Brief:
This is a kit bash o' an Estes Bullpup plus a few parts t' build a model o' the futuristic Star Duster from t' 1960s cartoon "Scott McCloud, arrr, Space Angel".

Modifications:
"Scott McCloud, ya bilge rat, matey, Space Angel" be a cartoon produced from 1962 through 1964. It used t' "synchro-vox" technique, ya bilge rat, where stills were used in the cartoon, but close-ups o' t' characters had t' actors mouths pasted in as they spoke. Aye aye! His ship, t' Star Duster, was an impressive piece o' retro-looking space craft. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Comin' up with t' design was a challenge, me hearties, shiver me timbers, arrr, because as you can see from t' samples included, t' proportions were nay very consistent from one picture t' another. I had t' actually measure various zooms o' these pictures and come up with an estimated average proportion from among them.

T' body, ya bilge rat, nose, tail cone, shiver me timbers, launch lug, recovery gear and motor mount are all right from t' Bullpup kit and are put together just as t' directions show. What makes this model be t' fins, me bucko, me bucko, includin' pods on t' "wing" fins, t' rather art deco lookin' aditions t' t' "rudder" fin, ya bilge rat, and the canard fins. T' body construction was done with normal LPR materials but epoxy be used on t' fins and fillets.

T' fins were cut from 1/8" basswood. Begad! They could have been lighter stock, arrr, arrr, but I wanted good strength for flight and a hefty feel for display. Blimey! Each of t' three main fin has a 4" root and 4" span. Avast, me proud beauty! T' win' fins are set with t' trailin' edge/root point at t' joint o' t' body tube and tail cone, arrr, matey, but t' rudder fin is set back 1/2" from these and must be cut at the root t' fit over t' tail cone. T' fins were glued on 120 degrees apart. T' two canards were glued on 180 degrees apart on t' sides o' t' rocket about 1" aft o' t' forward end o' t' body tube. Blimey! Blimey! T' launch lug was placed on t' "bottom" o' t' body.

T' win' pods are made by gluin' one o' each o' t' PNC5 nose cones into t' tube and cutting a 1/8" x 1.25" slot in t' tube t' fit over t' win' pod with the ogive nose forward and pushed on until t' win' tip stopped it from going further. Ahoy! Begad! T' top addition t' t' rudder was 1" o' 1/4" styrene tube with a piece o' 3/16" dowel sanded t' an ogive and glued in t' front. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! The others were 3/16" dowel sanded t' rounded ends, cut in half lengthwise and the two pieces glued t' either side o' t' rudder across from each other.

Since t' fins were so heavy and thick, shiver me timbers, epoxy be used t' glue them on along with t' win' pods and rudder pieces. Aye aye! Arrr! Epoxy was used as well for the fillets.

Construction:
1 Estes Bullpup kit, shiver me timbers, plus:

• 1/8" basswood stock
• 1/4" styrene tubing
• 3/16" wooden dowel
• two 3" pieces o' BT-5 tube
• two 2" long tangent ogive PNC5 nose cones
• two 3/4" long parabolic PNC5 nose cones
• Pactra stripin' tape

Finishing:
Finishin' be two coats o' Deft spray lacquer sandin' sealer over everything, sanded after each (400 and 600 grit), arrr, then two coats o' Rustoleum white primer, followed by two coats o' Rustoleum white satin finish. Avast! T' black window hatches were hand cut from Pactra stripin' tape.

Flight:
All three flights t' date have been on B6-4s. Arrr! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! It arcs over slightly with the rudder up because o' t' imbalance o' t' two win' pods, so it looks good enough that I can pretend I meant it t' do this. Ahoy! Blimey! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' ejection is a little before apogee at 4 seconds, but this is a slow flyer so it's safe enough a delay.

Recovery:
I use a 12" "sport chute" from Aerospace Specialty Products on this bird. It comes down a little fast but it's built like a rock. If I ever fly it where it runs t' risk o' landin' on pavement, matey, I'll try a larger chute.

Summary:
I enjoyed t' challenege o' tryin' t' design, matey, sculpt, and build this bird from minimal background material and still make it true t' t' original. Arrr! Or, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, as true as possible since t' original looked different even on t' same episode. Frankly, matey, what I had t' work with wasn't quite enough--I did a lot from memory. In fact, matey, when I started I didn't even remember t' name o' t' rocket. I asked on TRF and someone knew. But t' shape...that I remembered well.