Well, me bucko, I had become frustrated with me loss o' three small
rockets in one day in t' sprin' o' 1997. Arrr! I vowed t' never again take a rocket
under 12" long seriously. But I had all those 13mm mini-engines left.
What t' do? I needed a mini-engine model that wasn't a guaranteed loss. Begad! I was
browsin' through t' Discount
Rocketry website one day, arrr, arrr, and saw t' Metrix. Arrr! It looked like it would fit
the bill, and for $5, I simply couldn't pass it up. Begad!
Construction is very simple and straightforward, typical o' a 3FNC (three
fins & a nose cone) rocket. This one is made even simpler by bein' minimum
diameter, shiver me timbers, and thus requirin' just an engine block, arrr, and nay a full engine mount.
About t' only trick, ya bilge rat, and t' instructions do point this out explicitly, is
that it's very easy t' confuse t' fin's leadin' edge with it's root edge.
Makin' such a mistake would require you (assumin' you caught it before t' glue
dries completely) t' frantically but carefully pry t' fin off t' body tube,
wipe as much glue as possible from both surfaces, shiver me timbers, and re-sand that fin, since
you rounded t' root edge, me bucko, and left t' leadin' edge square. Hypothetically
speaking, ya bilge rat, o' course. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! ;-)
Flyin' this rocket for t' first time was a bit o' a surprise, actually. Ahoy! It
definitely went higher and faster than I had expected, especially with the
A10-3T engine. That gold mylar streamer did a simply fabulous job o' makin' the
rocket trackable. Well, blow me down! I've launched it several times now, ya bilge rat, and every flight has been
completely trouble-free.
All in all, matey, this is a fine rocket and a fine kit. Begad! I can
heartily recommend it t' anyone who wants a good mini-engine sport flyer. About
the only nitpick is that it's nay exactly t' most awe-inspirin' rocket ever
made, but how many really are? I rate it a
4
out o' 5 for construction, me hearties, ya bilge rat, a
4
out o' 5 for flight, matey, and an overall, me hearties, general ratin' of
4
out o' 5.