Photo courtesy of Binder Designs

Brief:
The Binder Design Jaguar is a single-stage, level one rocket, with a sleek, skinny appearance. It's sport features make it very versatile on the field, as it can be altered to complete a variety of different tasks. A 30. parachute handles recovery.

Construction:
The components included in the kit are all parts to complete the basic rocket, along with detailed instructions and a parachute. The airframe is made of phenolic tubing, fins of 1/8" Ply, Plastic PML-Style NC, and birch centering rings with a 38mm mount. Recovery parts include all materials used for a motor-ejection recovery, with additional instructions for electronic recovery as well. The shock cord is elastic banded Kevlar material, however not as thick. The rocket measures 80 inches in height, (composed of three separate coupled tubes) and 3.0" diameter.

Instructions: The diagrams included in this kit are very well done. The detailed instructions made by Binder Design show how to make the rocket different ways to handle different types of flight, (ie- Different motor mount sizes and electronics recovery) Large black and white diagrams show each step in complete detail, so there is no confusion as to how to finish a certain step.

Ease of Build: The Jaguar is a very easy kit to build, and construction wise would be a great kit for anyone to certify L1. The construction teaches the basics of making a high-power rocket, and for me was a nice change from Aerotech-class. Pros about the construction were the nice fit of all parts, and the rings being accurately cut to the motor mount tube, and the nose cone fitting nice and tight to the airframe. The couplers also fit well against the airframes, making this joining job a much easier task. The Gotcha to all of this is that the airframe is not pre-slotted for the fins, and that can mean disaster to the airframe if you do not have the right materials to complete a slotting task. After properly slotting the tubes (I used a Dremel.) the fins seem to align quite nicely. Once the motor mount is constructed and inserted into the airframe, and the fins are glassed and put in, an epoxy filler with fiberglass along the fin joints makes things very strong. (By the way,! make sure to throw a glass layer or two on the airframe) Unless you want to use electronics, that's about all there is to building this rocket except for the coupler section for the parachute, which is much like an inverted "Anti-Zipper" Design. However, zippering is possible, so be careful. (The rocket separates at the middle for ejection, not at the NC) I used 15-min. Mid-Set Epoxy on all the joints, and 30-min on the fins and fiberglass, creating a tall and sturdy rocket.

Finishing:
The nice thing about this rocket, is that there are no special finishing techniques you have to use to make it look nice. After properly sanding the airframe smooth, four to five coats of forest green spray paint gloss it smooth (After primer!), and it goes well with the large vinyl decal on the side of the rocket, which is included with the kit. On the scale, I give this kit a 4.5 out of 5, because I think it is more of a beginners high-power rocket, and requiring beginners to slot their own airframe can mean suicide. Other than that, the kit is perfect to build!

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
Flight: I don't remember what all the recommended motors for this rocket were, but I believe the rocket flies best on either a H78J, or a H-123W. (123W being the best of the two there) The first flight of this rocket was on a G-80, just to test things out, then a 38mm H-123W was used. The rocket flew great! A straight-as-an-arrow flight to 2000 feet. Recovery never fails with such a great motor, and the 30" chute brought the rocket down about one mile from the pad. The rocket sported a nice flame and lots of smoke, as it turned in flight

Recovery:
The recovery of the Jaguar could have been slightly better. As I stated earlier, the rocket drifted in a five mile-per-hour wind about one mile or so from the pad on each flight. Not a fun walk, considering the scenery of a cornfield. An altimeter on this rocket would probably make it perfect, as I used the KISS method and based my personal JAG on a motor charge. Never fails. 4 more great performance flights that day. What a great flier.

Flight Rating: 3 out of 5

Summary:
My overall thought of this rocket is, that it is great because it is reliable and can be used for many different things. Cameras, electronics, other payloads can be carried as the lightweight and sleek design make it a great field-performer as well. Also, the great range of motors that can be used is impressive as well, but going anything past an I might be a bad idea, it can still shred despite such a reliable performance.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5