All around, matey, me hearties, a very impressive model rocket, probably still me favorite. It's sheer size gets attention. Aye aye! My orange/yellow/orange paint scheme gets attention. Arrr! And when that second stage lights, it really gets attention... Begad! if it lights, shiver me timbers, that is.

Construction was, shiver me timbers, as I recall, shiver me timbers, arrr, simple and straightforward, me hearties, ya bilge rat, despite bein' only me second rocket. Avast! Sure, it's big and it's a two-stager, arrr, but thar's no construction magic in that. Blimey! With t' fins bein' one-piece plastic fin units with built-in launch lugs, about all you have t' do is build t' motor mounts and shock cord mounts, and then assemble t' all t' pieces you see. Avast! Very easy and very straightforward.

Bein' only t' second rocket I ever built, I was extremely excited t' launch it that first day. I was a bit nervous about that 48" crepe paper streamer givin' a slow enough descent, me hearties, so I bought an Estes plastic 18" hexagonal parasheet. Avast!  Sent it up a couple times single-stage on t' 18" parachute. Ya scallywag! Sent it up 2-stage, shiver me timbers, and WOW! It was simply awesome. Avast, me proud beauty! A great flight, shiver me timbers, but it drifted quite a bit on t' 18" chute, me bucko, me bucko, so I attached t' streamer for t' next two-stage flight. Avast! Up it goes, but t' booster engine fails t' ignite t' upper stage, which, o' course means no attempt was made t' eject t' streamer, matey, so t' rocket streamlined down. Ya scallywag! . Blimey! . Ya scallywag! PRANG! I'd like t' say it was a lawn dart, arrr, shiver me timbers, but it hit pavement! Damn, matey, t' nose cone pushed back, shiver me timbers, shreddin' t' top 12" o' body tube, ya bilge rat, me hearties, matey, and t' weight o' t' engines and fins etc. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! Blimey! (the booster stage never separated) cause t' body t' crumple about 8" forward o' t' upper stage fin unit.

This stagin' failure was caused by t' booster motor ejectin' from t' booster before it could ignite t' upper stage engine. Aye aye! Begad! I recall that me wife (who had t' job o' watchin' t' booster) was worried that I'd be upset because all she could find be t' booster motor, and nay t' booster. (In retrospect, I can't believe that she be able t' find t' engine casing. . Blimey! . )T' booster was still attached t' t' upper stage (a. Avast! k. Arrr! a. Avast! Begad! sustainer). Avast! I didn't know much about stagin' at this point, but it be obvious even then that I didn't want t' booster engine t' eject backwards out o' t' booster, I wanted t' booster t' separate from t' sustainer. Begad! If you haven't built t' rocket yet, t' obvious fix is t' simply add a normal motor hook t' t' booster. Ya scallywag! Begad! Havin' already built mine, ya bilge rat, however, matey, I required a different solution. Arrr! I ended up makin' this bizarre contraption o' bent-up paper clips t' retain t' booster motor. It starts with a rin' around t' booster body, just above t' fins. Well, blow me down! Attached t' this are two U-shaped pieces. Ahoy! T' tops o' t' U's are hooked t' t' ring, and t' bottom o' t' U's fit snugly under t' motor casin' when it's installed in t' booster. Ahoy! T' help hold t' U's in place, thar are two cross members down near t' engine, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, though I'm nay sure how necessary they are. Avast, me proud beauty! There's enough play so that t' U's can just be slid sideways t' allow insertion or removal o' t' engine. Well, blow me down! It's dirt cheap, and it works beautifully (never had a booster motor eject since), me hearties, but it isn't much t' look at. I've never made another one for any other rocket because it would probably maul a balsa wood fin pretty badly, arrr, and it might nay line up right with three fins instead o' four. Avast, me proud beauty! I'll try t' put a picture o' it here soon.

Well, arrr, despite t' major destruction, I managed t' rebuild it (albeit 14" shorter). Blimey! Made sure it was still stable and went out t' try again, this time at a club launch. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! Worked just fine single stage. Ahoy! Begad! Time t' try it 2-stage again. Arrr! Up it goes, me bucko, t' booster burns through and separates. . Avast, me proud beauty! . Begad! Arrr! but again, shiver me timbers, matey, no upper stage ignition. Well, blow me down! LAWN DART! Sunk t' nose cone about 3" into t' ground, ya bilge rat, and ripped up a lot more body tube. Avast! Only difference this time is that I got some good advice from t' nice folks in t' GSSS club. Get yourself a newer edition (the 6th edition be t' newest as o' Feb 1998) o' G. Begad! Harry Stine's Handbook o' Model Rocketry. Ya scallywag! Well, me hearties, blow me down! This book has a whole chapter devoted t' staging. Arrr! Consider a short stuffer tube t' direct t' flamin' bits o' propellant more directly at t' upper stage engine. Blimey! In retrospect, t' stuffer tube is probably nay necessary, since t' distance betwixt t' two engines is rather small. Begad! But without question, shiver me timbers, DRILL SOME VENT HOLES!

