Manufacturer: | Aardvark Rockets |
Brief:
Scale kit o' t' Swedish Missile.
Construction:
This rocket is a single tube equal t' and/or surpassin' other tubes on the
market.
T' kit came standard with 8 premium quality Baltic Birch High Ply count fins and 3 (yes 3) awesome centerin' rings out o' t' same material. Arrr! One ring was already pre-drilled for t' lower shock cord mountin' eye-bolt. Begad! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! T' motor mount tube was thick wall 29mm motor mount tube that was equally superior in quality t' t' airframe. Begad! Begad! It was more than adequate in length t' clear t' fin roots in t' front o' t' forward fins and still allow for much space for a parachute. Avast, me proud beauty! T' nosecone is made o' custom turned hard balsa. Ya scallywag! Nice touch and great quality. Begad! Begad! T' nose weight was taken care o' with a beefy screw-in eyescrew that was epoxied into a small pre-drilled hole. Avast, me proud beauty! Nay too big, but big enough to ensure that t' nosecone did nay split. Ahoy! T' kit came packaged very well. Blimey! Begad! Thick plastic with a nice header. Ya scallywag! All o' t' parts had been sealed in separate compartments inside o' another piece o' t' same packaging. Ahoy! Avast! You could easily see t' entire contents. Well, blow me down! Far superior t' other manufacturers!
T' instructions were on a total o' 5 pages. Ahoy! I am an experienced builder, but enjoyed t' instruction detail t' ascertain what Aardvark had in mind durin' construction. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! T' wordin' was precise and little confusion was possible, even for me 13 year old son that helped on t' project. Begad! There were illustrations where clarification was needed and nay simply thrown in t' make the instructions longer or t' account for poor wording. T' assembly order was extremely well thought out and thar was even a revision date at t' bottom of each page. Aye aye! Ahoy! I thought that this was a nice touch. Avast, me proud beauty! Since me tube came pre-slotted, thar be no need for templates.
T' only gotcha that I could find durin' construction was t' lower shock cord mount that is through t' upper centerin' ring. T' wordin' be complex although it seemed as though I should understand it easily. I called Dr. Kenneth Johnson o' Aardvark and he emailed me a clarification drawin' that is now included in t' new instruction set. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! This be a definite plus and made perfect sense when coupled with t' text instructions. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad!
T' shockcord, i believe, me hearties, shiver me timbers, is made o' a Mule Tape like product that is flat braided Keelhaul®©™ ® .. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! I am most impressed with this addition t' t' kit. Ahoy! Coupled with a decent 36" chute, me hearties, it was VERY reasonable t' add this t' t' kit price. Begad! Aye aye!
T' fins were nay beveled (unfortunately). This is nay such a bad thing though, arrr, as those that I have had in t' past from other manufacturers were miserable failures. Ahoy! Blimey! I prefer t' bevel myself anyway. T' fin slots were decent and cut accurately enough. Blimey! Blimey! T' fin tabs were t' perfect length and t' tabs were well thought out t' assist in hidin' t' slots. Blimey! Blimey!
There was enough "warnings" and thought provokin' statements in the instruction set t' make even an experienced builder like me consider simple modifications for such things as motor retention. Begad! These were well placed and worded in t' instructions. Avast! Well, blow me down!
I still have t' state, once again, ya bilge rat, me bucko, ya bilge rat, that t' fins in this kit were most awesome! With only minor sandin' and finishing, they came out like an automotive paint job that only t' finest quality materials can provide. Arrr!
All tools and materials needed t' complete t' kit were clearly indicated in the second page o' t' instruction kit. Blimey! Blimey! I did choose t' add a slim line retainer. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty!
Finishing:
T' tubes did nay require any fillin' and were only roughly sanded. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! T' fin
fillets were accomplished with a call t' Aardvark, once again. Blimey! Dr. Johnson
would nay specifically recommend any single name brand but I inferred that the
"true" recommendation be Evercoat Formula 27 filler. Begad! Kinda like
Bondo. Avast, me proud beauty! I be impressed with this product. Begad! Went on smooth and sanded easily.
Took t' primer and stuck t' everythin' without any sags. Avast! There were no decals
included with this kit although Dr. Aye aye! Johnson offered t' send me out a
"SAAB" logo if I was stuck on it. Ya scallywag! Blimey!
Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5
Flight:
My first flight was a test o' t' kit. Aye aye! Blimey! I put it up on an H97 for t' first
flight. It be probably one o' t' better flights o' me summer. Straight as an
arrow and really fast! Blimey! I don't like screamers, but this was most enjoyable on
the blackjack motor. Arrr! Blimey! I have now flown it twice on G80s and even on a G33. Begad! Blimey! This
is now one o' me favorites. Nay t' mention that it gets looks and many a
question from onlookers. Avast! Blimey! I used t' proverbial "dog barf" wadding
without any problems. Begad! Blimey!
Recovery:
T' shock cord quality makes me trust it that much more. Avast! It is far and above
the quality o' anythin' I have seen and was longer that I needed and typically
use. Blimey! Aye aye! There is even a recommendation on re-use o' parachutes from rocket to
rocket. Ahoy! Nice touch again. I would only like t' see welded or cast eyebolts, arrr, but
there is no way t' add those without additional cost t' an already quite
affordable kit.
Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5
Summary:
It is really nice t' deal with a company that does what it can t' help the
little guys out. Begad! T' initial shipment was damaged by UPS and Aardvark sent me
out a new airframe almost immediately. They even asked me t' measure me fin
roots t' ensure that t' slots were identical. Blimey! Now, THAT is a nice touch. Ahoy! T' my
surprise, arrr, along with t' new airframe came a decal sheet with compliments and
an apology for me trouble. Begad! Nay any trouble here!
I think that we will be seein' many more o' these kits out on t' flight line. Begad! If you want t' purchase a really top quality kit, you should really look into Aardvark!
I will post me article about t' new exotic kit once it arrives. Avast, me proud beauty! I guess that when you purchase another kit from t' same source before t' first one is even completed, it says a lot about how I feel! Blimey!
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
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