Brief:
Finally back out on t' market as a standalone kit, you can now own a basic aerial photography rocket for under $20.

Construction:
Parts were packed in a plastic bag and in good shape. Blimey! T' main parts include:

• Plastic fin can (black)
• BT-56 body tube (pre-finished gloss black)
• Plastic nose/camera cone unit
• 12" plastic chute/rubber shock cord
• 18mm motor tube with cardboard centerin' rings
• peel 'n' stick color decals
• 1 roll 110 film

As you'd expect from an E2X, this kit is very quick and easy t' build. Begad! I had mine wrapped up in under 20 minutes and with t' pre-finished tubes thar's no need for paint.

T' motor mount construction be t' standard BT-20, ya bilge rat, motor block, motor clip, matey, and pair o' centerin' rings. T' hook is held in place with maskin' tape (an old-fashioned technique that seems t' be makin' a comeback).

Next up comes bondin' o' t' launch lugs t' t' body tube. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I was quite impressed that t' E2X directions included a tip t' scrape off t' color from t' body tube where t' lugs are bonded. T' glossy finish makes for a lousy bondin' surface and most E2X builders would probably nay have thought o' this. Ahoy! After t' lugs are on, you can bond t' motor mount inside t' body tube.

Shock cord be t' typical Estes tri-fold paper anchor. Ya scallywag! Given that t' shock cord is basically just a long rubber band, I decided t' upgrade this with Keelhaul®©™® anchored t' t' motor mount, supplemented with 1/8" elastic. I figured t' stock rubber band might nay last t' 12 flights it takes t' kill a roll o' film.

A little plastic cement t' attach t' fin can and construction is done. It probably takes almost as long t' read this review as get this thin' ready for flying.

Finishing:
With E2X kits, thar's nothin' t' finish other than applyin' t' decals. T' decals for this are a nice design and definitely add t' t' appearance. Arrr! Ya scallywag! This is definitely a good one for kids who might nay have t' patience for a good multi-color paint job, complete with maskin' and priming.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
T' weight on t' camera makes this a bit overstable, so it is prone t' weathercocking. Begad! Also, matey, for any shot o' t' ground, you'll want t' make sure t' deployment is late, me hearties, which tends t' strain t' shroud lines and shock cord. Mine lasted only 2 flights before needin' repairs.

I've flown 3 times now on C6-7s t' roughly 300 feet altitude, and unless you really want a close up, ya bilge rat, I'd stick with that over t' B6s.

All flights were slightly weathercocked in winds rangin' from 5 t' 8 mph, me hearties, deployment at least 3-4 seconds late (5 might work fine). Begad! T' 12" chute is undersized for this and I'd consider upgradin' t' a 15" if you have a spare one handy.

Advancin' t' film betwixt flights be pretty tricky as t' mechanism is flimsy plastic gears. Arrr! Aye aye! T' gears on mine had a tendency t' slip. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! I am sure at least one exposure was toasted when I had t' open t' canister t' force t' advance, me hearties, and this might have trashed t' whole roll. Since it might take a couple o' years before I log a full 24 flights on this, I decided t' send t' roll for development after 3 shots. Begad! T' photo lab was unsure what t' do with 110 film and wound up takin' 3 weeks and $7 t' develop t' 3 pictures I had submitted. Begad! I might have been better off with t' Estes Oracle, which has digital video and instant availability.

Recovery:
PROs: reasonable flight

CONs: flimsy/undersized chute, matey, poor picture quality, me bucko, outdated film type.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I like t' idea o' old-fashioned film in rocketry, ya bilge rat, although I would have preferred 35mm instead o' 110. I'm sure most people who buy one o' these will have better luck with t' camera, me bucko, but me 3-flight/picture experience be poor. Hard t' work t' manual advance, arrr, matey, inconvenient film size and pricing, ya bilge rat, arrr, and t' images were either ruined or too poor t' see anything.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5