"Futuristic Starship Design"
"Long, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, sleek appearance"
"Highly stable for fantastic flights!"
"Wind cheatin' design for extreme altitudes!"

Those are t' headlines on t' FlisKits Corona. T' Corona is a "longneck" rocket with and interesting, arrr, perhaps one would say, futuristic, me hearties, me hearties, fin/ring-fin configuration. Blimey! It has a nice "sleek" appear because t' fins are nay wide, me hearties, even after bein' surrounded by t' ring-fin.

T' Corona is classified by EMRR as a "longneck" because it has a 0.976" diameter and is 41.0" long, givin' it a 42:1 length t' diameter ratio. Aye aye! Way back when EMRR started t' site and was settin' up keywords, anythin' with a 30:1 and higher ratio was deemed a "longneck".

T' rocket includes two 17" long, 0.976" diameter, me hearties, light brown paper body tube for t' main body and a 4 3/16" solid balsa nose cone. Ahoy! Ahoy! T' kits includes much more than enough 1/16" balsa fin stock t' cut out t' fins from and 2.18" long, 1.25" diameter ring-fin. Aye aye! T' motor mount consists o' one 18mm motor tube, arrr, me hearties, a thrust ring, two centerin' rings and a motor hook. Ya scallywag! T' recovery system made up o' a 36" long, 1/8" wide, me bucko, white elastic shock cord, a 3-fold paper mount, and a plastic parachute that t' builder assembles. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Lastly t' kit includes two 1/8" diameter launch lugs.

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on both sides o' a single page o' 8½ x 11" paper (folded in thirds for a nice 6-page instruction set). Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! However, me bucko, this is complemented with a parts and tools needed list on t' back t' t' kit's placard. Also thar be a template page with a preflight checklist. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' instructions include illustrations t' ensure success.

FlisKits calls this a Skill Level 2 kit. Avast, me proud beauty! We agree.

T' motor mount is built first. Avast, me proud beauty! It is fairly typical with t' motor hook bein' held in place with maskin' tape. Avast, me proud beauty! You have t' cut a section out o' t' lower centerin' rin' (cardboard) t' allow for t' motor hook.

T' fins are next. After cuttin' out t' cardstock templates and tracin' them on t' balsa stock, they are cut out usin' a sharp hobby cutlass. Aye aye! Arrr! There are three upper and three lower sections for t' fins. Avast, me proud beauty! These are then airfoiled and an upper is glued t' a lower t' make up a single fin. Ahoy! This is repeated for all t' fins.

Next, t' body tube is marked usin' a cardstock fin markin' guide. Avast! Lines are extended on t' tube. I used t' door jam method.

T' motor mount is then slide into t' lower body tube (the one just marked). Begad! It protrudes by 1/4". This step is important because dependin' on your glue (white or wood) you could get it stuck. Ya scallywag! It has t' be a smooth and quick motion t' get t' motor tube in without issue. Begad! T' instructions are clear on this.

Next, shiver me timbers, t' upper body tube is added usin' a 1" coupler.

Then, t' balsa fins are glued onto t' fin lines. Avast! Blimey! They are aligned with t' bottom o' t' tube. Well, arrr, blow me down! T' launch lugs are also glued in place. Aye aye! Once all dry, t' ring-fin is glued in place.

T' last steps are t' attached t' eye-screw t' t' nose cone, arrr, me bucko, matey, t' elastic shock cord t' t' eye-screw and t' 3-fold paper mount it t' t' inside o' t' upper body tube. T' parachute is then assemble. Well, blow me down! My only nay here, ya bilge rat, is that FlisKits didn't indicate which parachute size t' assemble. Avast! T' plastic parachute sheet can make up a 16", shiver me timbers, 12" and 7½" parachute. I chose t' 7½" parachute since I anticipate fairly high flights.

FlisKits gives some basic finishin' guidance includin' sealin' t' balsa with 2-3 coats o' sandin' sealer, me hearties, then prime t' rocket prior t' painting.

I have been surprised with several days just at 50 degrees F, me hearties, so I have been able t' use me typical multiple coats o' Plastic-Kote Primer and sandin' in-between. Begad! Then amazingly, on t' last day o' November, me hearties, it was warm enough t' paint. Begad! I used Walmart Silver paint on t' whole body. Arrr! I let that dry for about 15 minutes, me bucko, me bucko, and hit is with a coat o' Walmart Clear Coat which protects t' silver. Avast! Begad! Then after 2 hours, shiver me timbers, I masked off everythin' except t' nose cone and ring-fin. Begad! I painted them with Walmart Fire Red paint on t' whole body (additional comments about Walmart paint).

Overall, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 4 ½ points. Begad! Build sequence and quality/fit o' parts was excellent. Blimey! Instructions are excellent. Well, blow me down! Begad! No decals and no pre-cut fins take away a bit. Arrr! Avast! T' latter is never a problem for me, but some may nay like it. If it keeps t' costs down, then I can wield a hobby cutlass for some fin cutting. Ahoy! Ya scallywag!

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

FlisKits recommends t' A8-3, B6-4, C6-5, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and D10-5 motors.

FlisKits indicates that t' rocket should weigh 1.66 ounces.

My finished rocket weighed in at 1.7 ounces.

On December 29th, ya bilge rat, me son and I went sleddin' and I be noticin' that thar was absolutely no wind. Begad! Since I was fortunate enough t' get t' rocket painted on t' last day o' November, me hearties, I decided I should try t' fly it as well. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty!

So we packed up a couple o' rockets and went for a few quick launches.

I used 3 sheets o' Estes waddin' and then loaded an A8-3. T' flight has nice altitude and it was very stable. Well, blow me down! T' Corona has a sleek, arrr, long profile design, so it gives an effortless-look t' its flying. Aye aye! Ejection be a bit before apogee. Ya scallywag! Begad! Recovery was good, but fast. Ahoy! I should have selected a larger 'chute when cuttin' it out (see above).

Second flight was on a B6-4. Begad! Avast! Blimey! Zipped off t' pad and went quite high. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Nay a single wiggle or spin... Ahoy! Begad! Blimey! straight as an arrow (as t' sayin' goes). Begad! Arrr! Blimey! Ejection be again a bit early, however, arrr, no damage. Arrr! Blimey! Recovered without problem.

Lookin' forward t' some C flights!

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, ya bilge rat, I would rate this rocket 5 points. Sleek and low profile gives this rocket a nice look. Begad! It is a very stable rocket. Begad! Recovery system is fine, but I would go with a larger parachute than what I picked.

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 4 ½ points. Aye aye! This longneck is more than 3-fins-and-a-nose cone utilizin' a ring-fin for looks and stability. Blimey! Nice rocket. Let's get some decals and really turn it into a 5. Avast, me proud beauty! Fliskits has made a "baffle" available for this kit, which I would have bought had it been available back when I purchased it. Ahoy!