Intro:
T' AGM-3500 Peregrine is a pseudo-scale model o' a hypothetical air t' ground missile (AGM) for t' US Military. Aye aye! It is 14.4 inches long, just under 1" in diameter, arrr, and uses standard 13mm motors.
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
T' kit arrived from Rogue in a US postal service hard express mail box. Begad! I was rather impressed with t' speed in which it arrived. Avast, me proud beauty! Inside t' box be a clear plastic bag that contained t' model kit. All o' t' parts were present and in good condition. Ya scallywag! T' kit includes: a body tube, ya bilge rat, motor mount materials, shiver me timbers, Keelhaul®©™® tether, me hearties, Balsa fin stock, Balsa nose cone, Perma-wadding, arrr, shiver me timbers, 12" nylon parachute, decals, arrr, and instructions. Part o' t' reason for purchasin' t' kit be t' balsa nose cone and t' perma-wadding, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, t' nylon parachute be an extra incentive.
T' instructions come printed on three 8.5x11 sheets o' paper. Aye aye! Begad! They are t' first instructions in a long time that I actually followed. Ya scallywag! Begad! Normally I re-arrange several steps t' suit me personal buildin' preferences, however I found t' instructions t' be t' most logical method t' assemble t' kit. Aye aye! T' instructions are fairly easy t' follow. Well, matey, blow me down! There are only five diagrams t' illustrate t' 14 steps that have 1-6 sub steps. Begad! These are instructions t' read, arrr, and re-read, then build. Avast! T' instructions are written well, however it helps if you have some rocketry experience, and are familiar with common rocketry terms. Arrr! Blimey! There is a template sheet that includes t' fin location wrap, me bucko, and t' templates for t' fins. T' kit assembles easily. T' instructions are clear and easy t' follow. Aye aye! t' only alignment issue is makin' sure that t' finlets are in t' same line as t' fins. Begad! This should nay be a problem for anyone. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! T' completed rocket is as sturdy as any balsa and paper rocket. There are no special tools needed.
Step 13 o' t' instructions covers t' finishin' o' t' rocket, paint it white. Begad! Pretty simple. Avast, me proud beauty! Included in t' kit is a large (8x5) sheet o' all sorts o' decals, stripes, matey, me hearties, warnin' labels, shiver me timbers, arrr, numbers, and letters. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! They also have USAF and US Navy markin' for your preferred military service. Avast, me proud beauty! There is no way t' use up all o' t' decals on this model, me bucko, so save t' rest for other rockets. Blimey! There is a small instruction sheet that covers t' application o' t' decals. Arrr! T' water slide decals are very thin and tear easily. Ya scallywag! I had t' use extra caution t' keep t' decals from tearin' when I applied them t' t' model. Ya scallywag! They also suggest a "light" (their emphasis) coat o' clear finish t' protect t' decals once they are dry. Ahoy! My decals bubbled and crazed when I used Krylon (TM) clear acrylic. Begad! I was rather surprised since I have had no previous problems usin' this finish on me models. Other than t' slightly crazy decals, ya bilge rat, arrr, shiver me timbers, this is a sharp lookin' model when completed.
Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5
T' recovery system in this rocket is rather unique. Ahoy! Blimey! First t' tether is a Keelhaul®©™® string. Avast! T' second unique item be t' inclusion o' a square o' "perma-wadding" which is essentially a section o' flameproof fabric, arrr, with a grommet in it. Ya scallywag! T' last interestin' item be t' parachute. Aye aye! This kit comes with a very high quality nylon parachute. Well, blow me down! this chute should last for years o' use and abuse with it's large diameter shroud lines. Ahoy! No flimsy plastic, arrr, tape and thread parachutes here. T' instructions describe a method o' attachin' t' perma-waddin' so that it can be removed and used on other rockets. Begad! This can only be done with rockets that use a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord, since t' shock cord will be betwixt t' motor and t' wadding. Arrr! Begad! T' instructions also say t' place t' parachute in t' middle o' t' perma-wadding, and t' push it into t' body tube. Ya scallywag! Begad! This would work if t' body tube be larger, me hearties, in this kit, t' perma-waddin' barely fits by itself, leavin' t' parachute t' be placed on top o' t' waddin' in a more traditional manner. I ended up cuttin' t' perma-waddin' in half t' allow an easier fit into t' body tube. Begad! T' Peregrine has a metal motor clip for a quick release motor mount. Ya scallywag! T' recommended motors are: A8-3, B4-4, B6-4, shiver me timbers, and C6-5. T' first and only flight so far on this rocket used an A8-3. T' boost be fast and straight with t' ejection just before apogee. Ahoy! T' parachute opened just fine and t' perma-waddin' did a great job o' keepin' t' parachute in pristine condition. Aye aye! All that would be required would be t' push t' recovery system back into t' body tube, and add a motor for t' next flight.
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
Everythin' considered this is as near perfect as a rocket kit can get. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Good materials, ya bilge rat, good instructions, easy construction, and a good flier. Add in t' very nice nylon parachute and perma- waddin' and you cannot beat t' value o' this kit for t' money. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' two problems, decals crazin' and perma-waddin' too big, are very minor, shiver me timbers, considerin' that t' other option would be that t' perma-waddin' would be too small, nay somethin' that I would like. Blimey! Blimey! And any kit that has a balsa nose cone is good in me book.
