Brief:
This rocket is bein' reviewed by Dale Marshall and Tim Reidy. Tim has more buildin' experience so his comments are listed first.

Tim:
When I saw t' list o' kits that Estes be re-releasin' as part o' its Classic Series, me bucko, I be delighted t' see t' Satellite Interceptor on t' list. It had been on me list o' kits t' clone, and now Estes had saved me t' work.

Dale:
Well I took a long hiatus from rocket building, ya bilge rat, arrr, so this one would be new for me. Arrr! Arrr! I have t' “younger brother” o' this kit, t' Crossbow SST, and it was a fun one t' build and fly. Aye aye! I was lookin' forward t' gettin' this one done.

Construction:
Tim:
Upon openin' and examinin' t' kit, arrr, I saw it was just like t' original, with a couple o' exceptions. Begad! Begad! Since thar are no molded plastic parts, ya bilge rat, thar be no tail cone in t' new kit, arrr, although a centerin' rin' and piece o' card stock would fix that. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! T' balsa nose cone means a little more work t' finish t' kit, but it is well worth it t' ensure t' new generation o' modelers keeps up with the fundamentals. Avast, me proud beauty!

Dale:
Yea, I was a little surprised t' find a balsa nosecone in this one. Begad! Avast! I have a larger version o' this nosecone in plastic and it looks really nice. Begad! Ahoy! I was pleased with t' packagin' o' t' kit, with all o' t' smaller pieces in a separate plastic bag.

Tim:
So it be time t' start building. Avast! Assembly starts with fine sandin' t' laser-cut fins while still attached t' t' balsa sheet. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! A good technique t' save some finish sandin' later. You then remove t' fins from t' scrap balsa, matey, square t' root edges and round t' leadin' edges. No problem there. T' engine mount is next. It is straight forward, matey, except that I don't care for t' new Estes engine hook, matey, so I omit that and opt t' friction fit later.

Dale:
I actually didn’t start with t' fins, me hearties, me bucko, optin' t' build t' engine mount first t' let it dry while I did some other work. I did include t' engine hook because I don’t have a lot o' luck friction-fittin' engines. Begad! Arrr! I was very disappointed in t' quality o' t' balsa fins in me kit. Begad! It be rough and took a LOT o' sandin' t' resemble anythin' near smooth. This be t' first time I’ve run into this poor quality o' balsa in any kit from any manufacturer.

Tim:
Next step is t' cut t' tube markin' guide from t' instructions and mark the tube. Ya scallywag! I still use t' door frame method as illustrated. I marked t' tube, ya bilge rat, matey, extended t' lines and dutifully labeled them.

Dale:
Be sure t' do all that after you fill t' spirals with filler and sand it down. Nay that I’m talkin' from experience or anything.

Tim:
Time t' attach t' fins. Begad! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Here I ran into me first issue with t' new version. You first attach t' wings, which end up bein' perpendicular t' t' vertical and sub fins. Avast! Well, blow me down! After t' wings come the stabilizers. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Per t' markin' guide and t' illustration in t' instruction, t' stabilizers are attached on t' line above t' wings and angled down. Nowhere does it mention that it would be a good idea t' sand t' root edges o' the stabilizers at an angle t' get a good glue joint with t' body tube. Blimey! Arrr! I've looked at t' instruction for t' original Satellite Interceptor, me bucko, me hearties, and t' setup be a little better. Aye aye! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' stabilizers were perpendicular t' t' vertical fins, matey, and t' wings were angled down, me hearties, although below t' stabilizers, so they still came straight out o' t' body tube. Ahoy! A much easier and stronger joint. Blimey! I added t' vertical and sub fins, me bucko, matey, and finished with t' win' tubes and dowels t' make it look cool.

Dale:
I noticed t' same thin' with t' aft fins – but nay until I had tried gluin' them on stock first. Oops. Begad! Blimey! Had t' wipe off t' glue, arrr, shiver me timbers, matey, bevel t' fins, and then attach them again. One thin' I did differently (by mistake, shiver me timbers, actually) was t' mount t' lower fin pointin' backwards towards t' tail in t' same direction as t' upper tail fin. Arrr! Blimey! I like t' way it looks. Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! T' support t' fins I used some o' me small paint bottles which turned out t' be t' perfect size t' make t' angle correct. I used those bottles t' support t' rocket as I glued on each of t' fins and t' win' tubes.

Tim:
After installin' t' last few steps involve addin' t' engine mount, matey, me bucko, launch lug and shock cord, ya bilge rat, as well as t' nose cone. Avast! Blimey! I still prefer sewin' elastic t' t' bare rubber shock cord Estes returned t' a few years ago, matey, so I substituted a longer piece o' that. Well, blow me down! Engine mount and launch lug went on as directed. Aye aye! Then I came t' t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! I've built a fair number o' Estes kits and cloned many more with balsa cones. Aye aye! Begad! We all know thar are times you get balsa that seems as hard as oak and other times it is like warm butter. You are directed t' screw in t' screw eye and go on your merry way. Aye aye! Begad! Old time kits always had you take it back out and squirt glue in t' give t' eye a better setting. Arrr! My son just built t' Mini Max, shiver me timbers, and t' eye isn't glued on that one either. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Personally I think it's an oversight that Estes should correct, but maybe it is by design. I still opted for t' glue.

