T' CiCi is a traditional canard-style boost glider. Well, blow me down! Blimey! The canard be t' name for that smaller front wing, or horizontal stabilizer. Arrr! Avast! A canard-style glider is simply a glider where t' canard is forward o' t' main wing. A boost glider is a glider that boosts straight up like a rocket, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and then ejects some part, shiver me timbers, usually t' engine, to change into a glider. Begad! This is as opposed t' a rocket glider, me hearties, shiver me timbers, where no parts are jettisoned, but rather other changes are made (movin' t' wing surfaces, shiver me timbers, me bucko, changin' t' angle o' elevons, etc. Aye aye! ) t' make t' transition from vertical boost mode t' horizontal glide mode. Begad!

Upon openin' up t' zip-lock-bag-style package o' t' CiCi, I was first surprised by t' fact that t' instructions consisted entirely o' a single 8 1/2 x 11 sheet o' paper, me hearties, me hearties, printed on one side only! This be particularly surprisin' for this rocket, considerin' that t' Deltie, also from Edmond's Aerospace, shiver me timbers, had a 10+ page booklet for instructions. Avast, me proud beauty! Although sparse, t' instructions here are obvious and straightforward. Unlike most rockets, shiver me timbers, t' order o' assembly for t' CiCi is largely irrelevant. Well, blow me down! T' instructions are fairly complete, shiver me timbers, except that they never mention trimmin' t' glider, or t' supplied lump o' clay and what t' do with it. Avast! Basically, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, t' instructions seem t' assume that you have trimmed a boost glider before. T' second thin' that I noticed about t' kit contents was that a piece was missing. Begad! Begad! T' instructions say that thar be a small, triangular piece o' wood, matey, arrr, curved on one side, that can be used t' mark a straight line on t' engine tube, but thar wasn't one in me kit. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! No big deal, there are o' plenty o' ways t' mark a straight line on a tube. Ahoy! T' third thing that I noticed was that another piece was missing: t' launch lug. Again, shiver me timbers, nay a show-stopper, since I have some extras lyin' around, me bucko, but a rather inauspicious beginning. Ya scallywag!

T' kit itself is quite nice, with thick, sturdy balsa parts that have been precision cut. Ya scallywag! All parts fit well, and there was absolutely no confusion about how t' assemble t' rocket. Construction was simple, quick and easy, me hearties, me bucko, with no fuss. Aye aye! Full assembly took me about 1 hour, but could be done much faster. Make no mistake, t' quality o' t' parts is first-rate, and t' kit was well thought out. Aye aye! Avast! T' only time I deviated from the instructions was with t' clay. Begad! Blimey! I added a small amount (about t' size of pencil eraser) t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main (rear) win' and the left vertical stabilizer. Arrr! T' purpose here be t' make t' CiCi tilt left a little bit in flight so that it would glide in circles, ya bilge rat, rather than in a straight line. Begad! You want it t' glide in circles so that it stays on t' flying field. Begad! (Note that these pictures were taken before I added t' clay. Begad! )

T' instructions don't mention it, but I attempted some hand-tossed glide tests prior t' flight. Avast! Hmmm. Well, me bucko, blow me down! . . Arrr! it glides ok, but flies and lands in a rather nose-down attitude. Nose-down enough that t' balsa nose cone hits before the front edge o' t' canard. Ahoy! Begad! Perhaps a small amount o' weight in t' aft might help. Aye aye! Begad! I added a small amount o' t' supplied clay (again about t' size o' a pencil eraser) t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' fuselage and t' main wing. Blimey! More hand-toss glide tests. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Hmmm. Begad! . Begad! Well, blow me down! . Ahoy! a slightly better glide attitude and landing, but still noticeably nose-down, and thar was no discernible arc to t' left (so that it will glide in circles). I added just a tiny bit more clay t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main win' and t' left vertical stabilizer. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! After a couple more throws, I still couldn't discern any arc t' the left, but I didn't want t' add too much weight for fear o' adversely affecting the flight characteristics. Arrr! Time for some real flight tests.

It be a pretty nice day for launchin' rockets. Ahoy! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Moderately windy, arrr, but not too bad. Aye aye! I was anxious t' try out t' CiCi, so it be first in line. I figured the light weight o' t' rocket, me hearties, me hearties, combined with t' moderate wind and t' fact that this was t' maiden flight, me bucko, dictated usin' an A8-3.

