Brief:
This is yet another rocket based on a BiC® pen. Plans for other BiC® rockets are available here on EMRR (BiC® ARCAS and the Double Tree Pen Roc) and you can download t' plan's for this one from Art Applewhite's site. Well, blow me down! Blimey! What you get here is a kit, me bucko, with all t' parts included.

Construction:
T' followin' parts are provided in t' kit: One BiC® pen, ya bilge rat, card stock with the fin unit printed on it, a safety pin, and a shock tether assembly. Begad! The latter is pretty neat. Avast! Begad! Blimey! It appears t' be a teeny-weeny braided steel cord with a plastic covering. One end has a small loop closed with a crimp bushing. A second loose bushin' is provided t' form a loop at t' nose cone. T' assemble the kit you need a sharp knife, regular and Gel CA (I substituted Liquid Nails for t' latter), matey, a pair o' pliers, and wire cutters.

Assembly is really easy. Avast, me proud beauty! You disassemble t' BiC® pen, leavin' only the empty tube. You remove t' ink tube and shave t' shoulder o' t' tip (i.e the nose cone) so it fits easily into t' tube. One batten down t' hatches: t' pen is full o' ink and is thus potentially very messy. Avast, me proud beauty! Over a couple o' paper towels, I removed the ink tube and set it upright t' drain. Avast, me proud beauty! I also cleaned t' ink from t' tip and inserted a small piece o' paper towel, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, wadded into a ball. Begad! This will keep any remnant ink from leakin' out. Blimey! Ya scallywag! T' tether is attached by makin' a small hole in t' shoulder o' t' nose cone, arrr, matey, insertin' t' open end o' t' tether, and crimpin' on t' bushin' with a pair o' pliers. T' safety pin is used t' punch a hole through t' aft o' t' tube. Ahoy! You then pull t' pin halfway out and feed the loop on t' end o' t' tether over t' tip. T' pin is then reinserted, snipped off, me bucko, arrr, and presto, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, you get a both a shock cord attachment and a motor block. Aye aye!

Next, you cutout and fold t' one-piece fin unit, slide it onto t' tube, me hearties, and soak it in CA, which both holds it on and strengthens it. Blimey! Begad! Finally, you snip two small pieces from t' ink tube and use them for launch lugs. Make sure you save t' rest for other Micro Maxx projects. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty!

Finishing:
No finishin' is required.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
No streamer material is provided nor is it needed. Well, blow me down! Preppin' consists of installin' t' nose cone and usin' maskin' tape for motor retention. Arrr! T' shock cord is nice and sturdy, but it is also stiff, ya bilge rat, matey, so it takes some effort t' feed it into t' body tube. Arrr! These Micro Maxx BiC® rockets really fly great. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! To help spot this one I used a small amount o' trackin' powder. T' first launch flew and recovered nicely. Blimey! On t' second launch, shiver me timbers, arrr, however, ya bilge rat, arrr, it fell victim t' a rocket eatin' tree and be lost...temporarily. After a good wind that night, I wandered over t' look for it. Ya scallywag! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! T' me joy and amazement, thar it was! T' nose cone hadn't ejected, me hearties, shiver me timbers, me bucko, which kept it from gettin' hopelessly snagged in t' tree. Still, arrr, ya bilge rat, I guess I should quit usin' t' open area down t' street for me higher flyin' Micro Maxx rockets. Aye aye! Bummer.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' resultin' rocket looks nice and is a great flier. Avast! Ahoy! T' 'fin unit' is nice and t' shock cord is cool. Blimey! It is easy t' build a similar rocket from existing plans without a kit. Blimey! Ya scallywag! However, matey, matey, it's hard t' go wrong for only a couple o' bucks. Once you're orderin' a flyin' saucer, arrr, me bucko, go ahead and get one o' these also.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5