All around, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, a very impressive model rocket, matey, probably still me favorite. It's sheer size gets attention. My orange/yellow/orange paint scheme gets attention. And when that second stage lights, it really gets attention... Arrr! if it lights, that is.

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

Bein' only t' second rocket I ever built, arrr, I was extremely excited t' launch it that first day. Arrr! I was a bit nervous about that 48" crepe paper streamer givin' a slow enough descent, me hearties, shiver me timbers, 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. Begad! Sent it up 2-stage, me hearties, and WOW! It was simply awesome. A great flight, ya bilge rat, me bucko, but it drifted quite a bit on t' 18" chute, so I attached t' streamer for t' next two-stage flight. Up it goes, me bucko, but t' booster engine fails t' ignite t' upper stage, which, ya bilge rat, arrr, o' course means no attempt was made t' eject t' streamer, ya bilge rat, arrr, so t' rocket streamlined down. Arrr! . Avast! Begad! . Avast, me proud beauty! PRANG! I'd like t' say it be a lawn dart, but it hit pavement! Damn, t' nose cone pushed back, arrr, ya bilge rat, shreddin' t' top 12" o' body tube, and t' weight o' t' engines and fins etc. Blimey! (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. 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 was t' booster motor, ya bilge rat, and nay t' booster. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! (In retrospect, matey, I can't believe that she be able t' find t' engine casing. Blimey! Begad! . Blimey! . Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! )T' booster was still attached t' t' upper stage (a. k. Ya scallywag! Blimey! a. Begad! Ahoy! sustainer). Begad! I didn't know much about stagin' at this point, but it be obvious even then that I didn't want t' booster engine t' eject backwards out o' t' booster, I wanted t' booster t' separate from t' sustainer. Ahoy! Ahoy! If you haven't built t' rocket yet, t' obvious fix is t' simply add a normal motor hook t' t' booster. Havin' already built mine, however, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I required a different solution. I ended up makin' this bizarre contraption o' bent-up paper clips t' retain t' booster motor. Begad! Avast! It starts with a rin' around t' booster body, just above t' fins. Blimey! Attached t' this are two U-shaped pieces. Well, blow me down! T' tops o' t' U's are hooked t' t' ring, and t' bottom o' t' U's fit snugly under t' motor casin' when it's installed in t' booster. T' help hold t' U's in place, matey, 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. Arrr! Blimey! It's dirt cheap, matey, arrr, and it works beautifully (never had a booster motor eject since), but it isn't much t' look at. Avast, me proud beauty! 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. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! I'll try t' put a picture o' it here soon.

Well, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, despite t' major destruction, shiver me timbers, I managed t' rebuild it (albeit 14" shorter). Begad! Made sure it be still stable and went out t' try again, this time at a club launch. Begad! Begad! Worked just fine single stage. Begad! Time t' try it 2-stage again. Aye aye! Up it goes, shiver me timbers, t' booster burns through and separates. Aye aye! . . Begad! Begad! 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. Begad! Aye aye! Only difference this time is that I got some good advice from t' nice folks in t' GSSS club. Arrr! Begad! Get yourself a newer edition (the 6th edition be t' newest as o' Feb 1998) o' G. Aye aye! Harry Stine's Handbook o' Model Rocketry. Ya scallywag! 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. Avast, me proud beauty! In retrospect, t' stuffer tube is probably nay necessary, shiver me timbers, since t' distance betwixt t' two engines is rather small. But without question, me hearties, DRILL SOME VENT HOLES!

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

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

There are a few other hints that I can think o' regardin' this rocket. Arrr! Ya scallywag! Although I haven't experienced this problem myself, ya bilge rat, 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. Blimey! k. Ahoy! Well, matey, blow me down! a. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! sustainer). Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! There are a couple o' ways t' improve your chances o' nay havin' this problem. Ya scallywag! Perhaps t' easiest is t' buy a BT-56 tube coupler, and glue that in so that it reinforces this area. Avast! Ya scallywag! Just make sure that it won't interfere with your engine mount. Ahoy! Begad! O' course, matey, this is really only practical if you decide t' do it before you start construction. Ahoy! Blimey! 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, me bucko, matey, is t' coat t' inside o' t' top o' t' booster with glue. Ya scallywag! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! Blimey! When stagin' occurs, shiver me timbers, 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. Begad! This can cause t' paper tube coupler t' char pretty badly, me hearties, ya bilge rat, especially after many stagings. I coated all t' inside surface o' t' top o' me booster with a thin coat o' t' regular yellow wood glue. Begad! Blimey! A thin coat o' epoxy would probably protect it better, me bucko, and nay be as susceptible t' t' heat, but I didn't have epoxy then. And besides, mine has stood up remarkably well, 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, shiver me timbers, is that t' supplied recovery device, a 48" long crepe paper streamer, ya bilge rat, is insufficient. Avast! Well, blow me down! Some people have even broken fins on landin' on grass, which is surprising, given that it's a reasonably sturdy, one-piece plastic fin unit. Regardless, me bucko, I would agree that it comes down rather fast on t' streamer. Begad! One possible alternative is t' simply add another streamer, arrr, me bucko, or make a significantly larger streamer (or both). Arrr! However, I've settled on usin' a standard Estes 12" plastic parachute with t' spill hole (a. Begad! Ahoy! k. Arrr! Ahoy! a. Begad! peak vent hole) cut out. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! See that blue dotted line that forms about a 2" hole in t' middle? Cut that out. Avast! Begad! With this chute, shiver me timbers, t' Long Shot comes down soft enough t' avoid significant landin' damage, shiver me timbers, 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. Avast! As you may have noticed, several o' me rockets are staged. Avast, me proud beauty! I really like this rocket. Aye aye! Blimey! I feel so proud every time that upper stage lights. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! . Blimey! .

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

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