Brief:
T' Sky CZ-2E is a single-stage scale model rocket with parachute recovery. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! This is a 1:150 scale model o' t' CASC Chang-Zheng-2E "Long March" rocket. Arrr! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Apogee Components imported this kit from Shaanxi Zhongtian Rocket Technologies Co., arrr, Ltd. Begad! (based in central China), arrr, translated and re-printed t' instructions, designed and printed an English cover card insert, and offers t' resultin' kit at quite a low price.

Construction:
T' Sky CZ-2E kit includes t' following:

• 1 cover card insert
• 1 Instruction sheet, English only with diagrams, double-sided, me bucko, 10-1/4" x 14"
• 1 Nose cone assembly, shiver me timbers, molded white plastic, hollow, pre-installed shock cord
• 4 Nose cones, ya bilge rat, white plastic, rounded conical, 15mm O.D. Avast! tenon
• 1 Body tube, white, convolutely wound, me bucko, 22mm OD X 260mm long
• 4 Body tubes, convolutely wound, 16mm OD x 70mm long
• 1 Motor tube assembly, matey, 18mm ID, 2.4" long, matey, me bucko, pre-installed centerin' rings
• 4 End plugs, white plastic, 15mm OD tenon
• 4 Fin units, milky-white translucent plastic
• 4 Decorative nozzle units, black plastic
• 2 Strap-on booster mounts, blue plastic
• 2 Launch lugs with standoffs, arrr, molded plastic, 4.35mm ID, me hearties, 30.5mm long
• 1 Motor clip, matey, metal
• 3 Shroud lines, cotton, 820mm each
• 6 Clear plastic adhesive-backed discs
• 1 Parasheet, hexagonal, 325mm across flats
• 1 Shock cord mount, tri-fold, paper
• 1 Decal sheet, me hearties, crack and peel

All o' t' tubes are convolutely wound, so thar are no tube spirals. Instead, me hearties, thar be a single seam that runs along one side o' t' tube. Blimey! T' nose cone shows no seams and has impressive thick walls. Aye aye! A tri-fold shock cord mount was taped t' t' kit. Blimey! I decided t' use a Keelhaul®©™®/elastic shock cord mount arrangement, me hearties, so I added t' followin' parts:

• 1 Keelhaul®©™® cord
• 1 18mm Engine Block
• 1 fabric elastic, ya bilge rat, 1/8" wide x 300mm long

T' instructions are a quite sketchy where plenty o' explanation is warranted.

T' first step is "Assembly o' t' motor mount". Aye aye! This step is simple and straightforward. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! I wanted to use t' Keelhaul®©™®/elastic shock cord mount, so before mountin' t' assembly in t' body tube, me hearties, ya bilge rat, I tied a Keelhaul®©™® cord t' a motor block glued t' motor block into upper end on t' motor mount assembly.

When test fittin' t' motor mount into t' body tube, ya bilge rat, I noticed that t' engine hook causes t' main body tube to bulge out significantly. Avast! I figured that this would cause problems when slidin' t' strap-on booster mounts onto the body tube, so I delayed installin' t' motor mount until t' booster pods were installed.

Step 2 is "Strap on Booster Assembly". Aye aye! Blimey! Here's where t' instructions become very sketchy because thar are a lot o' details that are nay mentioned or that are shown in an illustration but are nay mentioned in t' written instruction. Gluin' t' booster nose cones into t' booster tubes is straightforward. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! T' fit o' t' nose cones into the tubes was pretty tight, arrr, needin' a bit o' sandin' o' t' nose cone tenon edges t' allow easy insertion.

I feel that gluin' t' booster end caps into t' booster tubes needs more discussion that what is given by the instructions. Ya scallywag! T' nozzle mountin' holes in t' end caps are significantly off-center. Begad! When t' tubes are mounted in the strap-on booster mount, their seams should be toward t' main body tube so that they aren't noticeable. Ya scallywag! T' end caps should be mounted so that t' nozzle holes are aligned furthest away from t' seam so that they line up with the booster fins when they are mounted.

Next, shiver me timbers, t' decorative nozzles are mounted in t' holes in t' booster end caps. Begad! This is straightforward. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Finally, the fin units are attached. Begad! I feel that t' instructions leave out some important alignment details here as well. Well, blow me down! To keep t' tube seems toward t' main body, ya bilge rat, t' fin unit needs t' be aligned away from t' booster tube's seam. Arrr! Avast! If the booster end caps are aligned as mentioned above, then t' spacin' betwixt t' fin and t' nozzle will be uniform. Otherwise, arrr, it'll be noticeably out-of-whack. Begad! Also, t' fin units can be mounted flush with t' booster tube or flush with t' end cap, but t' instructions provide no guidance here. I mounted mine flush with t' tube, ya bilge rat, me hearties, leavin' t' end caps stickin' out a bit.

There is a step missin' in t' written instruction that is poorly documented in a diagram, namely, matey, gluin' the booster tube assembly t' t' main body tube. Avast! Ya scallywag! T' only dimension that is mentioned be t' distance betwixt booster mounts on t' main body tube, me hearties, ya bilge rat, but this dimension is kinda needless because it is forced by t' booster fin units and by the seam betwixt t' booster tubes and their nose cones. What is missin' be t' alignment o' t' whole booster tube assembly with t' main body markings and t' distance betwixt t' end o' t' main body and t' bottom booster mount.

