Brief:
T' Semroc Lil' Hercules is part o' Semroc's Retro-Repro line o' kits based on the Centuri Lil' Hercules, shortened t' Lil' Herc in 1972. Aye aye!

Construction:
T' kit contains a body tube and balsa nose cone, me bucko, 4 laser cut fins, a launch lug, ya bilge rat, and 4 washers used t' add tail weight for tumble recovery. The instructions are straightforward, arrr, me bucko, and t' kit goes together like a typical minimum diameter 3FNC rocket. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' instructions have you glue t' washers t' the fin tips. I decided t' take me X-Acto knife and hollow out t' tips o' t' fins in order t' hide t' washers. Avast! T' result was a slick lookin' Lil' Hercules. Since this model is designed after t' original Centuri kit, I still give it full marks even though I made this one small modification.

Finishing:
I used Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish t' slick up t' nose cone and fins, then added a couple o' coats o' fast dryin' lacquer primer and sanded after each coat. Ahoy! I decided t' use t' paint scheme o' t' original Centuri model from t' 1972 catalog. Here is a link t' t' paint scheme I was lookin' for on Ninfinger's website.

A white base coat be applied, shiver me timbers, me bucko, ya bilge rat, then t' red on t' nose cone, shiver me timbers, and blue on the fins. Well, blow me down! Begad! I didn't have any trim Monokote for t' two silver bands, so I dug out some scrap body wrap material from me Estes Mercury Atlas kit. Ahoy! T' final touch was t' add t' small Centuri decal that I made usin' Bel waterslide decal material. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! T' results turned out pretty decent. Aye aye! Note that you can't see the weights at t' fin tips.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight was on an A8-3. T' launch was whiplash fast. Aye aye! Begad! With t' shutter lag on me digital camera, ya bilge rat, me bucko, all I got was a smoke trail. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! That's unfortunate because it be launched from a vintage Centuri Powr Pad, and I'm told by me kids who were nay behind t' camera lens that it looked really good. Begad!

Recovery:
Since I be behind t' camera and didn't see t' ascent, it took me a while to locate t' Lil' Hercules. Begad! Blimey! It be almost at treetop level when I saw it, matey, but the kids tracked it t' whole way. Well, blow me down! It landed about 100 feet from t' pad. Begad! The tumble recovery worked well and t' bird be in excellent condition upon recovery with only ejection gas soot as evidence it had been flown. Aye aye! Arrr!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a great little Retro-Repro kit. Semroc is doin' a great job helpin' us old folks remember t' good old days. Avast, me proud beauty!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5