(04/01/04) Thrustline Aerospace is a relatively new company (openin' in 2003). Ya scallywag! At first it seemed they were focused solely on OOP Estes reproduction, however, they seem t' be stretchin' out t' their own designs. This rocket, ya bilge rat, t' Mighty Mick is a Thrustline original. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! I won it with my Descon 12 entry.

Thrustline says this about t' Mighty Mick, "Whenever you look at some o' t' larger rocket companies, arrr, it's really hard t' find a... Ya scallywag! large tube, high performance rocket for sport rocketry that doesn't end up costin' an arm and a leg! That's why I designed "Mighty Mick". I wanted a good solid lookin' rocket that I could put C11 through E motors in, shiver me timbers, arrr, without payin' 30 dollars and up! This rocket has great flying flexibility!"

So, me hearties, t' Mighty Mick has a diameter o' 1.64 inches and is 25 inches long and carries a price tag o' about $14 (02/04). Aye aye! Begad! Some rockets that I feel are close equivalents include t' Estes Eliminator (1.35" x 30.5"; $20.64) or t' Estes Executioner (2.6" x 38.5", $37.50) and t' FlisKits Rhino (1.6" x 24.5"; $11.95). T' FlisKits Rhino isn't designed for E motors nor does it have a ripstop parachute, me hearties, so it seems that Thrustline is correct on t' pricing. Ya scallywag! Begad! What about performance and looks? Well, read on.

T' kit includes a main body tube which is 1.64" x 17" and a solid balsa nose cone t' make up t' total length. T' motor mount includes a 24mm tube that is 7" long, three (3) fiberboard centerin' rings, me bucko, a motor hook and thrust rin' designed for Estes E motor length. Begad! Begad! T' recovery system includes a Keelhaul®©™® tether, arrr, shiver me timbers, an elastic shockcord, and 18" ripstop nylon parachute and an eye-screw t' attach t' t' nose cone. Avast! Blimey! There is a balsa sheet t' cut out the three fins from and two launch lugs.

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on 4 pages (single-sided) o' 8½ x 11" paper. Avast, me proud beauty! There are black-and-white photos throughout t' assist in t' assembly o' t' kit. There is also a single page with t' fin template and tube markin' guide (my kit was missin' this, me hearties, arrr, ya bilge rat, but Thrustline resolved that quickly). T' rocket is very easy t' build and is probably nay much more than a level 2 kit.

T' motor tube is built first. Ahoy! After makin' 4 marks on t' tube, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, for t' insertion o' t' engine hook and t' three centering rings assembly begins. Aye aye! Arrr! T' instructions are a bit confusing, but I think it is because o' a typo I found. Ya scallywag! In step 1, arrr, ya bilge rat, it says that t' marks at 1/4", 3-1/4", arrr, me hearties, 3-1/2" and 6-3/4" are "...for t' aft centering ring, ya bilge rat, t' center centerin' ring, t' aft engine clip insert point, and the forward centerin' rin' respectively". However, in step 2 it says to "Make a 1/8th inch slit at t' 3-1/4 inch mark" for t' engine hook. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! After studyin' t' drawings, I believed that step 2 should have said to make t' slit at t' 3-1/2 inch mark. But as I will explain later, I was wrong. Really, t' mark at 3-1/4" is for both t' aft engine clip insert and t' center centerin' ring. Ahoy! Aye aye! Be real careful with this... Begad! in fact, here is a drawin' for you. Arrr! Begad! (Thrustline, me bucko, please consider puttin' this in your instructions)

T' Keelhaul®©™® tether is attached t' t' upper section o' t' motor tube. This is slid under the forward centerin' rin' and secured. Begad! Nice arrangement. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' motor tube assembly is put into t' body tube. Begad! My assemble fit perfectly, however, Thrustline noted hat you may have t' sand t' fiber centerin' rings t' get a good fit.

T' fins are cut from t' provided balsa usin' t' fin template. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! Simple cuts. Begad! Blimey! I choose t' round me leadin' and trailing edges usin' sand paper prior t' gluin' t' fins in place.

T' rest o' t' construction is straightforward and basic build activity. Aye aye! Ahoy! Oh, matey, arrr, I do want t' mention that I built the entire rocket usin' Omni-Stick glue. Begad! I even did t' fin fillets with this glue. Arrr! It takes some gettin' used to, but grabs smartly (formerly called Quick Grab - see here for more info) and has adequate strength.

Thrustline does give finishin' guidance includin' usin' wood filler, priming, sanding, priming, sanding, then painting. There are no decals provided with this kit.

