Brief:
T' Resistor 224 Planetary Defense Weapon be t' latest offerin' from Heavenly Hobbies. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! This futuristic, ya bilge rat, dual motor, me hearties, 24mm design features their ‘Amaze’ ejection baffle, laser cut plywood fins, ya bilge rat, rings and baffles, thick wall tubes, matey, and a single big decal. It has two main fins with winglets at their tip. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! T' configuration is a little reminiscent o' t' Jayhawk. Begad! Begad! Blimey! T' kit can be built with front or ‘zipperless’ aft ejection. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! I opted for t' latter t' make t' build more unique. Blimey! Blimey! No parachute is provided, which is fine with me since me stash o' nylon chutes are all interchangeable. Arrr! Begad! Blimey! HH offers suitable ‘chutes should you want one. Begad! Aye aye! Blimey!

T' instructions are provided in soft copy, ya bilge rat, along with t' latest version o' the H. H. Begad! Begad! Simit simulation software.

My thanks Jose at Heavenly Hobbies for sponsorin' this build!

Construction:

• One big conical balsa nose cone
• Two thick-walled BT-70 body tubes and matchin' coupler
• Two screw deadlights and one small wood screw
• A bag o' BBs for nose weight
• Cotton braided elastic shock cord
• Three laser cut baffle bulkheads
• Two 24mm motor mount tubes
• Two laser cut centerin' rings
• Three long couplers
• Two engine hooks
• One 1/4" launch lug
• One 3” pre-slotted rin' tail
• Two sets o' laser cut rin' tail pylons, matey, shiver me timbers, fins and fin tips
• A decal sheet
• Instructions and H.H. Simit on CD

T' 18-pages o' photo illustrated instructions are included on a .pdf file. Well, blow me down! I found them easy t' follow and I liked t' way they handled t' ‘housekeeping’ instructions, matey, such as what glue t' use (the default is 5-minute epoxy), me bucko, shiver me timbers, arrr, t' fill t' spirals before constructions, etc. That is, all this stuff is discussed up front..

T' build starts with t' 2 x 24mm mount. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' motor tubes are connected at one end with a pair o' centerin' rings. Since these tubes will be load bearing, long thick couplers are epoxied in t' upper end. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! A third coupler is provided t' help in installation. Begad! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! On dry-fitting, everythin' fit perfectly. However, t' rings are thin at their closest point and I snapped one o' them on actual installation. This was only a minor snag but t' motor tube assembly no longer fit perfectly and required some sanding. Arrr! Blimey! I’ve got clumsy paws, what else can I say? Just be gentle as you work these into place.

To accommodate longer (E9) and RMS motors, t' upper tab on t' pair o' motor hooks are t' be bent upwards. Blimey! Mine broke off due t' metal fatigue. Blimey! Avast! Makes no difference as you can bend t' end 1/4” in from t' original tab. This will be reflected in future issues if t' instructions.

T' larger rin' tail is supported by two plywood pylons. Well, blow me down! T' roots o' these are sanded into a ‘V’ to better mate with t' motor tubes. As t' pylons set, me bucko, I made sure they were aligned by sightin' down a rafter angle (see photo).

T' instructions say t' install t' rin' tail at this point. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' overall span o' t' tabs is about 1/4” too wide so they will require trimming. Avast! Blimey! I suggest this be done before installation. However, me bucko, matey, me bucko, a Dremel with a diamond cut-off wheel make quick work o' t' trimmin' in situ. I was worried about keepin' t' fin slots at a perfect right angle t' t' pylons, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, so I measured t' mid-point betwixt t' slots and marked a line t' use as a guide.

T' baffle consists o' a coupler and three plywood baffles. Ya scallywag! Each has three large holes on one end. Ahoy! Blimey! They are installed so these hole alternately sit on opposite sides o' t' coupler. T' top baffle has a hole pre-drilled for a provided screw eye. This o' course should remain on top. Begad!

You attach t' shock cord t' this eye and then glue t' baffle assembly on t' top o' t' lower body tube. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' keep t' rocket aft eject, you affix t' nose cone t' t' upper body tube with t' a provided screw. Avast! T' rocket then separated at t' body tube junction as it typical with zipperless HPR designs. Arrr! Alternatively, you can glue t' upper body t' t' coupler and let t' rocket separate at t' nose. Blimey! Ahoy! (But, you don’t want t' do that.)

