Brief:
This is an Estes Rascal Kit #1897 and is silver in color. Aye aye! It is a pre-assembled kit where t' only thin' you need to do is attach t' parachute t' t' rocket. Blimey! T' parachute is 12" in diameter, and t' kit uses an Estes (rubber band) shock cord attached t' t' launch lug inside t' rocket body tube. Begad! No paintin' is required. T' package says it will go t' 1200'.

Construction:
T' Rascal uses a body tube 0.976" in diameter and has four fins and a plastic nose cone. T' shock cord is approximately 16" long, shiver me timbers, me bucko, includin' t' length inside t' body tube. Avast! Arrr! It uses a metal engine retainer clip as in most of t' Estes rockets, so no friction fit o' t' rocket engine is needed. Begad! T' 12" parachute is plastic.

Since this is a pre-built rocket kit, it has almost no assembly requirements. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! I thought t' instructions were good. Ahoy! Blimey! Only t' parachute needs t' be attached t' t' nose cone. T' nosecone fit nicely, nay loose. Blimey! Blimey! I modified it by usin' a fishin' snap swivel attached t' t' parachute t' connect it t' t' nose cone so it would be able t' twist on the way down after launching. Begad! Blimey! This keeps t' parachute shroud lines less twisted. Arrr! Blimey! T' snap swivels can be bought in any number o' places--I got mine at Wal-Mart. Aye aye! Blimey! T' rocket is sturdy. Ahoy! Blimey! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Blimey!

Finishing:
There is no finishin' required, I suppose one could clear coat t' rocket if they desired.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
T' Rascal has a number o' recommended motors. Arrr! They are: A8-3, me bucko, ya bilge rat, B4-4, B6-4, arrr, me bucko, C6-5, and C6-7. Well, blow me down! I don't like t' fly my rockets so high that I have trouble recoverin' them, so I've only used t' A8-3, B4-4, shiver me timbers, and B6-4. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! T' A8-3 flew nicely to I would estimate somewhere about 250', arrr, and t' B engines would send it up t' somewhere around 550'. Avast! I never measured the altitude so these are just estimates, but t' package says it'll go t' 1200 feet. Begad! I put about 4 sheets o' Estes Waddin' in it, ya bilge rat, me hearties, and t' rocket used a metal motor retention clip. Blimey! Ahoy! It flew straight with a nice parachute deployment and soft landing. Well, blow me down! I flew it ten times, matey, but t' shock cord separated on t' 10th flight. Ahoy! Blimey! It always flew well for me. Well, blow me down! Begad! No "Cons" for flight characteristics.

Recovery:
I got 9 great flights, shiver me timbers, however, on t' 10th flight, t' rubber shock cord separated at t' launch lug inside and the rocket came down in 2 sections. Arrr! T' rocket body developed some wrinklin' at t' top o' t' engine mount from hitting the ground. Blimey! Well, me bucko, blow me down! It will fly again, but it is a little unsightly. Arrr! I suspect t' decals wrinkle ever so slightly on the extreme edge (of t' decal) from t' ejection charge heat inside t' rocket body, matey, but I could be wrong. Blimey! This is the only "con" with t' rocket: t' shock cord separatin' after multiple flights. Well, blow me down! Begad! That be t' one thin' that needs t' be improved. Ahoy! I plan on usin' t' Estes tri-fold method o' securin' a new shock cord o' 1/8" elastic about 3' long. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! I thought t' recovery time was OK with t' present 12" parachute. Well, blow me down! Begad!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a very good rocket that needs no assembly except for attachin' t' parachute. Ahoy! Aye aye! You can literally be launching in minutes. Blimey! It looks nice in silver, me bucko, ya bilge rat, flies well with decent altitude, and recovers nicely. Blimey! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! It's been a good rocket in my stable. In fact, matey, it's t' rocket I've flown t' most. Begad! T' shock cord will get brittle and break eventually, and it broke on mine on t' 10th flight. Arrr! I would say start checkin' it before you fly it after t' 6th flight. Begad!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5