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

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

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

T' instructions don't mention it, me hearties, but I attempted some hand-tossed glide tests prior t' flight. Aye aye! Blimey! Hmmm. . Aye aye! . it glides ok, but flies and lands in a rather nose-down attitude. Ahoy! Arrr! Blimey! Nose-down enough that t' balsa nose cone hits before the front edge o' t' canard. Aye aye! Blimey! Perhaps a small amount o' weight in t' aft might help. Ahoy! Blimey! 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. More hand-toss glide tests. Hmmm. . . Aye aye! Blimey! a slightly better glide attitude and landing, arrr, but still noticeably nose-down, me bucko, and thar was no discernible arc to t' left (so that it will glide in circles). Begad! 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! Blimey! After a couple more throws, arrr, shiver me timbers, 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. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Time for some real flight tests.

It was a pretty nice day for launchin' rockets. Ahoy! Avast! Moderately windy, but not too bad. I was anxious t' try out t' CiCi, so it was first in line. Avast, me proud beauty! I figured the light weight o' t' rocket, me hearties, combined with t' moderate wind and t' fact that this was t' maiden flight, dictated usin' an A8-3. Blimey! Ya scallywag!

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

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

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

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

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

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

I'll probably repair t' CiCi again when I get a chance. Ahoy! Avast! If you're looking to buy your first boost glider, me hearties, I'd have t' recommend t' Edmond's Aerospace Deltie. Begad! 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! Avast, me proud beauty!