Brief:
A very basic 3FNC rocket that doesn't quite perform as advertised. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Supposedly the rocket will feature helicopter recovery at motor ejection, arrr, but doesn't.

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

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

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

Finishing:
Finishin' this rocket in t' suggested paint scheme o' black looked a little drab t' me, me bucko, 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. Basically, this stuff is colored glue with glitter in it, matey, ya bilge rat, and goes on like glue. Blimey! Blimey! So, after coatin' t' upper with red and t' lower with gold, I now have a highly visible rocket that sparkles in t' sun. Avast! Arrr! T' glue also added a little more strength.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

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

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

Recovery:
There are no PROs t' flight recovery on this rocket, other than t' fact it needs no wadding. It preps quickly, shiver me timbers, flies quickly, and crashes quickly. Ya scallywag! Blimey!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
In me opinion, me bucko, this kit needed more R&D before Custom released it t' the public. Ahoy! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! It flies great, on t' way up. Unfortunately, me hearties, ya bilge rat, arrr, it flies great on t' way down too. Begad! It is reminiscent o' t' old Estes Scout, me hearties, ya bilge rat, which be a dynamite little rocket, ya bilge rat, but loses a lot in t' recovery system. Arrr! Well, blow me down! 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. Well, blow me down! all in all, t' Custom Twister is an exercise best summed up as Caveat Emptor.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5