I first saw Starlight Model Rockets advertised in NAR's Sport Rocketry magazine, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, but was then pleased t' see LongLongJonRocket.com start t' carry them, so I could try one out. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! T' flight vehicle that I tried out is their F-32 Avenger. T' winged-aircraft look is what caught me attention. Ahoy!

T' kit includes one 12" body tube which seems slightly thicker than typical Estes (but when I measured them I could nay see a difference). This body tube was completely pre-marked. T' 2 3/4" nose cone and pre-cut fins are balsa. Aye aye! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! There are two 18mm "jet" tubes that are 2 3/4" long. Arrr! An 1/8" dowel is provided for some detail work. There is an 18mm motor tube with retainin' hook, thrust ring, ya bilge rat, and two centerin' rings. Arrr! T' recovery system is made up o' an 12" ASP Mylar parachute, a 16" piece o' round (1/16") white elastic, and a shock cord mount. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! A 1/8" launch lug, some hardware, ya bilge rat, a decal sheet finish out t' kit.

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on a 3 sides o' two 8½ x 11" paper. There are many hand drawn illustrations t' assist in buildin' t' kit and t' placement o' t' decals. Ya scallywag! Blimey! As mentioned above, t' body tube is pre-marked with a few different colors, so a markin' guide is nay needed.

T' F-32 assembles like most Estes, Custom, ya bilge rat, or Quest kits.

T' motor mount is assembled first and it used a wire motor hook, thrust rin' and two centerin' rings. Arrr! T' thin round motor hook has a tendency t' "roll" in t' motor mount when bein' used. I believe this is why Estes and Quest went with flat sprin' steel. Nonetheless, it is nice t' have a motor hook provided. Ya scallywag!

T' nose cone is balsa and it first requires that an eye-screw be added into t' base. Well, blow me down! T' nose cone was really grainy. Well, blow me down! I found t' bottom transition edge (from nose cone t' shoulder) t' be very ragged and slight splintered. Ya scallywag! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Nay terribly uncommon for balsa nose cone kits, but it is tough t' sand. Blimey! Ahoy! I found that by slidin' it into t' body tube, applyin' pressure and turnin' it against t' tube edge greatly helped reduce t' raggedness problem.

Havin' pre-cut balsa fins is a nice quality touch. Avast, me proud beauty! T' body tube is pre-marked with different colors t' allow for very easy assembly. Blimey! Avast! T' instructions guide you t' use t' "double" glue technique. Glue is added t' t' root edge o' t' fin and then it is set aside t' dry. Well, blow me down! Begad! Starlight has even gone as far as colorin' t' root edge with black. Avast! Once it is dry, me hearties, glue is applied t' t' root edge and it is placed in position on t' pre-marked line on t' body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast!

T' 1/8" dowel is cut into two 2" and two 3" pieces. T' 2" dowels are glued t' t' end o' t' win' tips. Ahoy! T' 3" dowels are glued on t' underside o' t' rocket on each side o' t' launch lug. Avast! These add detail t' t' rocket.

T' shock cord gets a knot tied in one end and it then weaved through three holes in t' shock cord mount. Begad! Blimey! This is then glued inside, 1" down from t' top, o' t' body tube. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' opposite end is tied t' t' eye-screw in t' nose cone. T' parachute is assembled accordin' t' ASP's instructions.

Basic finishin' instructions are provided (sandin' sealer, me hearties, shiver me timbers, sand, me hearties, repeat, paint white). Avast! Begad! Then t' instructions describe applyin' t' water-slide decals. Begad! However, thar be a supplemental note that said water-slide decals had been replaced with peel-n-stick ones. Begad! So I peeled-n-stuck on t' decals.

I used me typical multiple coats o' Plastic-Kote Primer and sandin' in-between. Begad! T' nose cone took a lot o' work. Arrr! Avast! I then used Walmart Silver paint.

Overall, arrr, matey, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 3 points. T' instructions are adequate for t' kit. Avast, me proud beauty! T' hand drawings are nay t' same quality o' other kits, but certainly allow t' builder t' be successful. Arrr! T' quality o' parts are good with t' exception o' t' nose cone and motor hook. Arrr! Ahoy! T' pre-markin' is a very thoughful bonus. Blimey! Havin' decals and Mylar parachute are nice features, too.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Starlight recommends t' A8-3, matey, me bucko, B6-4, and C6-5.

My finished rocket weighed 1.5 ounces.

T' instructions indicate that you'll need 2-4 squares o' wadding. Ahoy! I used 3, me hearties, rolled me 'chute, and got everythin' ready.

T' first flight was on an A8-3. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Excellent first choice. Nay terribly high, me hearties, but allowed for a nice flight. Recovery system worked fine, no damage. Aye aye! Blimey!

T' second flight was on a B6-4. Ahoy! Straight flight, shiver me timbers, very stable. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! It ejected at apogee. Aye aye! I was a fairly high flight for t' size o' rocket it is. Begad! Descent rate is good. Well, blow me down! Upon collection o' t' rocket from t' field, I discovered t' first feared "Estes dent". Aye aye!

I know, it probably isn't fair t' keep sayin' "Estes dent", but I think most understand what that is. Too short o' a shock cord, ya bilge rat, elastic stretches, shiver me timbers, snaps back. Begad! On balsa nose cones you get a "smile" from t' body tube. Begad! With plastic nose cones you get a "dent" on t' top o' t' body tube. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! Therefore, me hearties, I now declare this t' be a "balsa smile" instead o' an "Estes dent". Begad! Ya scallywag! Blimey!

So, me bucko, back t' t' program. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' flight resulted in a "balsa smile".

T' third flight was also on a B6-4. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! Stable and straight. Aye aye! Begad! At apogee it turned as if t' rocket (plane) be flyin' right side up. Begad! Neat t' see.

T' fourth flight be on a C6-7. Avast! I purposely chose t' longer delay so it could drop some before ejection. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! It looked great arcin' over, me hearties, me hearties, but it be way up there. Begad! T' ejection charge went off and t' parachute did nay fully open. Aye aye! I'm glad because I would have had t' walk a mile. Ahoy! A second "balsa smile" appeared.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, I would rate this rocket 4 points. T' F-32 is very stable and nice looking. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! T' short elastic shock cord caused damage. Blimey! Blimey! T' parachute is excellent and sized correctly for this rocket.

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 3 ½ points. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Looks and what you get with kit are very nice. Begad! Overall, me bucko, it was a good experience, but in all fairness, t' rocket falls into t' "average plus" range for ratings.