It was a good, me bucko, me hearties, quick boost, as you can tell from t' blur it gives in this photo, shiver me timbers, matey, even with 400 speed film. Avast! Blimey! In spite what this photo o' t' early flight path might indicate, it was, overall, arrr, ya bilge rat, a fairly straight boost to, oh, maybe 150 feet or so (I didn't measure it). Even though it arced over on its back after burnout, it make a smooth, ya bilge rat, controlled transition t' right-side-up glide. Ahoy! Ahoy! Blimey! The glide was ok, but still with a bit o' nose-down attitude, arrr, me hearties, and it definitely falls faster than a Deltie. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! It made about 1 3/4 circles before landing. . Well, blow me down! . with a crack. Uh-oh. Blimey! Blimey!

As you can see from this photo, it snapped clean in half on landing. Note that although it's photographed here on cement (for clarity), ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, matey, it did land in t' grass when it broke. Arrr! Disappointing, arrr, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, but not the end o' t' world. A bit o' thin CA, shiver me timbers, and she'll be good as new. Well, blow me down! Ahoy!

Also visible in this photo be t' slight blackenin' in t' forward half of the center o' t' main wing. This is just soot from t' black powder, not scorchin' o' t' wood. Aye aye! A bit dirty, but nay a safety concern. Blimey! Begad!

Unfortunately, t' second flight, ya bilge rat, under nearly calm wind conditions, me bucko, was an exact duplicate o' t' first. Blimey! T' A8-3 gave a good, straight boost, with a nice transition t' glide, arrr, me bucko, me bucko, a decent but slightly too rapid, me bucko, nose-down descent, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and a landin' with a crack. Broke clean in half again, me hearties, this time about 3mm further rearward (CA is strong stuff). Ya scallywag!

Warning! Do nay try t' followin' with your model!Bein' a bit o' a tinkerer, ya bilge rat, I thought I'd make a more serious attempt t' fix that nose-down attitude. Avast! Ahoy! Blimey! So, matey, prior t' t' third flight, shiver me timbers, I sanded an airfoil into t' top o' t' canard. Avast! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Aye aye! Blimey! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Begad! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' idea was to have this canard generate more lift, and thereby lift t' nose in flight, givin' a flatter glide. Hand-tossed glides didn't show any visible difference, but I was confident that it would be noticeable at speed. Arrr! Blimey! DO NOT TRY THIS WITH YOUR MODEL! T' airfoil was much too severe, ya bilge rat, and caused t' model t' arc over under power and plow into the ground at full speed! Ironically, me hearties, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, t' damage be only slightly worse on this flight, ya bilge rat, matey, with a small piece breakin' off o' t' canard as well as t' model snappin' in two at t' usual spot. Well, blow me down! If your model also breaks on landing, shiver me timbers, and you want t' try t' airfoil t' canard t' help that situation, start with a very slight airfoil, ya bilge rat, and perform actual launches before sandin' any further. Well, blow me down! Begad!

Overall, I give t' CiCi a 3 out o' 5 points. Blimey! Blimey! T' kit itself gets a 4 out o' 5 points, matey, havin' high quality parts, but missin' a couple minor pieces. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' instructions should include trimmin' instructions, arrr, but were otherwise adequate, despite their brevity. Begad! Blimey! T' construction gets a ratin' of 4. 5 out o' 5 points bein' simple and straightforward. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! T' flights (before the airfoiling, at least), were both excellent, ratin' a 4 out o' 5 points. Aye aye! O' course, me bucko, me bucko, t' big downer was t' recovery, particularly t' landin' damage, arrr, which is easily fixed, though nay easily avoided. Arrr! T' recovery gets a 1. 5 out o' 5 points. Blimey! Blimey!

I'll probably repair t' CiCi again when I get a chance. If you're looking to buy your first boost glider, I'd have t' recommend t' Edmond's Aerospace Deltie. Blimey! Blimey! But, me hearties, t' CiCi certainly has t' potential t' be a great boost glider, perhaps as your third or fourth boost glider model. Ya scallywag! Blimey!