Brief:
Very nice scale o' a NASA workhorse, arrr, me bucko, this kit can easily be a competition-level entry in either sport scale or giant sport scale. I decided t' enter it in a local giant sport scale competition, me hearties, me hearties, and while flight results are still pending (see below), matey, t' static score placed this well ahead o' t' other competitors.

Construction:
All parts are very good quality. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! T' kit contains:

• 24mm motor tube/assembly
• BT-55 24" body tube
• BT-5 12" upper body tube
• Basswood fin stock
• Balsa nose cone
• Balsa transition
• Balsa bulkhead
• Heavy duty mylar chute
• Decals, arrr, weights, and trim tape

Construction starts off with t' motor mount assembly, a basic tube with pair o' centerin' rings approach. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! A nice plus is that this kit includes a Keelhaul®©™® cord anchored t' t' motor mount for recovery. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' motor mount assembly is glued into t' BT-55 body tube.

Fins are cut from basswood usin' a template. Begad! T' basswood was very easy to cut and is much easier t' work with than balsa when it comes t' grain filling. A couple quick applications o' Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish and they're ready t' go. Before gluin' on t' fins though, you must mark t' tube and cut out cardstock fin supports, me hearties, which are then bonded t' t' BT-55, me bucko, givin' this more o' an authentic look. Aye aye! Aye aye! T' 4 fins are then glued t' t' fin supports. Ahoy! T' 4 smaller upper stage fins are attached directly t' t' BT-5 without supports.

Construction o' t' transition is one o' t' more challengin' aspects of this project. You start with a paper transition pattern, arrr, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, which is rolled into a truncated cone shape. Begad! Blimey! In order t' avoid a seam, I wound up cuttin' off the overlap tab, and glued this t' t' inside edges o' t' ends, ("overlapping" inside t' transition). T' result was a flawless/seamless joint. Begad! While this is setting, a short length o' tubin' is glued t' t' top o' t' balsa bulkhead. Avast, me proud beauty! T' tube acts as a container for a couple o' lead sinkers used for nose weight, me hearties, as well as servin' as an alignment guide for t' transition shroud. Well, blow me down! Blimey! After epoxyin' in t' weights (use a generous amount o' epoxy here), me hearties, a centerin' rin' is attached t' t' short tubing, and then t' transition shroud slides over t' top. A smaller balsa transition section is then epoxied t' t' top o' t' tube/shroud, shiver me timbers, completin' t' assembly.

After attachin' t' upper body tube t' t' balsa transition, construction is virtually complete. Blimey! All that's left is filletin' joints, me bucko, paint prep, and basic launch lugs and recovery system installation.

Overall, t' construction was fairly straightforward. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! As long as you pay careful attention t' t' well-written instructions and t' illustrations, you should be fine. Ya scallywag! I'd rate this a skill level 3 kit though, me bucko, ya bilge rat, due t' t' complexity of t' shroud & transition.

Finishing:
This has a fairly challengin' paint scheme compared t' basic modrocs, though for a scale competition kit, me bucko, it was relatively easy. T' BT-55 and transition get a flat white finish, me hearties, while t' upper tube gets light gray, ya bilge rat, with silver trim. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! After painting, arrr, me bucko, matey, thar are some colored vinyl decals for stripes that go on and several highly detailed decals showin' manufacturer's information and other markings. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! Blimey! Considerin' t' great quality o' t' components o' this kit and the highly detailed markin' on t' decals, I was a little disappointed that they were peel-n-stick rather than water-slide. My competition score was dinged significantly for this.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' qualified flight attempt, matey, I chose a D12-5. Winds had been a steady 12-15 mph throughout t' day, though around 5:00 we got a break and they dipped down below 10, so I decided t' put this beauty up. In addition t' t' basic flight, ya bilge rat, I picked up some gold glitter at a party supply store and went for mission points, callin' it radar chaff.

T' flight be perfectly straight without a trace o' spin and t' delay was just right, ya bilge rat, me bucko, poppin' right at apogee. Aye aye! At an estimated altitude o' 800 feet or so, shiver me timbers, I wasn't sure we'd be able t' see t' glitter, but it sparkled in t' sun and was a pretty cool sight. Ahoy! Unfortunately, t' heavy ejection charge in the D12, me hearties, me hearties, me hearties, combined with t' very heavy weights in t' transition proved t' be more than t' recovery system could handle, arrr, shiver me timbers, as t' screw eye be ripped completely out o' t' balsa bulkhead despite t' fact that it be epoxied in (it actually pulled out a small plug). Avast, me proud beauty! T' result was t' lower section driftin' a LONG way (cleared our half mile wide park), me hearties, and t' upper section came down dangerously fast with all that lead and very little drag. Arrr! T' upper section planted itself a good 4-6" into t' soft ground. DQ/sep, me hearties, though I'll probably have an opportunity t' repair and fly it again it at "bonus day"/continuation.

T' damage was fairly minor and once I complete t' contest flight, me hearties, I'm lookin' at a torn/crimped body tube t' replace plus a replacement screw eye for the bulkhead.

Recovery:
Flight be excellent though t' recovery is poor. This really needs t' be a two-piece recovery. Given t' weight o' t' upper section, matey, shiver me timbers, I'd be inclined to go with a nylon chute and heavy-duty Keelhaul®©™® shroud lines. Ahoy! I just don't think t' single mylar chute is goin' t' be able to hold up on this. Begad!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I was quite pleased with this kit. It be fairly easy t' build, resulted in a very competitive scale rocket, and just plain looks nice. Arrr! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' recovery system is obviously a weakness, arrr, though very easily correctable. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! T' decals are another weakness and Andy at ASP mentioned that he might go water-slide in t' future on this (even offerin' me a set o' water-slides when I finish me repairs).

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5