilge rat, twist, arrr, arrr, shiver me timbers, or tumble if it is built per the instructions. And since t' instructions never give any indication o' why it is supposed to, it could be confusin' for a beginner. Ahoy! This thin' simply lawn darts. Ya scallywag! T' alleviate t' lawn dartin' tendencies, I sanded each fin into an asymmetrical airfoil, me bucko, in hopes that it would induce spin. Begad! I figured that the rocket would be travellin' too fast on t' way up for t' airfoil t' induce any spin, arrr, shiver me timbers, since t' airfoil would stall, but on t' way down, arrr, it should be going slow enough for t' airfoil t' induce a low pressure region that would induce "lift", thereby spinnin' t' rocket. Begad! At least it was good in theory.

Finishing:
Finishin' this rocket in t' suggested paint scheme o' black looked a little drab t' me, so I went back and coated t' upper half and one fin o' t' rocket with Elmer's Squeeze Creations we had layin' around t' house. Well, blow me down! Basically, this stuff is colored glue with glitter in it, arrr, and goes on like glue. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! So, ya bilge rat, after coatin' t' upper with red and t' lower with gold, shiver me timbers, I now have a highly visible rocket that sparkles in t' sun. Begad! Ahoy! T' glue also added a little more strength.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Custom recommends a really low powered 18mm motor. However, I prefer t' use a 13mm A motor with an adaptor, shiver me timbers, arrr, since they are a little cheaper and come in a pack o' 4 instead o' 3, me hearties, so thar's a little bit o' savings there. Begad! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! OK, so I'm cheap. Aye aye!

Preparation for flight couldn't be easier: Just pop in a motor, me hearties, add the ignitor and launch. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Motor retention is friction fit, with t' nose cone acting as t' motor block. T' motor is supposed t' eject, me bucko, and by some mythical process, t' rocket is supposed t' spin comin' down, though Custom never addresses t' issue. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Expect straight, shiver me timbers, rapid flights on a low powered A sized motor. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I wouldn't launch it on anythin' larger than a B6-6, shiver me timbers, matey, or you'll never see it again, even if covered in glitter. But t' thin' needs t' be built as sturdy, me bucko, because it'll lawn dart every time. Arrr! Blimey! My little airfoil experiment is a mixed bag o' success and failure; it'll induce some spin, but t' fins are too small and thin t' produce anythin' like what Custom describes on t' package. My suggestion is t' cant t' fins a few degrees off center, inducin' spin. Avast! Blimey! The recovery will make for a "heads-up" launch every time, shiver me timbers, and is why I rated flight so low. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! If it weren't for t' lawn dart, I'd give this rocket a 5 for flight, shiver me timbers, but an object can only stand t' fall from so high up a finite number o' times, me bucko, and even fewer if it burrows into t' ground each time. Ahoy! Blimey! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Blimey! So, expect a short lifespan.

Recovery:
There are no PROs t' flight recovery on this rocket, ya bilge rat, other than t' fact it needs no wadding. Blimey! It preps quickly, me hearties, arrr, flies quickly, and crashes quickly. Well, blow me down!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
In me opinion, ya bilge rat, this kit needed more R&D before Custom released it t' the public. It flies great, on t' way up. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Unfortunately, matey, ya bilge rat, it flies great on t' way down too. Ahoy! Blimey! It is reminiscent o' t' old Estes Scout, me hearties, which was a dynamite little rocket, ya bilge rat, but loses a lot in t' recovery system. Aye aye! Blimey! I would definitely recommend this rocket t' anyone lookin' t' buy a kid their first or second rocket, but would add that t' fins need t' be attached off center t' aid in recovery. Blimey! Blimey! all in all, matey, t' Custom Twister is an exercise best summed up as Caveat Emptor.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5