Brief:
This is a semi-scale model o' t' GBU-24 Paveway III laser guided bomb. Begad! It flies on 18mm motors and recovers under a 12" chute. Well, blow me down! You can find more info on t' actual bomb [here] . Begad!

Construction:

• One BT-55, me bucko, 10 7/8" long
• Plastic tail cone/adapter (separated durin' construction)
• Two BT-20 tubes, me hearties, 5" long
• Seamless elliptical plastic nose cone, BT-20
• Cardstock centerin' rings
• Engine hook
• Engine block
• Mylar retainer rin' for t' engine hook
• Launch lug, me bucko, 1/8"
• Elastic shock cord, 1/8" x 18"
• Assembled 12" plastic chute
• Die cut balsa fins, 3/32"
• Die cut balsa fin protectors, 1/16"
• Peel and stick decals
• Endurin' Freedom sticker (not used on model)

T' first step is t' assemble t' motor mount. Aye aye! This is a typical build, me hearties, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and consists o' t' BT-20 motor mount, two centerin' rings, ya bilge rat, an engine hook, shiver me timbers, a Mylar retainer for t' hook, and a motor block. Well, blow me down! I used carpenter's glue as recommended. Avast! Before installation in t' main body tube, arrr, matey, I epoxied a two-foot section o' Keelhaul®©™® twine onto t' mount, trough t' top ring.

Next, ya bilge rat, me bucko, I removed and sanded t' fins, me bucko, and filled them with Fill 'n Finish. T' main fins were fine, but t' protectors, me bucko, which attach on either side o' the rear fins, me hearties, were very thin and warped badly when exposed t' t' moisture in the Fill 'n Finish. Ya scallywag! I pressed these as they dried and they straightened out.

T' tail cone and transition come as one unit and must be separated. A razor saw is suggested, but I used an Exacto knife. T' bottom o' t' tail cone must also be trimmed and sanded, me bucko, me bucko, as do t' fin slots. Begad! Arrr! T' latter start as rectangular projections, which are cut off with a razor saw, formin' t' slots. Aye aye! T' final trimmin' is supposed t' be t' top o' t' transition. T' instructions have you cut this off, leavin' a hollow unit with both t' top and bottom open. T' shock cord then attaches t' t' inside o' t' upper body tube usin' a paper mount. Instead, I poked a small hole in t' recessed ridge just below t' top o' the transition, fed a loop o' Keelhaul®©™® twine through t' hole and around t' transition (see photo). Begad! Ahoy! This formed a loop, ya bilge rat, which t' elastic cord will later attach to. A small dab o' 5-minute Epoxy on t' hole and knot holds t' twine in.

T' tail cone is used t' adjust t' depth o' t' motor mount as it is glued into t' main body tube. Blimey! Once positioned, arrr, t' tail cone is attached, making sure t' engine hook is centered betwixt t' fin slots. Avast! I used black rubberized CA in place o' t' recommended plastic cement.

T' lower fins are mounted through t' slots in t' tail cone. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! I found these slots t' be excessively loose, so they didn't support t' fins well. Blimey! I applied yellow glue t' t' fin tab and t' front root section. Ahoy! T' hold t' fins while this glue set, ya bilge rat, I used Liquid Nails Perfect Glue, arrr, Type 1 on t' aft root section. Avast, me proud beauty! This sets fast and t' fins were good t' go. Avast! Blimey! There is a markin' guide for t' top fins, and these were attached with carpenter's glue. Ahoy! Avast! After t' rear fins set, me bucko, you position t' fin deployment guides and mark their position. A thin layer o' yellow glue is applied t' fins up t' t' mark, and t' guides are attached. Aye aye! These immediately warped like crazy, so a couple o' small clamps were required on each guide/fin/guide 'sandwich' as they set. Ahoy! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Afterwards, shiver me timbers, these still seemed flimsy, arrr, so I added a small strip o' scrap balsa betwixt each pair at their roots.

T' final steps prior t' finishin' was t' launch lug and Fill ' Finish fillets. Avast! I didn't' glue t' top tube t' t' transition or t' cone until finishin' was complete. Aye aye! When they were connected, shiver me timbers, I again used black CA.

After finishing, ya bilge rat, me hearties, all that was left be tyin' t' elastic cord t' the Keelhaul®©™® leader in t' body tube and t' Keelhaul®©™® loop on t' transition. I stashed t' cute that be provided and will use a 12" nylon chute.

Overall, I give this build a 3 1/2. Well, blow me down! Begad! It all went together easily with the exception o' t' fin deployment guides, matey, which should have been made o' thicker material. Begad! T' dimensionin' o' t' fin slots on t' tail cone also wasn't good. Luckily any 'slop' is hidden by those guides. Blimey! Ahoy! One thin' that stood out t' me was t' quality o' t' nose cone - it is completely seamless. Avast!

Finishing:
I started with fill-n-finish on t' fins and tubes before assembly. Ahoy! I found the spirals on t' BT-55 t' be shallow, but t' ones on t' top BT-20 were deeper, and required some filler. Ahoy! After assembly, shiver me timbers, I shot several coats o' white primer, sandin' and fillin' in between. Aye aye!

T' instructions say t' use olive drab and red spray paint, matey, arrr, matey, a silver paint pen, arrr, me hearties, and t' follow t' paint scheme on t' cover. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! T' cover picture shows the fin section, top fins and nose cone t' be olive drab, me bucko, and top BT-20 t' be more of a tan then red. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! I used Testors' spray for t' olive drab sections. Avast! In the photos on t' link I presented in t' intro, t' top tube seems t' be somewhat of a rust colored red. Avast, me proud beauty! I decided t' use red paint, arrr, which did get toned down as it be overlaid over t' olive drab. Begad! I tested some Krylon red on a piece of wood, ya bilge rat, me hearties, and it seemed t' be OK. However, me hearties, some bubbles formed when I used it over the Testor's paint on t' model. Ahoy! Begad! Maybe t' base coat was thicker on t' model. After t' first red coat dried, shiver me timbers, I sanded t' bubbles and re-coated it. Aye aye! This time it covered just fine.

There are silver bands shown at t' base o' t' BT-55 and BT-20 tubes. Instead o' silver paint, I used some chrome Trim Monokote for these stripes. Finally, me hearties, arrr, I applied t' peel and stick decals.

Overall, t' finishin' was fairly typical, however I found t' separation in t' side plates where they extend ahead o' t' main fins made sprayin' a little more difficult than usual. Avast! I give it a finishin' ratin' o' 4.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
I decided t' submit this partial review since I missed t' November launches and may nay be on t' field until spring. I'll provide an update at that time.

Summary:
I saw me first 'bunker buster' rocket over a year ago and have really wanted to build somethin' similar. Well, blow me down! Begad! When I saw this model, ya bilge rat, arrr, I knew that it would satisfy my cravings.

T' model be nay a difficult build, ya bilge rat, and I think a skill level 2 ratin' is about right. Blimey! I liked t' plastic parts, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, arrr, especially t' nose cone, matey, and think the thru-the-wall fin attachment is great. Aye aye! However, t' fit o' t' fins be poor and t' balsa used for t' fin protectors was flimsy. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! As with t' Cluster Bomb BLU-97B that I just built, it appears that Estes needs t' pay more attention to quality control. Avast, me proud beauty! Still, shiver me timbers, t' rocket was fun t' build and looks *very* cool. Arrr!