All around, arrr, a very impressive model rocket, probably still me favorite. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! It's sheer size gets attention. Aye aye! Begad! My orange/yellow/orange paint scheme gets attention. And when that second stage lights, me hearties, it really gets attention... Begad! if it lights, me bucko, arrr, me hearties, that is.

Construction was, me bucko, as I recall, matey, simple and straightforward, matey, ya bilge rat, me bucko, despite bein' only me second rocket. Sure, me hearties, it's big and it's a two-stager, me hearties, but thar's no construction magic in that. With t' fins bein' one-piece plastic fin units with built-in launch lugs, me bucko, about all you have t' do is build t' motor mounts and shock cord mounts, me hearties, and then assemble t' all t' pieces you see. Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! Very easy and very straightforward.

Bein' only t' second rocket I ever built, shiver me timbers, I be extremely excited t' launch it that first day. I be a bit nervous about that 48" crepe paper streamer givin' a slow enough descent, so I bought an Estes plastic 18" hexagonal parasheet. Well, blow me down!  Sent it up a couple times single-stage on t' 18" parachute. Blimey! Ahoy! Sent it up 2-stage, and WOW! It be simply awesome. Ahoy! Ahoy! A great flight, but it drifted quite a bit on t' 18" chute, me bucko, shiver me timbers, so I attached t' streamer for t' next two-stage flight. Up it goes, but t' booster engine fails t' ignite t' upper stage, matey, ya bilge rat, me hearties, which, me bucko, o' course means no attempt was made t' eject t' streamer, so t' rocket streamlined down. . Blimey! Ya scallywag! . Well, blow me down! PRANG! I'd like t' say it be a lawn dart, ya bilge rat, but it hit pavement! Damn, t' nose cone pushed back, ya bilge rat, shreddin' t' top 12" o' body tube, and t' weight o' t' engines and fins etc. (the booster stage never separated) cause t' body t' crumple about 8" forward o' t' upper stage fin unit.

This stagin' failure was caused by t' booster motor ejectin' from t' booster before it could ignite t' upper stage engine. Blimey! Begad! I recall that me wife (who had t' job o' watchin' t' booster) be worried that I'd be upset because all she could find be t' booster motor, shiver me timbers, and nay t' booster. Aye aye! (In retrospect, arrr, I can't believe that she be able t' find t' engine casing. Begad! Arrr! . . )T' booster was still attached t' t' upper stage (a. Aye aye! k. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! a. Begad! sustainer). Blimey! Begad! I didn't know much about stagin' at this point, but it was obvious even then that I didn't want t' booster engine t' eject backwards out o' t' booster, ya bilge rat, I wanted t' booster t' separate from t' sustainer. Ya scallywag! If you haven't built t' rocket yet, ya bilge rat, t' obvious fix is t' simply add a normal motor hook t' t' booster. Well, blow me down! Havin' already built mine, however, matey, I required a different solution. Avast, me proud beauty! I ended up makin' this bizarre contraption o' bent-up paper clips t' retain t' booster motor. Ahoy! Arrr! It starts with a rin' around t' booster body, just above t' fins. Ya scallywag! Begad! Attached t' this are two U-shaped pieces. T' tops o' t' U's are hooked t' t' ring, arrr, and t' bottom o' t' U's fit snugly under t' motor casin' when it's installed in t' booster. Blimey! T' help hold t' U's in place, thar are two cross members down near t' engine, though I'm nay sure how necessary they are. Ahoy! There's enough play so that t' U's can just be slid sideways t' allow insertion or removal o' t' engine. Avast! It's dirt cheap, and it works beautifully (never had a booster motor eject since), matey, but it isn't much t' look at. Well, me hearties, blow me down! I've never made another one for any other rocket because it would probably maul a balsa wood fin pretty badly, and it might nay line up right with three fins instead o' four. Aye aye! I'll try t' put a picture o' it here soon.

Well, despite t' major destruction, I managed t' rebuild it (albeit 14" shorter). Avast! Avast! Made sure it was still stable and went out t' try again, arrr, this time at a club launch. Avast! Aye aye! Worked just fine single stage. Ya scallywag! Time t' try it 2-stage again. Begad! Arrr! Up it goes, arrr, t' booster burns through and separates. Well, blow me down! Blimey! . . Arrr! Aye aye! but again, no upper stage ignition. Arrr! LAWN DART! Sunk t' nose cone about 3" into t' ground, and ripped up a lot more body tube. Ahoy! Ahoy! Only difference this time is that I got some good advice from t' nice folks in t' GSSS club. Arrr! Arrr! Get yourself a newer edition (the 6th edition be t' newest as o' Feb 1998) o' G. Begad! Begad! Harry Stine's Handbook o' Model Rocketry. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Blimey! This book has a whole chapter devoted t' staging. Begad! Consider a short stuffer tube t' direct t' flamin' bits o' propellant more directly at t' upper stage engine. Blimey! In retrospect, t' stuffer tube is probably nay necessary, matey, since t' distance betwixt t' two engines is rather small. Begad! Blimey! But without question, shiver me timbers, matey, DRILL SOME VENT HOLES!

