Brief:
Single-stage, matey, near-minimum diameter hi-flyer. Arrr! One o' THOY's original kits. Begad! 3 1/2 feet tall. Begad! Uses 18" nylon chute. Begad! Relatively big fins.

Construction:
Parts are pretty much all LOC type. Blimey! Body tube is composed o' two 17 inch tubes coupled together durin' construction. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! This does open up t' possibility of convertin' one tube into a payload section. Blimey! Motor tube is 6 inches long; a little short IMO t' fly on H motors, but in a minimum diameter kit it doesn't make much o' a difference. Aye aye! T' 2 centerin' rings are cardboard as opposed to plywood. Avast! Shock cord is standard 1/2 inch flat cord, shiver me timbers, and is mounted via a cable anchored t' t' top centerin' ring. Well, blow me down! T' 18 inch parachute is slightly sturdier than LOC's equivalent chute. Arrr! Begad! I think t' kit still comes with a 24mm adapter, which often comes in handy.

There are no construction "tricks" with this kit. Avast! Blimey! A few recommendations: Wrap tape around t' forward cable loop, otherwise your parachute will snag on this and nay come out o' t' body tube when it needs to. Shape t' fins very well. Ya scallywag! T' fin shape isn't t' most aerodynamic so you'll need t' shape t' leadin' and trailin' edges very well t' maximize performance. Drill a small hole [less than 1/8 inch] about 6 inches from t' top o' the airframe t' allow pressure equalization inside t' rocket for those high altitude flights. Blimey! Have a launch rod ready when gluin' t' 2 launch lugs on [I recommend this when buildin' ANY rocket]. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Be ready t' switch out parachutes frequently if you plan on doin' low and high altitude flights. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! Just about the only step you find in any other similar kit be t' step that instructs you to glue t' two body tubes together.

Finishing:
T' one thin' I LOVE about high power kits is that thar be no obligation to paint them any particular way. Begad! Ahoy! Like with any other MPR/HPR cardboard/plywood kit, just shave off t' moldin' lines from t' nose cone, ya bilge rat, sand t' fins nice and smooth, and use two coats o' primer. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! You may want t' fill in t' seam between t' two body tubes.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' manufacturer, arrr, me hearties, THOY, me bucko, shiver me timbers, recommends motors startin' at D12-3 all t' way to H55-14. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! I've flown this kit with D12's [only goes about 200-300 feet], single-use E's [HIGHLY recommended for flyin' at your local club launches, stays under 1000 feet], shiver me timbers, single-use and reload F's and G's [use a smaller chute], arrr, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and even low-end single-use H's before BATF required a LEUP [goes about a mile]. Nay many o' me rockets fly as straight as this one. Aye aye! Begad! It'll fly on most any motor from 20 t' 180 N-sec, matey, although I hadn't yet tried it with Aerotech 29/180 motors. If anyone else tries this, ya bilge rat, be sure and check CG/CP. Aye aye! THOY claims that it'll go supersonic. Aye aye! T' fin shape isn't really conducive t' supersonic flight, though one is definitely free t' try. Ahoy! Blimey! There is no motor hook or block, so you'll be friction-fittin' your motor in addition t' wrappin' a tape thrust rin' around it. Ahoy! Dependin' on how you prep rockets [I prep from t' top], gettin' waddin' a sufficient distance down t' tube requires t' services o' a launch rod.

Recovery:
T' 1/2 inch wide flat braid shock cord is attached via a steel cable anchored to t' top centerin' rin' [use plenty o' epoxy when gluin' t' motor mount in place]. Well, blow me down! I like this anchorin' technique MUCH better than LOC's standard inside-wall-of-the-airframe. Avast! It has held t' shock cord in for more than 20 flights. Arrr! T' kit comes with a little over 4 feet o' shock cord. Avast! Arrr! If it were any longer, it wouldn't fit very well in t' airframe. Arrr!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This is an excellent kit! I'd recommend it more for t' mid-power flyer, ya bilge rat, not for someone who wants a level 1 certification rocket, arrr, even though it can fly on small H motors. Its assembly is very straight forward with a few deviations from standard LOC instructions [body tube joint and shock cord mount most notably]. Begad! With t' substitution o' a bulkhead assembly for t' coupler, ya bilge rat, it can easily be made into a payloader. Avast, me proud beauty! For those mile high flights, arrr, dual deployment isn't such a bad idea. Blimey! Aye aye! T' fin shape be t' only other part o' t' design I would question, but this is mostly a performance issue.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5