Well, me hearties, I've been drawn t' a number o' Thrustline kits, me hearties, ya bilge rat, arrr, so add t' A-SLAM t' me growin' list. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! Why did I select this rocket? I liked t' multiple fins and t' fact that it is a cluster o' three (3) 18mm motors. Well, blow me down! Nay t' many cluster kits out there, so I be glad t' get this one with their Smoke and Fire kit (three 24mm cluster; t' be reviewed soon).

Another thin' that makes t' A-SLAM interesting, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, t' me, shiver me timbers, is that it is a 2.27" diameter kit. Ahoy! Begad! I do nay believe I have ever built a 2.27" kit.

T' rocket includes a 17" long, 2.27" diameter, white paper body tube for t' main body and a 4.5" balsa nose cone t' make up t' 21.5" length. T' kits includes plenty o' 1/8" balsa for t' fins, two (2) laser-cut plywood centerin' rings, matey, me hearties, and three (3) 18mm motor tubes with thrust rings. Well, blow me down! Avast! T' recovery system made up o' a Keelhaul®©™ shock tether, ya bilge rat, elastic shock cord and an 18" mylar parachute. Well, blow me down! T' finish things up thar be a 1/8" Launch Lug, a bag o' BB's for nose weight, me hearties, and some water slide decals (which shipped later).

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on five pages (single-sided) o' 8½ x 11" paper. Ya scallywag! There are black&white photos throughout t' assist in t' assembly o' t' kit. Begad! Avast! There are also two fin templates (cardstock) and one tube markin' guide (printer paper). Lastly, thar are Mylar parachute assembly instructions on another single page. Aye aye! Ahoy! T' kit would probably be considered a skill level 3 kit.

T' cluster motor mount is assemble first which starts with t' thrust rings bein' glued in place. Well, blow me down! Then t' three (3) 18mm motor tubes are glued together. Begad! I should mention that I added a threaded stud for motor retention. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I glued this in place betwixt t' three (3) motor tubes.

Next, matey, t' 3/32" laser-cut plywood centerin' rings are glued onto t' motor tubes. Arrr! Blimey! Interestingly, me hearties, t' center "triangle" o' t' centerin' rin' needed t' be taken out. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It is nay interestin' that it couldn't stay in there, it is interestin' that it was thar t' begin with. Avast! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' rings require just a touch o' sandin' t' fit nicely.

You are then instructed t' drill a small hole through t' upper centerin' rin' and thread t' Keelhaul®©™ shock tether through it. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! It is then tied around all three motor tubes. Ahoy! Arrr! Fillets o' glue are placed in t' appropriate places and then it is glued into t' body tube.

Next, arrr, t' body tube is marked usin' t' fin markin' guide. Well, blow me down! Blimey! My tube markin' guide did nay fit, arrr, however, after an e-mail t' Thrustline I'm confident that future kits will nay have this problem. Begad! Blimey! I used an Estes Tube Markin' Guide t' mark me tube.

Next, t' fins are cut out o' t' 1/8" balsa stock (4 o' each type, which is considered t' be obvious since t' instructions don't tell you how many t' cut out). Aye aye! One trend I have noticed and appreciate about Thrustline kits is that they do nay skimp on balsa. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Blimey! I probably could have made 6-8 fins out o' all t' stock! Blimey! Bravo!

T' fins are sanded, airfoiled, shiver me timbers, and glued in place. Aye aye! Arrr! Alignment o' t' upper with lower fins is important for looks and flight stability, matey, so take your time on these.

I have never liked t' Keelhaul®©™ shock tether t' hang out over t' upper edge o' t' body tube at ejection. Begad! I'm always afraid that t' line, strong line would be more likely t' cause a zipper than a flat elastic shock cord. Arrr! Aye aye! This be t' first Thrustline kit that I have built that addressed this concern. Begad! They did so in a unique way as well. Well, blow me down! Even though t' Keelhaul®©™ line is very long, me hearties, t' instructions have you tie off a loop so that is stops just inside t' body tube. Aye aye! Great job. Avast, me proud beauty! T' this, matey, t' 35" o' 1/4" elastic shock cord is tied.

Next, t' balsa nose cone gets our attention. Ahoy! Blimey! Several holes are drilled into t' nose cone, while leavin' t' center untouched for t' installation o' t' eye-screw. T' provided BBs are put in t' holes and they are filled with glue. T' instructions don't say what kind o' glue, me hearties, but I would strongly recommend epoxy. Begad! Blimey! After this, t' eye-screw is screwed/glued into t' center o' t' nose cone.

