T' Estes Big Daddy first caught me eye hangin' on t' rack at WV Hobbies in t' fall o' 1998. Arrr! Begad! Blimey! It looked t' me t' be a good candidate for conversion t' 29mm power, shiver me timbers, so I put it on me Christmas list. Avast, me proud beauty! My request was granted, shiver me timbers, and away I went.

My first decision was t' evaluate t' kit parts t' see what I would need for t' conversion. Aye aye! I ended up keepin' only t' fins, me hearties, body tube, nose cone, arrr, shiver me timbers, and main decals. Begad! I ordered a LOC 29mm stuffer tube from Magnum, ya bilge rat, and usin' fly cutters in me drill press, me bucko, me bucko, I made new centerin' rings from 1/8" birch ply. Begad! Begad! T' motor retainin' rods are 4/40 threaded rods, shiver me timbers, on opposite sides o' t' stuffer tube. I used a small round file t' cut notches in t' centerin' rings for t' threaded rods, then everythin' was epoxied together and set aside t' dry. Ahoy! Ahoy! A special note here is that I used t' fins t' position t' centerin' rings, as I wanted t' fin tabs t' be a snug fit betwixt t' fore and aft rings. Although Dark Star motors have a lip on them, matey, matey, and many people use maskin' tape t' make a thrust rin' on other 29mm motors, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I also glued a motor rin' on t' inside o' t' stuffer tube, matey, just t' be sure.

I glued t' motor assembly in place usin' t' fins for alignment. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! Blimey! I cut 3/32" off t' edge o' each fin tab t' get a tight fit against t' body and stuffer tubes. Begad! Begad! Blimey! Before gluin' t' fins in place, me bucko, I saturated each one with thin CA, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and let them set overnight before sandin' them t' remove t' raised grain. Ahoy! Begad! Blimey! I glued t' fins in place with Pica Gluit - at which point, arrr, me bucko, I hear you all gasping. Pica claims Gluit is stronger than epoxy ("Yeah, ya bilge rat, right!!" you say.) Gluit is thinner than epoxy, and wicks into wood grain and paper very well. Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! I have complete confidence in its strength. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! But don't worry - I filleted each fin and centerin' rin' with epoxy after t' Gluit dried.

T' entire rocket (except t' NC, matey, o' course) be covered with .75 ounce glass cloth. Ahoy! A light mist o' 3M 77 was used t' hold t' cloth in place, ya bilge rat, and Gluit was rubbed generously through t' weave. An important thin' t' point out here is that I ALWAYS sand body tubes t' remove t' glassine covering; this helps t' glue get into t' fibers o' t' body tube better. Each set o' ribs was covered with a single piece o' glass cloth: from t' tip o' t' rib, shiver me timbers, down across t' fillets and body tube, me bucko, and up t' t' tip o' t' adjacent rib. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' top o' t' BT was covered with a single wrap o' fiberglass. Arrr! Begad! Blimey! Gluit also sands well, me bucko, me hearties, without gumming, shiver me timbers, which left a smooth finish for t' primer. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Blimey! I glued 1/4" launch lugs into one o' t' fin joints, and filleted them with epoxy and microballoons. Aye aye! Blimey! After t' minor imperfections that t' primer revealed were filled and sanded, t' entire rocket be painted with Krylon Hamm-r Tough Hunter Green, me hearties, which gave a nice hammered metal finish. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I also had several sets o' Estes Wildfire decals, shiver me timbers, and I sliced these apart t' create what I feel is a strikin' color scheme.

I added 3+ ounces o' clay in t' nose cone, me hearties, held in place with another couple ounces o' epoxy. T' shock cord mount is a 3/16" eye bolt held in place by two nuts epoxied t' either side o' t' top centerin' ring, matey, arrr, and t' shock cord is attached by a heavy-duty Swivel Eye Sprin' Snap from K-Mart's hardware section. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Recovery is by a bright orange 30" Top Flite X-Form chute from Magnum.

Empty weight o' t' rocket is 17 ounces, and as those o' you who were at t' June 12 launch can attest, Big Wild Daddy gets airborne in a hurry on either an F62 Dark Star or G35 Econojet. Well, blow me down! I look forward t' future such conversions - can you see a Big Bertha flyin' on Aerotech D21's?