Dale:
I, too, me bucko, did t' "glue t' screw eye in t' nosecone bit". Blimey! I find myself doin' that on every kit now. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! My nosecone had a pretty good consistency, but I found it difficult t' get the screw eye t' go in straight. I used t' stock rubber band and tri-fold mount and parachute.

Finishing:
Tim:
On t' finishing. Begad! I prefer the smooth look and strength o' epoxy fillets, so I reinforced me fins with some 5 minute epoxy, matey, and finished t' fine sandin' o' t' nose cone and fins. Well, blow me down! I used thinned out Elmer's wood filler t' finish all t' balsa, and applied 2 coats o' Krylon white primer, shiver me timbers, sandin' after each coat. Aye aye! I finished with 2 light coats o' Krylon semi-gloss white. T' decals are sharp, arrr, matey, shiver me timbers, so I be careful and took me time applyin' them. Begad! They are pretty thin, me hearties, so I can see where they might tear easily if nay careful. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Two light coats o' Krylon clear acrylic, me bucko, me hearties, and I be done.

Dale:
I haven’t done t' epoxy fillets before but I have read about them so I may try that on me next build. I used two coats o' gray primer (three on t' fins) t' get a pretty smooth finish. Avast! I still have t' work on me fin-fillin' techniques. I don’t like t' Krylon white, arrr, but that’s all I had t' work with so that’s what I used. This time I did it without any runs in t' paint. I saved t' many decals until after launching. Ya scallywag! This kit comes with a LOT o' really nice decals!

Tim:
Build 4 out o' 5 due t' t' angled stabilizers and nay anchorin' t' eye in t' nose cone.

Dale:
Agreed. Arrr! I think me rough fin balsa be an anomaly so I won’t din' Estes for that even though it should have been caught in quality control.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Tim:
I had a beautiful calm evenin' on a nice grassy soccer field for t' maiden launch. I prepped with a B6-4 and let 'er rip. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! I'm horrible at judgin' altitude, so let's just say it went straight up, plenty high. Well, blow me down! I'm glad Estes replaced t' plain white parachute with plain red ones now. Arrr! They are much easier t' see against a cloudy sky. It came down softly with no damage. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Since t' rocket is light, ya bilge rat, and thar was no wind, matey, I decided t' try it on an A8-3 even though nay on t' recommended list. Ya scallywag! Arrr! It was a recommended motor on the original, so I thought it should do just fine. I was right. Again it flew straight and true, and returned safely.

Flight 5 out o' 5.

Dale:
Unfortunately I didn’t have a calm day t' fly me SI. Winds were reasonably consistent, ya bilge rat, mostly about 5-10 MPH with occasional gusts (blew over me launch pad twice with a heavier rocket on the pad). Avast! Because o' t' winds, and t' local RC plane club flyin' on t' field at the same time, I opted for t' A8-3 for t' first flight. Aye aye! Begad! I don’t have a large selection o' engines right now because o' many recent launches. Arrr! T' first flight be straight up for about 150 feet, matey, I think, nay even arcin' into t' wind all that much. Blimey! Avast! Beautiful flight and t' ‘chute popped just after apogee. Arrr! It came down pretty fast, ya bilge rat, though, probably because o' t' wind, and popped one o' t' aft fins when it hit t' hard ground. A little Gorilla Glue and t' SI be ready t' fly again. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! This time I used a B6-4 like Tim did, and t' flight was amazing! Much higher and still straight, shiver me timbers, and still a reasonably fast descent and that darn fin popped loose again. Avast! I found out why though – my parachute was slightly melted. Well, blow me down! I must nay have put enough waddin' in. Oh well. Blimey! Since I don’t have a spare ‘chute, me hearties, I unfolded it as best as I could (there are now several spill holes in t' ‘chute), stuffed some more waddin' in, and set it up on another B6-4. Blimey! Avast! T' wind was just too strong t' try a C engine. Blimey! T' last flight was just like t' second one, except this time t' 4-second delay be too much and t' ‘chute got tangled in t' fins and t' whole thin' came down horizontally… which was a good thin' because t' rocket body created enough drag to brin' it down softly even though t' ‘chute be full o' holes.

Flight 4.5 out o' 5 due t' a possibly undersized parachute. Blimey! Avast!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Tim:
Overall impressions: I already have t' Satellite Interceptor's big and little brothers, arrr, namely t' S.W.A.T. Ahoy! Begad! Blimey! and Crossbow SST, shiver me timbers, so t' SI is a fine addition t' my collection. Thanks Estes, me bucko, and keep bringin' back t' Classics.

Dale:
Overall impressions: I agree with Tim that this is a great addition t' the fleet. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! I’m sure I’ll fly it many times in t' future once I replace t' parachute with somethin' a little bit larger. Ahoy! I’d really like t' try it on a C6!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5