Nose cone prep involves t' typical stuff - seal, matey, me bucko, sand, repeat, install screw eye. Avast, me proud beauty! I treated t' top couple of inches with thin CA. Pointy balsa cones typically don’t stay that way. You also have t' drill a 3/8” diameter x 4” deep hole in t' cone t' embed t' nose weight (BBs). Arrr! Avast! I have one suitable bit and did this with a hand drill. I found this challengin' since t' dull bit wandered all over t' place. Blimey! I went slowly t' make sure I didn’t breach t' cone’s wall. Arrr! Begad! By t' time you get 4” in, it is gettin' thin. Blimey! I got t' job done but t' big gaping hole is a bit funky looking. Begad! Well, blow me down! I used quick set Gorilla glue t' affix t' BBs. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! T' photo shows t' big hole plugged with some excess SuperFil epoxy clay.

My as-built weight, me bucko, includin' an 18” nylon ‘chute, came in at 10.6 oz. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! Since t' ‘chute is user provided, arrr, I assume this is nominal.

Finishing:
T' kit includes general finish instructions. Aye aye! I decided t' generally keep with Heavenly Hobbies scheme. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! T' rin' tail and fins are shot with Krylon black with a Titanium Silver over spray. Well, arrr, blow me down! T' exposed motor tubes are straight Titanium Silver. Ahoy! Avast! T' upper body is Metalcast Metallic Purple.

I filled t' nose early in t' build but didn’t do so on t' fins. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! This was a mistake as t' fancy fins are harder t' work around than those on a 3/4FNC design. Avast, me proud beauty! I also painted t' rocket before permanently attachin' t' motor mount assembly t' t' lower body section. Avast, me proud beauty! This was a good idea and made paintin' easier (less masking).

T' decal is a peel-and-apply. Avast! This makes it easy t' get on but t' clear background stands out a bit.

A couple o' silver vinyl stripes and an MDRA logo competed t' finishing.

Overall t' build went well. Well, blow me down! Avast! It is reasonably straightforward despite it bein' a rather interestin' design. Begad! I will din' half a point for t' unexpected trimmin' o' t' pylons and another half for t' difficulty involved in borin' the cone. Begad! Still, ya bilge rat, arrr, this was a fun build.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Because o' t' baffle, matey, prep was simple. Avast, me proud beauty! Attach a 'chute, matey, matey, slide in two motors, shiver me timbers, me bucko, etc. Arrr! I used the low end o' t' recommended chute size (18") due t' t' prevailin' wind. Blimey! If you don’t use a motor with a built in thrust rin' you will have t' add your own. Blimey! T' instructions recommend you glue on a thin strip o' BT-50, arrr, but I’d rather just use maskin' tape. Begad! Ignition was handled with Quest Q2-G2 igniters.

Two C11-2’s are a bit underpowered for me likin' and ejection was early.

Two D12-5, me hearties, however, matey, were perfect. Well, blow me down! Great boost and ejection at apogee. Avast, me proud beauty!

Recovery:
T' early ejection on t' C11 flight fouled t' ‘chute, but that’s also common for regular nose ejection. Begad! Begad! T' rocket landed on mowed grass under t' resultin' ‘streamer’ and suffered no damage. Blimey! By t' time I flew it on t' D12’s, arrr, t' wind had picked up. Blimey! T' combination o' a fast descent and high lateral velocity resulted in a hard landing. Ya scallywag! An 18” 'chute is a little small. Avast, me proud beauty! I expected a winglet t' pop off, arrr, but it didn’t. Avast, me proud beauty! One win' suffered a cracked fillet, which was repaired with thin CA.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
IMO, this is a pretty nice lookin' rocket. Ahoy! Arrr! T' parts fit is good and thick walled tubes, plywood fins, and reinforcin' stuffer tubes make it pretty tough. Blimey! Although it flies on C11’s, matey, shiver me timbers, it should be hefty enough t' handle a pair o' 24mm reloads (but, plan on a long walk). Begad! T' baffle and aft eject option makes field prep a cinch and it is easy t' get in t' air. Begad! This is a great feature and I’d like t' see it on other kits. Avast! Well, blow me down! Rear ejection also protects t' cone from ‘Estes dings’. Avast! T' only cons are t' required trimmin' o' t' pylons and t' difficulty o' borin' t' nose cone. Aye aye! T' latter will, o' course, vary dependin' on what tools t' builder has on hand.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5