Brief:
A skill level 1, shiver me timbers, Minimum Diameter, 4FNC (4 Fin & Nose Cone), Sport Model.

Construction:
This model kit comes in t' usual Fliskits packaging; a clear plastic bag, matey, ya bilge rat, with eye-catchin' face-card, and transparent back, shiver me timbers, so parts can be clearly seen. Avast! Begad! Blimey! As usual, this product is individually numbered — mine is #74.

T' kit consists, mainly, o' one high quality 228mm * 18mm card body tube, a balsa nose cone, me hearties, and a sheet o' best quality 2mm balsa for t' fins. Aye aye! Avast! In addition, me bucko, t' kit consists o' an 18-inch elastic shock cord, matey, matey, a nice long black crepe streamer, a decal sheet, arrr, a fin pattern sheet, ya bilge rat, and t' usual other bits and bobs (launch lug, ya bilge rat, engine block etc.) Also o' note, is a very good hints and tips sheet that covers t' usual Flight Preparation (in much clearer detail and more depth than you’d find in a ‘Questes’ kit), ya bilge rat, and basic construction skills such as tips on fin attachment.

T' instructions are up t' t' high standards that are expected of Fliskits.. Arrr! They are VERY clear, me bucko, contain clear diagrams; and, shiver me timbers, me bucko, when combined with the Hints and Tips sheet, cover every stage o' construction and t' techniques needed for it.

As long as t' instructions and hints are followed thar are no gotcha’s, even for a beginner. Avast! Begad! Everythin' fit perfectly, arrr, with the exception o' t' nose cone, arrr, which required about 30 seconds o' sandin' t' get the fit I wanted (I like me nose cones t' fit a little on t' loose side). Avast! That was personal preference, though; t' original fit would have worked.

Actual construction be a breeze for somebody, ya bilge rat, like myself, who’s built a couple o' LPR rocket kits previously. Well, blow me down! I imagine it would be challenging, me bucko, but straightforward, t' somebody buildin' their first kit. Aye aye! Blimey! I built it over t' course o' an evenin' whilst watchin' t' telly, me hearties, and chattin' t' a couple o' mates who'd popped ’round for some ‘adult beverages.’

T' tools required are t' very basic ones. Avast! Eg: wood glue, arrr, model knife, me hearties, pencil, sandin' sealer, etc. Ya scallywag! All o' which an absolute beginner would find in a local Hobby/Craft Shop. Ahoy! Avast! T' only thin' an absolute beginner might have trouble with be t' expended engine needed to insert t' engine block.

Finishing:
Finishin' is simple, and is greatly helped by t' quality o' t' parts. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! The balsa is very easy t' fill and sand. T' spirals on t' body tube are virtually non-existent; a couple o' coats o' primer, a bit o' fine sanding, arrr, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, and they’re gone!

T' kit contains an idea for decoration on t' face-card, however the instructions tells you that this is only a suggestion, matey, and t' use your imagination. Avast! I painted mine 'sunshine yellow' all over, and attached a couple of t' excellent decals. T' decals, again, ya bilge rat, are a collection o' ideas, leaving the constructor t' decide on their personal choice.

I finished off by sprayin' t' whole thin' in a couple o' coats o' clear.

Finishin' took a few days, ya bilge rat, me hearties, but I wanted t' make sure that t' coats were dry before sandin' and applyin' another. I’m glad I did take t' time, me hearties, it was worth it.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Recommended motors are: A8-3, arrr, B6-4, me bucko, and C6-5. Ahoy! Armed with at least one o' each, me bucko, matey, I went t' launch on a lovely, almost calm, arrr, summer evenin' after work.

First flight was on an A8-3. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' rocket shot off t' pad, matey, me hearties, shiver me timbers, gained some serious air, shiver me timbers, and ejected at a perfect apogee. Ahoy! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! T' generous streamer brought the model down a couple o' meters away from t' pad. Avast! Blimey! T' whole flight be just visible.

After re-preppin' (very quick - 1 sheet o' wadding; t' streamer takes a bit o' rolling, but thats nay difficult), it was ready for its second flight on a B6-4. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Blimey! This didn’t hang around. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Within 1.5-seconds, t' thin' be well out o' sight. Ya scallywag! Blimey! A few seconds passed, we heard t' pop, and saw t' large, black, streamer open up. Avast, me proud beauty! We were able t' see t' whole descent, and were able to follow it into t' next field. Avast! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' recovery crew (my mate Derren, ya bilge rat, and his Bike), me bucko, were able t' find it with no problem. An awesome flight, ya bilge rat, one o' me all time faves.

After t' success o' t' last flight, t' Flea was loaded with a C6-5. Avast! We all stood back, as we knew this was goin' t' be a fast one, and we wanted a better angle t' see it. Well, blow me down! Lucky we did as t' Flea stripped a fin about 4m off the pad, me bucko, ya bilge rat, and went into a C powered corkscrew! Nobody was hurt or in any real danger, ya bilge rat, as t' puppy plunged into t' ground (under power) about 6m away from the nearest person and did that very sad, ground based ejection pop, characteristic o' a flight failure like this.

T' lost fin was never found - how a bright yellow piece o' balsa can go missin' in a field o' freshly cut grass is beyond me!

Upon examination, arrr, it was quite obvious that t' fin joint was nay strong enough. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Blimey! A fault which lies with me, and the fact I only put one white glue fillet layer on each fin joint — t' save weight — instead o' me usual 3+ layers.

Recovery:
T' streamer included is superb. Arrr! I got this kit t' replace me Estes Viking, which had suffered a RIP a few launches before (I only found t' nosecone and streamer, ya bilge rat, after a C launch). Avast, me proud beauty! This streamer is at least twice t' size o' the Viking’s, shiver me timbers, and, bein' black, me bucko, stands out more than t' Viking’s orange one. Ahoy! T' shock cord attaches t' t' inside o' t' body tube with t' age-old 3-fold method. Blimey! Aye aye! T' other end is tied t' t' screw eye in t' base o' t' nose cone. Arrr! A length o' cotton is then tied t' t' screw eye, and t' other end of the cotton attached t' t' streamer. Ya scallywag! Begad! A simple system, but perfectly acceptable, and effective enough. Avast, me proud beauty! No damage was found in betwixt t' successful flights.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This kit is a very good example o' its type; a simple, minimum diameter, high flying, me bucko, matey, sport rocket. Begad!

One o' t' main pros o' this kit is its simplicity, shiver me timbers, me hearties, and ease o' build. However, matey, I would nay recommend it t' somebody who is a complete rocketry novice, with no access t' anybody who's built/flown a rocket before. Well, blow me down! In that case I would recommend gettin' a Ready T' Fly starter set; you get the pad/controller, me hearties, and a ready built rocket t' learn how t' fly with. If you've got access t' somebody who knows what they are doing, or have got few starter set flights under your belt then this be t' kit for you! It would be an ideal kit for classroom/scout group situation.

There aren’t any real cons with t' kit, t' design is so simple, matey, and tried and tested, ya bilge rat, me bucko, that there’s nothin' that can go wrong. T' disaster I had was o' me own making, and I’ve learned an important lesson from it: Don’t skimp on t' fin attachment!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5

Specs:

• Recommended Motors: A8-3, B6-4, me hearties, C6-5
• Length: 10.6-inches
• Diameter: 0.736-inches
• Weight: 0.35-ounces
• Recovery: Streamer