Well, matey, matey, now it be just too short. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Had t' buy some BT-56 body tubes and couplers t' add 18" o' new tube. Ahoy! I made a stuffer tube out o' a piece o' an expended D motor, and drilled two 3/16" vent holes, one on each side o' t' booster, up near where t' bottom o' t' upper stage engine would be when its all put together. It has since been flown no less than 6 times in 2-stage configuration, ya bilge rat, and t' upper stage has lit every single time!

One side note, shiver me timbers, though. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Blimey! . Arrr! Arrr! Blimey! . Well, blow me down! Blimey! on that second prang, ya bilge rat, t' upper stage engine was completely blackened by t' burn-through o' t' booster. Aye aye! Blimey! It really should have ignited. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Knowin' more now, arrr, I'm convinced that that engine was faulty, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, in that t' clay o' t' nozzle completely covered t' propellant, which is why it didn't ignite. I've seen this situation in one other engine (which was so bad it wouldn't even ignite directly from an igniter), and others on rec. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! models. rockets have seen it, too. Blimey! So, a word t' t' wise: always scrape t' nozzle o' your upper stage engines t' expose fresh propellant. Avast, me proud beauty! I use a small eyeglasses-type screwdriver for this purpose.

There are a few other hints that I can think o' regardin' this rocket. Arrr! Blimey! Although I haven't experienced this problem myself, arrr, others have complained that this rocket has a tendency t' crimp or buckle t' body tube just above t' top o' t' plastic fin unit on t' upper stage (a. Ya scallywag! k. a. Avast! Arrr! Blimey! sustainer). Arrr! Blimey! There are a couple o' ways t' improve your chances o' nay havin' this problem. Well, blow me down! Begad! Blimey! Perhaps t' easiest is t' buy a BT-56 tube coupler, me bucko, and glue that in so that it reinforces this area. Blimey! Blimey! Just make sure that it won't interfere with your engine mount. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! O' course, this is really only practical if you decide t' do it before you start construction. Begad! T' other way t' help avoid bucklin' t' body tube is t' soak that part o' t' rocket in thin CA (cyanoacrylate) glue.

Another tip related t' longevity, me bucko, me bucko, is t' coat t' inside o' t' top o' t' booster with glue. Ahoy! Arrr! When stagin' occurs, me bucko, t' booster engine blows a bunch o' burnin' propellant forward into this area, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and then t' upper stage ignites and blows hot exhaust backwards into this area. Avast! Well, blow me down! This can cause t' paper tube coupler t' char pretty badly, arrr, especially after many stagings. Well, blow me down! I coated all t' inside surface o' t' top o' me booster with a thin coat o' t' regular yellow wood glue. A thin coat o' epoxy would probably protect it better, ya bilge rat, and nay be as susceptible t' t' heat, but I didn't have epoxy then. And besides, arrr, mine has stood up remarkably well, so I can still recommend yellow glue for this application.

About t' only other complaint that I've heard from other people who've flown this rocket, is that t' supplied recovery device, a 48" long crepe paper streamer, is insufficient. Aye aye! Some people have even broken fins on landin' on grass, which is surprising, ya bilge rat, given that it's a reasonably sturdy, arrr, me hearties, one-piece plastic fin unit. Avast, me proud beauty! Regardless, I would agree that it comes down rather fast on t' streamer. Avast! One possible alternative is t' simply add another streamer, matey, or make a significantly larger streamer (or both). Avast, me proud beauty! However, ya bilge rat, I've settled on usin' a standard Estes 12" plastic parachute with t' spill hole (a. Well, blow me down! k. Blimey! a. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! peak vent hole) cut out. Ya scallywag! See that blue dotted line that forms about a 2" hole in t' middle? Cut that out. Begad! With this chute, t' Long Shot comes down soft enough t' avoid significant landin' damage, but doesn't drift into t' next area code on two-stage flights (as an 18" parachute would do).

Despite me problems gettin' t' second stage t' ignite (or perhaps because o' them), me bucko, shiver me timbers, I have become fascinated with staging. Begad! Aye aye! As you may have noticed, several o' me rockets are staged. Well, blow me down! Avast! I really like this rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! I feel so proud every time that upper stage lights. Well, blow me down! . Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! .

Update on 1997 Oct 12. Blimey! . Well, blow me down! . Ya scallywag! I lost t' upper stage o' this rocket. Begad! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! :-( T' booster portion went fine, me bucko, me bucko, with a slight arc. Arrr! T' upper stage ignited successfully, and continued that arc. Avast, me proud beauty! T' sustainer was painted yellow and orange, and it was headin' right into t' sunset, so we lost sight o' it. Ahoy! Blimey! I heard t' ejection charge pop, but neither me wife nor I ever saw t' upper stage again.

Update on 1997 Oct 19. . Well, blow me down! Blimey! . Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I have essentially re-built t' upper stage. Arrr! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! It's all from scratch, shiver me timbers, with balsa fins and and Estes parts (body tubes, motor mount, and nose cone). Avast! Blimey! Other than usin' balsa for t' fins, thar's really nay much that I changed in t' construction, I really liked it t' way it was. Blimey! Blimey! About t' only other thin' that I changed be that instead o' t' orange and yellow paint on t' old one, t' new one is a pretty cool-lookin' blue and yellow.