Brief:
This is a single staged MPR/HPR rocket from LOC/Precision. Avast, me proud beauty! This kit is a stretched Norad with t' motor mount upgraded t' 38mm.

Construction:
T' kit contains a 3" booster airframe, me hearties, two 2.5" upper airframes, me hearties, me bucko, two plywood centerin' rings, matey, shiver me timbers, 4 plywood fins, matey, plastic nose cone, shiver me timbers, parachute, shiver me timbers, arrr, elastic shock cord, matey, launch lug, shock cord mountin' kit, me bucko, and assorted hardware for bulkhead assembly. Well, matey, blow me down! All components were in great condition and typical LOC/Precision high quality.

T' build for this kit was fairly straightforward, ya bilge rat, however, shiver me timbers, thar are a few steps t' be mindful of. Aye aye! T' kit starts with t' buildin' o' t' motor mount. You notice that t' two centerin' rings contained in this kit are different sizes. This is because t' motor tube extends through t' plastic transition and ends in t' smaller airframe tube above t' transition. Begad! So to start t' build, ya bilge rat, t' upper (smaller) CR is attached t' t' motor tube. I deviated from t' instructions a bit here, shiver me timbers, matey, as I added a third centerin' rin' so I could sandwich me fin tabs betwixt two centerin' rings. After t' upper CR was attached, t' transition be slid onto t' motor tube and held below the upper CR. Begad! Ya scallywag! I then attached me middle CR, trappin' t' transition betwixt t' two rings while t' epoxy set up. Begad! T' booster body tube be then slid over the lower CR and t' lower shoulder o' t' transition and t' assembly was epoxied into place.

While this was curing, I journeyed t' t' second deviation from t' norm for this kit. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Instead o' usin' t' stock SC mount, shiver me timbers, I built a bulkhead from plywood and drilled ejection vent holes around t' perimeter o' t' bulkhead. Arrr! Aye aye! I also inserted a screw eye into t' center o' this bulkhead and secured it with a washer, nut, me hearties, me bucko, and JB weld, and t' shock cord was tied t' this screw eye.

Once everythin' had cured, I fed t' shock cord through t' lower section of t' upper body tube and epoxied it into place over t' upper CR and upper shoulder o' t' plastic transition. While that be curing, me bucko, t' nose cone was attached t' t' payload tube with screws (I wanted t' maintain access t' the payload section for future payloads). Begad! Blimey! I also attached t' screw eye t' the upper bulkhead and epoxied t' bulkhead into t' tube coupler that holds the two upper body sections together. Then, t' upper end o' t' SC was attached to this screw eye (after a quick link be attached about two feet from t' top end of t' shock cord). Blimey! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Blimey! Airframe complete!

T' fins were attached and filleted usin' 15 minute epoxy. Avast! Aye aye! Three blind nuts were added t' t' lower CR for motor retention and t' lower centerin' rin' was then attached. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Instead o' usin' t' enclosed launch lug, I installed two rail buttons--one in t' lower shoulder o' t' transition, me hearties, and one in t' middle centerin' ring.

PROs: Great components, easy fit, me bucko, fairly easy build for someone who's built a few MPR/HPR kits.

CONs: Somewhat sparse directions that were kind o' confusin' in spots but were still workable. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Nay really a great choice for someone's first larger kit.

Finishing:
I filled t' spirals with some spackling, arrr, sanded t' whole thin' down, matey, and hit it with two coats o' primer. Well, blow me down! I kind o' liked t' paint scheme on t' card in the kit but wanted a few changes. Ya scallywag! Begad! I painted t' whole thin' silver--the bottom would remain silver, however, me bucko, me bucko, t' top would be metallic black so I wanted a shiny undercoat. Begad! Instead o' maskin' directly at t' top o' t' transition, shiver me timbers, I masked just above t' transition t' add somethin' different t' t' look o' the rocket. T' rest o' t' transition/booster was masked off, me bucko, then t' fins and airframe above t' transition were painted metallic black. Ahoy! It still needed something: lettering! I bought some self-stick Monokote trim in bright lime green and cut out letters t' spell t' name o' t' rocket. Avast! T' green looks awesome against t' metallic black airframe!

PROs: Kit looks great when finished!

CONs: There are fairly deep tube spirals t' fill.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' first flight o' this bird was t' be on a very busy day for me. Aye aye! T' weekend before Memorial Day, me bucko, I be goin' t' get me L1 certification on a different rocket at t' same launch. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! I prepped a 38mm/120 G61W, me first ever 38mm reload. I added an RMS+ kit t' brin' it t' about a 7 second delay. Ahoy! Blimey! T' motor was prepped and inserted into t' Norad Pro Maxx, then secured with three brass strips screwed into t' aft CR. Blimey! Blimey! I loaded onto t' rail and hooked up t' clips. T' button was pushed, ya bilge rat, and it roared off t' pad with a brilliant white flame behind it. Blimey! Blimey! She flew arrow straight with no spin and ejected t' parachute right at apogee t' recover about 200 feet from t' pad. Ya scallywag! Avast! Blimey! This rocket has since flown on a G77 and most recently on an H180 for a fabulous flight t' about 1800 feet or so! Blimey! Each time, shiver me timbers, matey, it has recovered with no damage whatsoever.

Recovery:
T' recovery system on this rocket is typical LOC: elastic shock cord and nylon parachute. Avast! I don't like t' standard shock cord mount for LOC (the nylon string epoxied t' t' airframe), me hearties, so I changed that durin' t' build, ya bilge rat, and a lot of people don't like t' elastic shock cord. Ya scallywag! I don't mind it, but in t' future I might change it out t' tubular nylon for added insurance.

While buildin' t' rocket, arrr, I looked at t' seemingly huge orange nylon parachute and thought thar was no way it was goin' t' fit in t' airframe and allow t' coupler from t' payload section t' go all t' way in, especially with enough dog barf in thar t' protect it. Begad! I be right--I couldn't pack it small enough for t' payload section t' properly mate up with t' rest o' the rocket. Begad! T' kit says it comes with a 36 inch chute. That seemed rather big for a rocket that was about t' same size and slightly lighter than me PML Small Endeavour, so I use t' parachute from me Small Endeavour when flyin' this kit.

PROs: Easy t' prep, shiver me timbers, no special steps.

CONs: Stock chute is way too big t' fit and would drift forever if used. Some may also view t' elastic shock cord as a con.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I'm very happy with this kit. It builds well and allows you t' think about it instead o' mindlessly followin' instructions. It looks great, has a pretty impressive profile on display, ya bilge rat, and also looks fabulous in t' air on both G and H loads. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! All in all, this kit would be an asset t' anyone's collection.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5