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