Me, me hearties, shiver me timbers, I like t' handle this a bit different. Ahoy! Blimey! I went ahead and drilled a center hole, matey, shiver me timbers, me bucko, filled it half way with BB's and then filled it t' t' top with epoxy. While t' epoxy was still wet, I set t' eye-screw in place. I think this is stronger than screwin' t' eye-screw into t' balsa. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! May be a six t' one, shiver me timbers, arrr, half-dozen t' another though.

T' nose cone tricked me. Arrr! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! After I was ready, I test fit it into t' body tube and it was too tight. Arrr! I sanded it until it fit nicely. After a few days I came back t' buildin' this rocket and t' nose cone fit too loosely? Huh? I'm thinkin' thar be some humidity swell that had occurred when I fit test fit it. Regardless, ya bilge rat, it now has 1 wrap o' tape t' have it fit well.

Thrustline does give finishin' guidance. Arrr! They suggest sealing, me bucko, sandin' and usin' a tack cloth. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! T' usin' a sandable primer, arrr, sandin' in-between.

I soaked me fins with CA, me bucko, then used by typical multiple coats o' Plastic-Kote Primer. Blimey! I finished it usin' Walmart $0.97 Red paint for t' body and White paint for t' fins. Thrustline had sent decals after t' kit arrived, me hearties, so I believe future kits will have water-slide decals. Arrr! I did nay use them.

Overall, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 4 ½ points. Aye aye! Fit o' parts was good. Aye aye! Quality o' parts be good. Instructions are good. Blimey! My only complaint is that thar was no motor retention system.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Thrustline recommends (3) A8-3, arrr, me hearties, ya bilge rat, B4-4 and C6-5 motors.

Thrustline indicates t' rocket should weigh 4.5 ounces. Aye aye! My rocket weighed in at 5.6 ounces with an empty CG at 11" from t' nose cone. Blimey! Avast! I'm thinkin' some o' that delta is in t' nose weight, arrr, which accordin' t' t' beta-test (see review below) needed adjusted. As well, I added t' threaded stud and I have many coats o' primer t' try t' get a smooth finish.

I decided t' fly it for t' first time on a three (3) A8-3's. Aye aye! I loaded t' motors and then screwed a nut onto me threaded stud. Ahoy! Aye aye! I then loaded in 6-7 sheets o' wadding, me bucko, and put in t' parachute. It was now ready t' fly. Begad!

I used a D.B.M. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! Rocketry 3-Motor Cluster cable and set it up on t' pad. Ahoy! Avast! T' flight be a great first flight. Avast, me proud beauty! It didn't go very high, me guess is about 75 feet (I have nay simmed this one). Avast! Ahoy! T' rocket descended faster than I suspected. Aye aye! I had initially thought t' 18" parachute be too big for this rocket. Avast! I was prepared t' reef it or cut a spill hole. No need.

T' second flight was usin' three (3) B6-4's. Avast! Blimey! Wow! Blimey! I was super fast off t' pad. Avast, me proud beauty! It surprised me. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! Blimey! It be still goin' up upon ejection, me bucko, ya bilge rat, but was close enough. Pop, ya bilge rat, arrr, me bucko, expand and descend. Begad! Recovered.

Third flight be on (3) B4-4's. Blimey! Tryin' t' slow it down a bit for a picture. This time it came off t' pad and had a slight tail swirl on t' way up. Ya scallywag! Most likely motor related since I did nay see that on t' B6's. Avast, me proud beauty! It was nay straight up either, ya bilge rat, me bucko, shiver me timbers, which was probably due t' wind or rod whip. Blimey! Well, blow me down!

T' rocket's diameter required 6-7 sheets o' waddin' and I also stuff 1/3rd o' a piece into t' top o' each motor (above t' cap). Aye aye! Doin' this protected t' parachute and thar be no sign o' burning/melting.

T' bright metallic parachute has great visibility and adds t' t' kit. Aye aye! T' Keelhaul®©™ to elastic shock cord system is excellent.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, matey, I would rate this rocket 5 points. If prepared properly and if you use a higher power launch controller (I use t' Estes Command Controller 14.4V), then you will see a good number o' flights on this rocket. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! T' cluster makes it fun, matey, too. Begad!

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 4 ½ points. Ahoy! Blimey! It is nay easy t' find clusters in model rockets, but Thrustline's A-SLAM is one that I would recommend. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! On A8-3's, it would make a good demo rocket. On B6's or B4's it is a good "football" field flier. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Blimey! I'm lookin' forward t' flyin' it on some C's and boy, arrr, oh, boy if I could get three Aerotech D21's! Blimey!