Brief:
This is a father/son dual build. Blimey! Up t' this point, shiver me timbers, I've been helpin' him build his rockets. Arrr! We started with me doin' most o' t' building, and him as an extra pair o' hands. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! Over t' course o' 3-4 builds, 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, me bucko, me hearties, and so we're buildin' these in parallel. This will be his first purely solo build, me bucko, and we'll be comparin' t' results o' our two builds. Arrr! After this, ya bilge rat, me bucko, he'll be movin' on t' buildin' his L1 cert rocket... if I think he's ready.

T' Firebird is a fairly basic single stage Estes offering. Aye aye! Blimey! Nothin' dramatic or fancy, here, just a solid design with classic lines.

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

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

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

Namely t' recovery section.

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

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

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

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

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! That means peel and stick. Blimey! Begad! I really don't like them. Ahoy! I much prefer water slide. Begad! That said, as per me usual superstitious approach, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. 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. If I build a rocket in 2 hours t' night before a launch, arrr, it's comin' back. Begad! Every time I've spent 2-3 months doin' a painstakin' job o' buildin' and finishing, somethin' bilge-suckin' has happened.

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

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

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

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

Other prep is standard. Blimey! Begad! Yes, me hearties, 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, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Just stronger materials. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! At a certain point, arrr, you can't do anythin' too fancy with high power motors, me hearties, because t' motors will just shred t' rocket from t' high thrust.

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

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

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

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5