By searchin' out some pictures o' t' actual CZ-2E rocket on t' Internet, me bucko, me bucko, I had found that t' strap-on boosters are generally mounted with two boosters straddlin' CZ-2E markings. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! For ease o' assembly, me bucko, mounted t' bottom booster mount 11 mm from t' aft o' t' main body tube. Begad! I found out later that t' distance should have been greater t' match the real CZ-2E, me hearties, but they work OK t' way I mounted them.

With plastic cement, I glued t' bottom booster mount with t' alignment I wanted and waited for t' glue t' dry. I did nay glue t' top mount until all pods were in place so that I could move t' top mount t' line up with the nose-tube seam o' each booster tube as they were mounted. Avast, me proud beauty! I then glued each booster assembly t' both mounts, matey, making sure that booster was in-line with t' main body tube, and that t' top booster mount lined up with t' booster's nose-tube seam. Begad! Arrr! Finally, I ran a bead o' glue around t' joint betwixt t' top booster mount and t' body tube.

T' instructions do nay describe any o' this and shows a diagram o' t' final assembly.

After waitin' for t' booster pod assembly t' dry, I installed t' motor mount assembly, shiver me timbers, completin' t' first step.

Step 3 "Launch Lug Attachment" is straightforward, but it specifies usin' wood glue t' attach the plastic launch lug/standoff t' t' body. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I be suspicious o' this and used plastic cement instead.

Most o' t' rest o' t' instructions give adequate detailed guidance and are easy t' follow. I altered part b) o' Step 5 "Nose cone and parachute assembly" for Keelhaul®©™®/elastic shock cord assembly, tyin' t' a separate fabric shock cord t' t' free end o' t' Keelhaul®©™® cord and tyin' t' free end o' t' shock cord t' t' shock cord that be pre-installed in t' nose cone.

T' instructions give an interestin' detailed description for foldin' t' parachute that I haven't seen in other kits.

A step is missin' in t' instructions regardin' gluin' t' Shenzhou capsule nose piece onto t' Shenzhou capsule. T' nose piece is a weird lookin' piece o' plastic that isn't mentioned anywhere in t' instruction but is shown on the card insert and t' first page o' t' instructions. Arrr! Aye aye! Blimey! It was easy t' orient and cement into place.

Overall, ya bilge rat, me bucko, construction was interestin' and gratifying, if nay well-explained. T' instructions left out a few steps and some alignment specifics. Begad! T' resultin' product looks good and feels sturdy. Arrr! Parts fit together precisely and snugly, shiver me timbers, though edges generally needed a bit o' sandin' t' get things in place.

Finishing:
Step 7 "Decal Placement" shows where all o' t' decals should be placed. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' crack and peel decals went on without much trouble, mostly. They suffered from t' same problem that similar decals have with other rocket kits, the decals don't want t' stick t' curves very well.

I had some trouble with a couple o' t' body-wrap stripe decals. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! A couple o' these wanted t' delaminate rather than separate from t' decal backin' material. Arrr! With some care, matey, arrr, I managed t' get these off t' sheet in one piece and get them onto t' rocket.

There's no paintin' required. Begad! Blimey! T' decals provide t' finish. Begad! T' end result is pretty good for crack-and-peel, but inferior t' waterslide or rub-on dry transfer. Arrr! Aye aye! T' clear decal edges are easy t' see and feel, ya bilge rat, but from a few feet away they don't look too bad.

Construction Rating: 2 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight was durin' t' first SAROS club launch o' 2008 on May 4. T' wind was variable, within 10 mph. I did not have one o' t' recommended motors on hand, but I figured t' CZ-2E should be okay with a B4-4. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I poured a load of cellulose insulation (dogbarf) into t' body, shiver me timbers, powdered and folded t' chute, ya bilge rat, then inserted t' shock cord and chute and nose cone. Well, blow me down! I inserted t' motor and t' clip held it securely. I inserted t' igniter and igniter plug then slipped the rocket onto a launch rod. I used an alligator clip t' keep t' motor a few inches away from t' blast deflector. I hooked up t' igniter wires, went back t' t' launch controller, shiver me timbers, counted down, and pressed t' launch button. Ahoy! T' CZ-2E boosted straight at first, me hearties, arrr, then angled downwind. Begad! Aye aye! I suspect a gust caught it. Aye aye! It reached apogee, ya bilge rat, me bucko, arched over, and the ejection charge blew. Next time, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I'll try a shorter delay.

Recovery:
I built me CZ-2E with a Keelhaul®©™®/elastic shock cord which worked well for t' first flight. Begad! Ahoy! It was easy t' install, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, too, matey, by installin' t' Keelhaul®©™® cord and thrust rin' into t' top o' t' motor mount assembly. Begad! T' parachute deployed perfectly and t' descent rate was about ideal. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' CZ-2E landed gently, me hearties, without any noticeable damage.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
T' Sky CZ-2E is an good buy for an attractive scale model o' t' CZ-2E. Begad! Ahoy! It looks good and flies great. Arrr! There is enough work with t' booster pods t' earn t' kit's skill level 3 ratin' but is a straightforward build otherwise.

T' negative things I've found with this kit are t' short shock cord, incomplete instructions, crack-and-peel decals, and a couple o' decals that started delaminating.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5