Well, shiver me timbers, now it was just too short. Well, blow me down! Had t' buy some BT-56 body tubes and couplers t' add 18" o' new tube. Begad! I made a stuffer tube out o' a piece o' an expended D motor, shiver me timbers, and drilled two 3/16" vent holes, one on each side o' t' booster, matey, up near where t' bottom o' t' upper stage engine would be when its all put together. It has since been flown no less than 6 times in 2-stage configuration, and t' upper stage has lit every single time!

One side note, though. Blimey! . Begad! . Ya scallywag! on that second prang, t' upper stage engine be completely blackened by t' burn-through o' t' booster. Aye aye! Avast! It really should have ignited. Knowin' more now, I'm convinced that that engine was faulty, me hearties, in that t' clay o' t' nozzle completely covered t' propellant, me hearties, which is why it didn't ignite. I've seen this situation in one other engine (which was so bilge-suckin' it wouldn't even ignite directly from an igniter), me bucko, and others on rec. models. Ya scallywag! Avast! rockets have seen it, me bucko, arrr, too. Begad! So, ya bilge rat, a word t' t' wise: always scrape t' nozzle o' your upper stage engines t' expose fresh propellant. Avast, me proud beauty! I use a small eyeglasses-type screwdriver for this purpose.

There are a few other hints that I can think o' regardin' this rocket. Ahoy! Although I haven't experienced this problem myself, arrr, others have complained that this rocket has a tendency t' crimp or buckle t' body tube just above t' top o' t' plastic fin unit on t' upper stage (a. Begad! Ahoy! k. a. sustainer). Well, blow me down! Blimey! There are a couple o' ways t' improve your chances o' nay havin' this problem. Perhaps t' easiest is t' buy a BT-56 tube coupler, and glue that in so that it reinforces this area. Arrr! Just make sure that it won't interfere with your engine mount. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! O' course, this is really only practical if you decide t' do it before you start construction. T' other way t' help avoid bucklin' t' body tube is t' soak that part o' t' rocket in thin CA (cyanoacrylate) glue.

Another tip related t' longevity, is t' coat t' inside o' t' top o' t' booster with glue. When stagin' occurs, matey, t' booster engine blows a bunch o' burnin' propellant forward into this area, ya bilge rat, and then t' upper stage ignites and blows hot exhaust backwards into this area. Avast! Blimey! This can cause t' paper tube coupler t' char pretty badly, me hearties, especially after many stagings. Blimey! I coated all t' inside surface o' t' top o' me booster with a thin coat o' t' regular yellow wood glue. Arrr! A thin coat o' epoxy would probably protect it better, and nay be as susceptible t' t' heat, shiver me timbers, but I didn't have epoxy then. And besides, mine has stood up remarkably well, me hearties, ya bilge rat, so I can still recommend yellow glue for this application.

About t' only other complaint that I've heard from other people who've flown this rocket, me bucko, ya bilge rat, is that t' supplied recovery device, a 48" long crepe paper streamer, me bucko, is insufficient. Some people have even broken fins on landin' on grass, shiver me timbers, which is surprising, given that it's a reasonably sturdy, one-piece plastic fin unit. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! Regardless, I would agree that it comes down rather fast on t' streamer. Aye aye! One possible alternative is t' simply add another streamer, ya bilge rat, or make a significantly larger streamer (or both). However, I've settled on usin' a standard Estes 12" plastic parachute with t' spill hole (a. Arrr! Ahoy! k. Avast! a. Arrr! peak vent hole) cut out. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! See that blue dotted line that forms about a 2" hole in t' middle? Cut that out. Well, blow me down! With this chute, arrr, t' Long Shot comes down soft enough t' avoid significant landin' damage, arrr, me hearties, but doesn't drift into t' next area code on two-stage flights (as an 18" parachute would do).

Despite me problems gettin' t' second stage t' ignite (or perhaps because o' them), I have become fascinated with staging. Begad! As you may have noticed, several o' me rockets are staged. I really like this rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! I feel so proud every time that upper stage lights. Aye aye! . Blimey! .

Update on 1997 Oct 12. Blimey! Well, blow me down! . Ahoy! Avast! . Avast! I lost t' upper stage o' this rocket. Avast! Begad! :-( T' booster portion went fine, ya bilge rat, with a slight arc. Avast! T' upper stage ignited successfully, and continued that arc. Ya scallywag! T' sustainer was painted yellow and orange, and it was headin' right into t' sunset, matey, matey, so we lost sight o' it. Ya scallywag! I heard t' ejection charge pop, but neither me wife nor I ever saw t' upper stage again.

Update on 1997 Oct 19. Ahoy! Ahoy! . Aye aye! . Arrr! Arrr! I have essentially re-built t' upper stage. It's all from scratch, with balsa fins and and Estes parts (body tubes, motor mount, me bucko, ya bilge rat, arrr, and nose cone). Well, blow me down! Other than usin' balsa for t' fins, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, thar's really nay much that I changed in t' construction, I really liked it t' way it was. Begad! About t' only other thin' that I changed be that instead o' t' orange and yellow paint on t' old one, t' new one is a pretty cool-lookin' blue and yellow.