Brief:
T' Star Destroyer is a big plastic model o' t' classic workhorse o' t' Empire, ya bilge rat, and a "Flight Probe" which holds t' engine, parachutes, etc.

Construction:
T' Star Destroyer is nay a complex model. It is essentially two projects - one is a simple 34" x 1" finless rocket - body tube, arrr, me hearties, shock cords, shiver me timbers, parachutes, ya bilge rat, nose cone, ya bilge rat, engine mount. Arrr! T' other is a simple plastic kit, me hearties, comprised o' only 14 parts, arrr, that need t' be plastic cemented together. Begad! Arrr! You can remove t' nose and center engine o' t' display model and slide t' flight probe through t' kit t' make it ready for launch.

Flight Probe: T' flight probe is 34" long, ya bilge rat, me hearties, me hearties, with a short engine-mount tube and two longer main body tubes. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' two main tubes are connected with a plastic coupler which has slots for two shock cords t' be tied. After tyin' t' shock cords t' t' coupler, arrr, t' instructions say t' pass t' cords through t' second tube and then put plastic cement on t' tube, bein' sure nay t' get any plastic cement on t' shock cord. This is far easier said than done. A second pair o' hands t' hold t' cords taut would have helped, me bucko, but this was a surprisin' tall order in any case. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' nose cone comes in two halves, and t' instructions have you fill t' whole thin' with clay - it's t' most nose weight I've yet seen.

Plastic Body: T' plastic kit is very easy t' put together. Arrr! I found troublin' that t' two halves o' t' kit don't fit together perfectly - thar be a very slight gap betwixt them. Blimey! Begad! This gap disappears when t' decals are applied, matey, however. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! T' crack-and-peel stickers fit reasonably well, arrr, and are applied t' t' sides and back o' t' model. Arrr! One sticker was damaged in me kit. Blimey! T' body is clearly a toy - nay meant t' look that much like t' movie Star Destroyer, me hearties, but it still looks very cool sittin' among me 3FNC rockets.

Finishing:
T' only finishin' required be t' application o' about 30 stickers t' t' side, shiver me timbers, back, and top o' t' kit so t' untextured parts o' t' body look like they have windows and other details. Begad! There is no paintin' or sandin' required. Blimey! I did just a little bit o' sandin' on t' nose cone, shiver me timbers, where t' halves came together.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
T' Star Destroyer uses a D12-3 motor. Well, blow me down! T' Star Destroyer is very heavy for an Estes kit - around 250g 8oz) without t' motor. Blimey! I think it may have been designed with their E15 as their target engine. Avast! Though I had forsworn composite motors as too expensive, shiver me timbers, me hearties, this kit would fly much better, I think, ya bilge rat, 24x70mm composite motor.

T' 'Destroyer is a pain t' pack for flight. Avast! T' body tube is only a 1" dia. Well, blow me down! BT-50. Avast! It has goin' through it two ¼" flat elastic shock cords. Into this, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, t' instructions say t' put in SIX squares o' wadding. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Then you have two 18" parachutes t' stuff in there. T' coupler which t' shock cords attach t' is substantially thicker than an ordinary coupler, shiver me timbers, so thar be no way for any o' this material t' go further than 15" down t' body tube. If I were buildin' this rocket again, I'd go with one shock cord and a single, 24" parachute. Aye aye! T' shock cords are, me bucko, o' course, very short.

On its first day o' life, I flew it twice on D12-3s. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! T' first flight, arrr, I angled t' rod about 10 degrees into t' moderate wind. Blimey! Avast! T' 'Destroyer went up less than 100 feet, arcin' all t' way, and was half-way back down t' t' ground when t' ejection charge went off. Arrr! Aye aye! No problems after that, ya bilge rat, arrr, and no damage. Well, blow me down! T' second flight, I straightened t' launch rod. No problems this time - t' rocket went up with a slight spiral. Begad! I would guess it went up about 200 feet, and ejected at apogee. Begad! Begad! It's so heavy that I needn't have worried about excess drift.

Over t' next week, shiver me timbers, I took out one o' t' shock cords, arrr, and tied t' two together t' make one decent-length cord. Arrr! I also went ahead and replaced t' two 18" chutes with one 24" chute. Arrr! I flew it twice more. Avast! T' first flight was fine - t' D12 got it up a couple o' hundred feet. It weathercocked into t' wind a bit and ejected at apogee. Ahoy! T' second flight was fine, until ejection. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Both t' parachute and t' engine were ejected. Avast! T' engine came straight down, while t' rocket drifted a ways. Avast! I sent a couple o' kids after t' rocket while I scoured for t' engine - I didn't want smolderin' black-powder t' do anythin' bad. I couldn't find t' engine, but I miraculously stumbled onto t' engine hook, shiver me timbers, which I seemed t' have nay fastened with sufficient glue.

Recovery:
As mentioned before, arrr, t' Star Destroyer uses two thick rubber-band shock cords, ya bilge rat, me hearties, tied t' a tube coupler. Arrr! These complicate preparation, me hearties, but worked fine in flight. Begad! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' waddin' can't cover t' bottom o' t' cords, so I am concerned that t' cords will be damaged by ejection material. Avast, me proud beauty! I be thinkin' o' perhaps puttin' in a piece or two o' waddin' through t' bottom o' t' rocket, just ahead o' t' engine t' minimize this.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a large rocket that people like for its recognition factor. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I grew up with Star Wars, matey, and I can't help but like flyin' a Star Destroyer, me bucko, arrr, even if it does have an annoyin' flight probe. Avast, me proud beauty! A D12-3 is sufficient for this rocket, but don't angle it at all. Avast! It won't go far. Avast! If you are a bit ambitious, ya bilge rat, you might consider puttin' in some outboard mini-engines - t' nozzles are already there. Ya scallywag! Arrr! T' worst thin' about this kit is stuffin' both parachutes and shock cords into t' tube. Avast, me proud beauty! One shock cord and a 24" parachute works better, ya bilge rat, matey, I think.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5