Lastly, t' parachute is assembled. Aye aye! Well, matey, blow me down! This is done by pullin' all t' shroud lines together and cuttin' them so that they are even. Aye aye! Arrr! Then tiein' them on t' provide swivel and placin' some glue on t' knot. No issues.

At first I wasn't thrilled about finishing this rocket and for those that have followed me reviews, me hearties, ya bilge rat, it is me least favorite part o' building. As I continued t' look at this rocket, I really started t' appreciate t' "classic" lines with t' 3-fin and nose cone design. Blimey! Ya scallywag! That appreciation led me t' puttin' forth great effort t' finish it. Avast! So after many, many coats o' Plastic-Kote Primer and sandin' in between, I got this rocket as smooth as silk. Aye aye! I then used Walmart White and Red paints to finish it off (additional comments about Walmart paint). Well, blow me down! I'm very pleased with its looks.

Overall, ya bilge rat, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 3 ½ points. Begad! T' instructions are adequate, however, matey, I did find that the motor mount assembly was a bit confusing. Begad! I'm sure this will be corrected. I'm nay thrilled about how t' Kelvar tether sticks out o' t' top o' the rocket body, but we'll see how it holds up. Ahoy! I see this as a formula for zipperin' verses t' wider elastic. Avast! I had no trouble cuttin' t' fins, but compared t' other kits where t' parts are laser cut, me hearties, it is a small detractor (note: I'd rather cut these simple fins myself and keep t' price o' t' kit down). Ahoy! Avast! T' kit did nay include any decals.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Thrustline recommends t' D12-3 "...until you can observe t' rocket's performance and work your way from there." They also say from C11 through E.

My rocket weighed in at 3.4 ounces. Arrr! I went ahead and worked up a RockSim file for it t' get better guidance for flying.

After decidin' t' head out for a few flights on a delightful, ya bilge rat, spring-preview day here in Vermont, ya bilge rat, I decided t' fly the Mighty Mick on a C11-5. Begad! T' kit does nay come with an adaptor (which I think it should) t' allow you t' use C11 and D12 motors in t' E9-sized motor mount. I took a 24mm coupler and sized it for t' difference in length betwixt a C11 and E9 motor. I slid it up into t' motor mount and then pushed in a C11. What's this? It stopped short! It didn't clip in under t' motor hook. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Surely, shiver me timbers, the coupler is stuck... Arrr! maybe on some excess glue? Wrong! By now you know what I did. Begad! Arrr! Yep, me hearties, it was hittin' t' thrust rin' that was under t' motor hook. Well, so much for ever flyin' this rocket on E9's!

I just cut out t' coupler I put in, and made a shorter one t' allow t' use o' C11's.

At t' launch site, I prepped t' rocket. I used two sheets o' waddin' and then added a Nomex® heat shield t' t' shock cord. Arrr! Avast! I loaded t' C11-5 and be ready t' go.

First flight be off and got some nice pictures. Well, blow me down! It be as straight as an arrow. Begad! Begad! Blimey! T' finish on this rocket allowed for great contrast t' t' blue sky. Ahoy! T' C11 blew its thrust smartly and then just silent ascension. Begad! Blimey! It be beautiful! Blimey! At apogee a trail o' white smoke appeared as it arced and then pop, t' nose cone ejected and t' bright yellow parachute open. Begad! Begad! Blimey! A classic lookin' rocket in a classic lookin' flight. Very nice.

I decided t' repeat this and was successful. Landin' nearly in t' exact same spot. Avast! It be beautiful.

T' recovery system looks great and looks like it will last a while.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, me hearties, me bucko, I would rate this rocket 4 ½ points. I'm very pleased with t' performance o' this rocket. And even though it will never fly on E9's, me hearties, I think it is a nice rocket for C11's. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! I'm also lookin' forward t' a D12 flight and then maybe I'll break out my 24mm RMS system for it! Perhaps, I'll change t' a streamer first. Well, blow me down! The recovery system and rip-stop parachute are very nice. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! T' only thin' nay making the rocket a perfect 5 is that if a rocket is designed for E9's, matey, matey, I think an adapter should come with it t' allow flights on C11 and D12's. Avast! That's all. Perhaps, me hearties, matey, shiver me timbers, overly critical. Begad! Blimey!

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 4 points. Aye aye! T' rocket has classic lines which makes it look nice. Avast! It makes a nice addition t' any fleet. It does take some patience in finishin' with the all balsa nose cone. Blimey! But t' recovery system and t' motor choice flexibility are nice. Ya scallywag! Remember t' price comparison at t' top o' this review? Go get a Mighty Mick... Aye aye! Avast! but watch that motor mount assembly!