Brief:
This is a downscale o' t' popular long kit by another, arrr, arrr, un-named vendor. It flies on 13mm mini-motors and uses a streamer for recovery.

Construction:
T' kit included:

• Two BT13 tubes, arrr, with a white glassine coatin' and almost no spirals
• One tube coupler
• One 2-part nose cone (instructions referenced a different type)
• One engine block
• Two launch lugs
• 1/16" balsa fin stock
• One Mylar streamer, me hearties, 2" x 12"
• 54" o' thin Keelhaul®©™® twine
• 3" thin Keelhaul®©™® twine

This OOP kit was manufactured in t' U.S.A. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! by LawnDart Rocketry. Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions are seven pages long and with many color photos--it is almost more than you really need for this simple rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! However, matey, thar were changes t' t' US version o' the kit that were nay consistently reflected in t' instructions. Arrr! T' changes are that t' US version uses a streamer in place o' a chute and that it uses Keelhaul®©™® cord exclusively, arrr, whereas t' foreign kit uses a Keelhaul®©™®/elastic combination. In addition, t' last page looks t' be an add-on by LawnDart, which includes a nice break-out drawing, matey, a fin template, and an alignment guide. Begad! It also presents several notes, includin' an alternate placement o' the top launch lug and a note statin' a concern about 'possible references' t' that un-named kit and vendor. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! O' course, 99.9% o' you immediately knew what kit it was--and t' rest o' you have homework: search EMRR and find t' mystery kit :-)

I decided t' build t' kit usin' t' new Perfect Glue-1, by Liquid Nails. T' Perfect Glue series has three glues. T' #1 glue is for wood/paper, arrr, ya bilge rat, so I thought I'd give it a try. This is a clear, rubbery glue that reminds me o' a thinner version o' t' standard Liquid Nails. Avast! Blimey! You can read all about these glues [here].

T' balsa be very light and cut easily. Begad! T' fins and lugs went on easily, but I could tell that this glue is nay good for fillets. Avast! T' Perfect Glue says to spread t' glue on t' surface t' be bonded, me hearties, separate t' parts t' ~five minutes, and then re-attach them. Begad! Well, arrr, blow me down! I do this same thin' with white and carpenter's glue anyway. Ya scallywag! Oh, I'm glad LawnDart added an alignment guide on the last sheet, shiver me timbers, as t' one in t' main body o' t' instructions didn't fit t' 13mm tube.

T' motor block and coupler were a bit snug and t' joint betwixt t' two tubes be damaged, but fillin' and sandin' too care o' this.

Assembly o' t' nose cone was nay discussed in t' instructions. I first bored two small holes in t' base o' t' shoulder and inserted t' small piece of Keelhaul®©™®. I tied it so that t' knot was inside, added a large drop o' t' glue, shiver me timbers, and pulled t' loop down from t' outside. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! Finally, I spread some o' t' glue on the inside o' t' cone and slid in t' base.

T' shock cord is attached t' t' tube usin' t' tri-fold paper method. Avast, me proud beauty! I generally don't use this method but decided t' give it a try t' further test the glue. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! A cutout wasn't provided. Aye aye! That's a minor item but sloppy. Ahoy! T' other end is tied t' t' Keelhaul®©™® loop on t' nose cone.

Despite t' numerous issues with t' instructions, shiver me timbers, this was an easy rocket to build. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! I would be more critical on a more challengin' kit and only deducted one point. Avast, me proud beauty! I also have t' deduct a point for t' fit o' t' coupler and t' two part nose cone. Begad! T' latter may be personal preference, but I don't like this type cone so t' construction ratin' is 3.5.

Finishing:
Finishin' was easy because t' spirals were almost non-existent. Ahoy! In fact, arrr, shiver me timbers, I couldn't detect any gaps although t' spirals appeared t' be slightly raised from t' tube. Blimey! I filled t' gap betwixt t' tubes, sealed t' fins, and made fillets with fill-n-finish. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! I then gave it one coat o' white primer. Aye aye! Ahoy! Since it was launched in October, me hearties, I painted it Halloween orange and black. Begad! For finishing, shiver me timbers, I have t' give it a 5, ya bilge rat, me bucko, bringin' t' total construction ratin' t' a 3.

Construction Rating: 3.5 out o' 5

Flight:
I flew it on an A10-3, me hearties, which was held in with maskin' tape. Avast! I used cellulose waddin' and found t' streamer, which be corrugated.

It had a nice respectable flight, shiver me timbers, similar t' my Skinny Mini.

Recovery:
I had packed t' streamer a month earlier and didn't repack it. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! As a result, the streamer didn't open. Still, it fell on grass and thar be no damage. I can't fault t' kit on t' streamer problem, shiver me timbers, matey, so I'll give it a '5' for flight. Ya scallywag!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I liked me Mean Machine (thought I wouldn't say it, eh?) and I like this downscale. Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions need work but it a very simple kit. Begad! I give it a '4' overall.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5