I first saw Starlight Model Rockets advertised in NAR's Sport Rocketry magazine, shiver me timbers, arrr, but was then pleased t' see LongLongJonRocket.com start t' carry them, matey, so I could try one out. Well, blow me down! Begad! T' flight vehicle that I tried out is their F-32 Avenger. Arrr! T' winged-aircraft look is what caught me attention. Begad!

T' kit includes one 12" body tube which seems slightly thicker than typical Estes (but when I measured them I could nay see a difference). Arrr! Blimey! This body tube be completely pre-marked. T' 2 3/4" nose cone and pre-cut fins are balsa. Begad! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! There are two 18mm "jet" tubes that are 2 3/4" long. Well, blow me down! An 1/8" dowel is provided for some detail work. Arrr! There is an 18mm motor tube with retainin' hook, matey, thrust ring, me hearties, matey, and two centerin' rings. Ya scallywag! T' recovery system is made up o' an 12" ASP Mylar parachute, me bucko, ya bilge rat, matey, a 16" piece o' round (1/16") white elastic, ya bilge rat, and a shock cord mount. Well, blow me down! A 1/8" launch lug, me hearties, some hardware, me bucko, a decal sheet finish out t' kit.

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on a 3 sides o' two 8½ x 11" paper. Aye aye! There are many hand drawn illustrations t' assist in buildin' t' kit and t' placement o' t' decals. As mentioned above, t' body tube is pre-marked with a few different colors, so a markin' guide is nay needed.

T' F-32 assembles like most Estes, arrr, Custom, or Quest kits.

T' motor mount is assembled first and it used a wire motor hook, shiver me timbers, me hearties, thrust rin' and two centerin' rings. T' thin round motor hook has a tendency t' "roll" in t' motor mount when bein' used. I believe this is why Estes and Quest went with flat sprin' steel. Ya scallywag! Nonetheless, arrr, it is nice t' have a motor hook provided. Arrr!

T' nose cone is balsa and it first requires that an eye-screw be added into t' base. Begad! T' nose cone was really grainy. Begad! I found t' bottom transition edge (from nose cone t' shoulder) t' be very ragged and slight splintered. Begad! Nay terribly uncommon for balsa nose cone kits, but it is tough t' sand. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! I found that by slidin' it into t' body tube, applyin' pressure and turnin' it against t' tube edge greatly helped reduce t' raggedness problem.

Havin' pre-cut balsa fins is a nice quality touch. Begad! T' body tube is pre-marked with different colors t' allow for very easy assembly. Well, blow me down! T' instructions guide you t' use t' "double" glue technique. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! Glue is added t' t' root edge o' t' fin and then it is set aside t' dry. Ya scallywag! Starlight has even gone as far as colorin' t' root edge with black. Begad! Arrr! Once it is dry, me hearties, ya bilge rat, glue is applied t' t' root edge and it is placed in position on t' pre-marked line on t' body tube. Avast! Avast!

T' 1/8" dowel is cut into two 2" and two 3" pieces. Avast! T' 2" dowels are glued t' t' end o' t' win' tips. Well, blow me down! T' 3" dowels are glued on t' underside o' t' rocket on each side o' t' launch lug. Avast, me proud beauty! These add detail t' t' rocket.

T' shock cord gets a knot tied in one end and it then weaved through three holes in t' shock cord mount. Avast, me proud beauty! This is then glued inside, me bucko, 1" down from t' top, me bucko, o' t' body tube. T' opposite end is tied t' t' eye-screw in t' nose cone. T' parachute is assembled accordin' t' ASP's instructions.

Basic finishin' instructions are provided (sandin' sealer, sand, repeat, paint white). Aye aye! Then t' instructions describe applyin' t' water-slide decals. Aye aye! However, me bucko, thar was a supplemental note that said water-slide decals had been replaced with peel-n-stick ones. Aye aye! So I peeled-n-stuck on t' decals.

I used me typical multiple coats o' Plastic-Kote Primer and sandin' in-between. Begad! T' nose cone took a lot o' work. Begad! I then used Walmart Silver paint.

Overall, me bucko, ya bilge rat, matey, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 3 points. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! T' instructions are adequate for t' kit. Begad! T' hand drawings are nay t' same quality o' other kits, but certainly allow t' builder t' be successful. T' quality o' parts are good with t' exception o' t' nose cone and motor hook. Ya scallywag! T' pre-markin' is a very thoughful bonus. Avast, me proud beauty! Havin' decals and Mylar parachute are nice features, ya bilge rat, too.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Starlight recommends t' A8-3, B6-4, and C6-5.

My finished rocket weighed 1.5 ounces.

T' instructions indicate that you'll need 2-4 squares o' wadding. Ya scallywag! I used 3, rolled me 'chute, shiver me timbers, and got everythin' ready.

T' first flight was on an A8-3. Excellent first choice. Arrr! Blimey! Nay terribly high, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, but allowed for a nice flight. Ya scallywag! Recovery system worked fine, shiver me timbers, no damage. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty!

T' second flight was on a B6-4. Begad! Straight flight, arrr, very stable. Aye aye! It ejected at apogee. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! I was a fairly high flight for t' size o' rocket it is. Descent rate is good. Ahoy! Upon collection o' t' rocket from t' field, arrr, ya bilge rat, me hearties, I discovered t' first feared "Estes dent". Begad! Aye aye!

I know, it probably isn't fair t' keep sayin' "Estes dent", but I think most understand what that is. Too short o' a shock cord, matey, elastic stretches, snaps back. Well, blow me down! Blimey! On balsa nose cones you get a "smile" from t' body tube. Ya scallywag! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! With plastic nose cones you get a "dent" on t' top o' t' body tube. Therefore, I now declare this t' be a "balsa smile" instead o' an "Estes dent". Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty!

So, back t' t' program. T' flight resulted in a "balsa smile".

T' third flight was also on a B6-4. Avast, me proud beauty! Stable and straight. Arrr! At apogee it turned as if t' rocket (plane) was flyin' right side up. Neat t' see.

T' fourth flight was on a C6-7. Begad! I purposely chose t' longer delay so it could drop some before ejection. Blimey! It looked great arcin' over, shiver me timbers, me bucko, but it was way up there. T' ejection charge went off and t' parachute did nay fully open. Well, blow me down! I'm glad because I would have had t' walk a mile. Begad! A second "balsa smile" appeared.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I would rate this rocket 4 points. T' F-32 is very stable and nice looking. Well, blow me down! T' short elastic shock cord caused damage. T' parachute is excellent and sized correctly for this rocket.

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 3 ½ points. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Looks and what you get with kit are very nice. Overall, me bucko, shiver me timbers, it be a good experience, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, but in all fairness, t' rocket falls into t' "average plus" range for ratings.