Brief:
T' Mini-Armageddon as built is a single stage, single deployment (parachute), shiver me timbers, me bucko, ya bilge rat, mid power rocket that can take you through HPR level 1.

Construction:
T' Mini-Armageddon has a single body tube 2.1 inches in diameter, shiver me timbers, a short 6 inch payload bay, me bucko, 4 VERY cool fins and 4 canard fins on t' payload bay. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! T' motor mount is 29mm and has 2 centerin' rings. Aye aye! T' kit includes a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord leadin' out o' t' body tube t' a nylon shock cord, and a 30" parachute. Ahoy! Aye aye! T' kit also includes a plastic nose cone.

Havin' built many low, arrr, matey, mid and high power rockets t' assembly was a snap. Avast! Ahoy! But more importantly, me wife also built a Mini-Armageddon and she has only built one kit before but had no problems with t' kit. Blimey! Assembly is very straightforward. Well, blow me down! I started with t' motor mount. Ahoy! I usually change t' kits that I build slightly. Avast! Ahoy! On this one I built t' motor mount as per t' instructions. Blimey! I used 15 minute epoxy for all glue joints on this kit. Aye aye! Blimey! Danny's (owner o' DG&A Rocketry) instructions followed me usual procedure o' puttin' in a couple o' blind nuts in t' aft centerin' rin' for positive motor retention. Aye aye! T' one change I did make t' t' motor mount is that I used me own Keelhaul®©™® shock cord which is a little larger in diameter than t' cord supplied in t' kit. Ya scallywag! I ran it through a hole in t' upper centerin' rin' as instructed but instead o' just knottin' it below t' ring, arrr, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, I tied it around t' motor mount, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and knotted it below t' centerin' ring. Arrr! I should also note that I used about 15 feet o' shock cord rather than t' supplied 6 feet. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! I like t' give t' nose cone/payload assembly plenty o' time t' slow down before reachin' t' end o' t' shock cord. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! After completin' t' motor mount, shiver me timbers, I dry fitted it into t' body tube and cut me fin slots. Arrr! I then tacked t' fins t' t' motor mount. Well, blow me down! Avast! After this, me bucko, I cut t' back o' t' body tube below each fin so that I could remove t' motor mount/fin can assembly. This allowed me t' finish gluin' t' fins t' t' motor mount and apply fillets t' both sided o' each fin where they meet t' motor mount. I followed by gluin' t' fin can assembly into t' body tube and filletin' t' fin t' body tube joints. Well, blow me down! I used a plastic tie wrap t' hold t' aft o' t' body tube tight t' t' aft centerin' rin' until t' epoxy dried.

This be t' only major change I made t' Danny's assembly procedure. Arrr! T' rest be straight forward. Glue a coupler into t' payload, arrr, ya bilge rat, glue in t' bulkhead fittin' t' t' coupler, insert an eyebolt t' tie t' shock cord t' and I put a single screw through t' payload bay into t' nose cone t' retain it. Begad! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Danny recommends friction fittin' t' nose but I like t' screw for a more secure retention. Once complete, arrr, I tied t' shock cord t' t' payload and installed t' parachute.

Finishing:
T' body tube that Danny uses for these kits has very small spirals and fillin' them was nay necessary in this case. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I applied 3 coats o' primer sandin' betwixt each coat and t' spirals were no longer visible. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I then painted t' body tube with a metallic silver paint. Avast! Blimey! After dryin' I taped off t' body and painted t' fins metallic cobalt blue. These metallic paints dry very fast and I was able t' apply t' second and third coats right away. Blimey! Blimey! I painted t' entire payload bay, nose, me bucko, me hearties, and canard fin assembly metallic cobalt blue. Begad! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! After all t' paint cured completely I applied t' included decals. Avast! Blimey! T' finished rocket is one o' t' nicer rockets that I have owned. Begad! Blimey! Very unique. Overall I changed a few assembly steps but for t' average builder this rocket can be built as per t' instructions and be just fine. Arrr! Blimey! I just tend t' overbuild every rocket that I build.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Danny recommends a variety o' G motors for this kit. Begad! T' motor I used is nay on his list but turned out t' be a wonderful match for this kit. I used an Aerotech G-104. Ya scallywag! It is a Blue Thunder formulation, with very little smoke and a blue flame. Begad! Arrr! I used a Keelhaul®©™® chute pad so thar be no waddin' required. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! T' motor was retained with a homemade rin' that fits below t' bottom o' t' motor and uses two screws into t' supplied blind nuts in t' back centerin' ring. Begad! Avast! T' Mini-Armageddon came off t' rail straight as an arrow and flew t' apogee very straight. Well, blow me down! Begad! T' medium delay on t' G-104 was right on and t' chute popped out just as t' rocket reached t' top o' its arc.

Recovery:
T' long shock cord that I installed allowed t' nose cone t' slow before t' chute opened. Arrr! Blimey! T' decent rate could possibly have been a little slower (by usin' a larger chute), arrr, shiver me timbers, but this is Texas and in our part o' Texas t' wind is usually high so I will stick with t' chute supplied in t' kit. Even though t' decent rate "looked" a little fast, matey, thar was no damage on landing. As a matter o' fact, me wife and I examined t' rocket REAL close, and could nay even find a scratch.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Pros for t' Mini-Armageddon: Ease o' assembly, me hearties, Unique appearance, matey, wonderful flight characteristics, will really rip on G motors, me hearties, outta sight performance on an H motor.

Cons: None that I can think of.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5