Brief
This is a scale model of the swedish air to air missile, the SAAB 372. Like other air to air missiles, it has two sets of four fins with the forward four being larger and forward swept. Yet, the model is flown single staged. It flies on Aerotech 24mm reloadable F24's and Estes D12's and recovers with a bright blue mylar chute.

Construction
The kit was packaged in a large clear bag with all the parts there and none damaged despite having been mailed to me. The parts were packed with economy of space in mind, as parts were inside of parts. Initially, it seemed to be a daunting project, as there are many parts and the balsa wood for the fins is uncut. But for those who like a challenge, this is fun.

The instructions are illustrated and are three double sided pages of pretty clear stuff, but I recommend that you read it before starting so you can account for all the parts and visualize what goes where. This is coming from a high power modeler who has built many kits with precut hardwood fins, preslotted tubes, and lots of epoxy.

Well, here, the manufacturer does not recommend epoxy. He did not say why, but referred to it as a heavy glue. I have successfully used it to strengthen balsa fins, but went by his recommendation of CA instead, to see how the kit works as instructed.

There are templates for the fins and for the tail. I would have been better pleased with balsa for the tail rather than a cone of paper, but maybe weight was to be minimized in the model. I kept wanting to strengthen this tail even more than by the glue recommended, though.

The only real gotchas I can see would be to align the grain of the balsa with the fin leading edge to maximize strength. Also, the front wing-fins are mounted atop wooden standoffs, an interesting design. The chute needs to be assembled, but came precut. All I needed to do was attach the shroud lines via paper reinforcements and attach the swivel. The body tube is spiral wound paper and the nose cone is lightweight hollow plastic. The chute is thin metallic mylar. The centering rings are extra thick cardboard. An extra centering ring is supplied to separate out a parachute compartment, but this is not intended to take the place of wadding. The finished model is light but surprisingly sturdy. I can pick it up by a fin and not harm it.

Finishing
The model was spray painted with white gloss acrylic paint and a clear gloss protection was applied over this to smoothen it and make it shiny. No decals were provided, so I got letters from the local hobby store and red/orange self adhesive craft paper to apply the name and the red stripe shown in the picture provided. The model looks sharp. It's also unlike most of my fleet, being a scale model.

Construction Rating: 3 ½ out of 5

Flight
A single D12 or an F24 is recommended, with a delay of 7. So far I test flew it with D12's. It was a windy day, so I elected to wait later on the F24. The model is easy to prep, as the parachute compartment ring holds the wadding up and helps protect the chute. Use extra wadding, because mylar melts easily. The motor is retained both aft and forward by a hook. It flew straight, but lateraled slightly due to the wind, but it was pretty nonetheless.

Recovery
Recovery was about right and nothing broke or burned. I'm glad I strengthened the fins because their large size lends them to easy breakage. The chute was easy to assemble. I installed the shock cord mount as instructed, with a folded paper mount inside the body tube, but my inclination would be to install it on the centering ring in the parachute compartment. Another habit from high power.

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary
A challenge, but worth it because it looks nice. Be patient and don't rush. It flew well despite windy conditions and the chute opened nicely. Do reinforce the fins as recommended. And do use wadding. This inspired me to make larger scale models. Give this a try.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5

* Please see this SPECIAL NOTE posted by Chuck Barndt, President of The Launch Pad, on RMR