Brief:
This is a father/son dual build. Well, blow me down! Up t' this point, matey, I've been helpin' him build his rockets. We started with me doin' most o' t' building, and him as an extra pair o' hands. Avast, me proud beauty! Over t' course o' 3-4 builds, ya bilge rat, he's been doin' more and more, and t' roles are reversin' where I'm becomin' t' extra hands. Aye aye! I found a couple o' Firebirds for relatively cheap, and so we're buildin' these in parallel. Begad! Ahoy! This will be his first purely solo build, ya bilge rat, and we'll be comparin' t' results o' our two builds. Blimey! Well, blow me down! After this, me hearties, he'll be movin' on t' buildin' his L1 cert rocket... Ahoy! if I think he's ready.

T' Firebird is a fairly basic single stage Estes offering. Ahoy! Nothin' dramatic or fancy, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, here, ya bilge rat, just a solid design with classic lines.

Construction:
Dad: This is a basic 4FNC rocket. Ahoy! Arrr! Plastic nose cone, me hearties, arrr, ya bilge rat, pre-cut fins, me hearties, some flimsy paper centerin' rings and t' usual too short shock cord and plastic chute. Arrr! T' body tube is a good length o' BT-55 1.325" tubing, ya bilge rat, while t' motor tube be t' cheap blue 18mm tube. For standard 18mm motors, everythin' is sufficiently strong. For t' 18mm Aerotech D reloads, ya bilge rat, me bucko, thar could be some extra stress that could test some o' these parts.

Son: Yeah, ya bilge rat, yeah...what he said. Blimey! Ahoy! What's with t' wimpy 18mm motor mount? That's got t' go. Blimey! Begad! I'm goin' t' raid t' parts closet. Blimey! Let's see. Arrr! Begad! 24mm motor mount, ya bilge rat, some BT50-55 centerin' rings t' replace t' cheapy paper stuff. Blimey! Avast! OK. Ahoy! Blimey! I'm good t' go. Aye aye! Blimey! Let's get building.

Dad: Once again, shiver me timbers, me bucko, this is pretty basic Estes fare. Anyone who's build a typical Estes rocket in t' last couple decades won't have an issue here. There are a couple minor changes that I make t' all Estes kits.

Namely t' recovery section.

I always toss t' 3-fold concept. Ahoy! Ahoy! I notched t' upper centerin' ring, and slipped a length o' Keelhaul®©™ through. I knotted t' end t' prevent it comin' back through t' notch, matey, and put a dab o' epoxy t' hold it in. Avast! Normally, I would tie t' Keelhaul®©™® in a loop around t' motor tube, me bucko, but since these fins are through t' wall, t' loop would interfere with t' fin tangs.

Speakin' o' which, I wonder why Estes went with through t' wall fins for this kit and only an 18mm mount. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! For all t' Estes 18mm motors, shiver me timbers, TTW fins is way overkill. O' course, it does make fin alignment much easier.

Son: Well, he taught me, so, me hearties, matey, yeah, I'm tossin' t' 3-fold as well. Begad! Since I'm doin' t' 24mm thing, ya bilge rat, I get t' choose me engine tube size, so I went with a longer tube, matey, and a third centerin' ring. Avast! T' first 2 rings sandwich t' fin tangs as normal. Avast! I tied t' Keelhaul®©™® around t' motor tube, arrr, and put t' third rin' on top. Avast! Blimey! Hah! Blimey! Mines stronger.

While I was at it, me bucko, I cut t' top o' t' engine hook off so it doesn't go into t' motor tube. Blimey! Ahoy! I also left off t' motor block. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' down side is I'll need t' use tape t' make "thrust rings" on t' bottom o' Estes engines t' keep them from goin' through t' rocket. Blimey! T' up side is that I can use any 24mm motor includin' t' upcomin' Aerotech 24/120 and t' CTI Pro 24 cases. Bigger, me hearties, faster, higher! I can't wait t' put a 24mm G motor and watch it rip! Dad's shakin' his head while I'm typin' this. Says I'll never get it back. Begad! Maybe, but it's fun. Avast! Besides, I don't pay for t' motors. Ya scallywag! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! (Dad: He may start buyin' them if he loses them like this)

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. Avast! Ya scallywag! That means peel and stick. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! I really don't like them. Begad! I much prefer water slide. That said, as per me usual superstitious approach, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. Avast! Why? Because I've found that t' odds o' me losin' a rocket increase exponentially with t' amount o' time I spend on it prior t' it's first flight. Arrr! If I build a rocket in 2 hours t' night before a launch, it's comin' back. Every time I've spent 2-3 months doin' a painstakin' job o' buildin' and finishing, somethin' bad has happened.

As for t' pre-paint finish work, it's all typical. Begad! Blimey! Sand and seal t' fins. Sand t' flashin' off t' nose cone. Ya scallywag! Fill t' spirals in t' tube. Blimey! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! T' spirals actually aren't too bad, matey, and t' tube is white. Aye aye! If you go with t' factory color scheme (white) you could probably get away without filling.

Son: I'm done building, me hearties, let's go fly. Seriously. Yeah, I could take some time t' make it look good, but this isn't one o' those rockets. Avast! Let's fly. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! I want t' get started on me cert rocket. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I'll take more time on that one.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Dad: For all our rockets larger than 1" diameter, ya bilge rat, me hearties, we keep a supply o' Nomex t' avoid usin' wadding. Begad! Blimey! Waddin' can be easier in t' smaller rockets, but t' larger ones just take too much. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! Besides, reuseable Nomex is more eco friendly.

Other prep is standard. Arrr! Blimey! Yes, me bucko, thar's a lot o' this review that just says "it's standard issue." That's because this is a pretty standard rocket. Well, blow me down! Steppin' into high power, matey, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Just stronger materials. At a certain point, shiver me timbers, you can't do anythin' too fancy with high power motors, me bucko, because t' motors will just shred t' rocket from t' high thrust.

Son: What he said. Begad! Blimey! I'm gettin' tired o' typing. I haven't flown mine yet. Blimey! Begad! Weather hasn't been good enough.

Recovery:
Dad: My turn t' say it. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! What he said. Arrr! We haven't flown either rocket yet as t' weather hasn't cooperated. My expectation is that, shiver me timbers, like everythin' about this kit, matey, it will be typical Estes. Well, blow me down! T' chute is too big, matey, and it will float, matey, so we'll probably fly with a streamer or smaller chute. As we get a chance t' fly these, I'll be postin' t' flight logs, me bucko, and updatin' t' review through t' flight log comments. Ahoy! Blimey! Actual flight is just t' last validation o' t' build in this case. Avast, me proud beauty! T' primary goal was t' give him a solo build t' validate he has t' skills necessary t' attempt his cert build.

Son: So, do I pass? When can I start on t' Matrix?

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5