Brief:
The X-Ray is an easy-to-build 'bug-lofter' for 13mm (mini) motors. It's essentially an Estes Gnome with a clear plastic payload section, and it shares the easy building and flying characteristics of that popular rocket. Like the Gnome, the main body tube is a minimum-diameter 13mm/BT5, but the upper, payload section is wider; the equivalent of an 18mm/BT20 tube. A plastic transition section handles the 18mm to 13mm connection. The rocket requires no painting or other finishing except application of decals.

Construction:
This kit has fewer parts than most rockets and none are especially tricky. There is no balsa in the kit, just pink plastic for the nose cone, fin unit (on piece with 4 fins) and upper launch-lug (the lower lug is built into the fin unit), a grey plastic transition section, a paper main body tube (bt5) in black, and the clear payload tube. A mini engine clip, shock cord and streamer complete the kit.

Construction is easy and quick. As the body tube is also the engine tube, the motor clip is mounted externally. The top of the clip slips into a small slit in the tube and the fin can is glued over the top of the clip, securing it. The shock cord mounts through a similar slit in the top of the tube and is secured by the upper launch lug.

The nose, payload tube and transition section are friction fit, so that the payload section can be opened. We needed a turn of masking tape, as the instructions suggested, to get a snug fit. The shock cord ties to the bottom of the transition section, and you're ready to apply the stick-on decals.

The only thing remotely 'tricky' is the securing of the shock cord to the body tube and lining up the lugs, and neither should cause problems even for young builders.

PRO's: Fast and easy to build right. Your young rocket scientist is going to get a result he's happy with (which is to say it will look just like the picture on the box and he gets to fly it today!)

Con's: If you want a challenge or a chance to develop building skills you won't find it with this kit.

Finishing:
Put on the decals. I can't imagine what else you could do, really.

I'm going to rate it a 4 just because there is so little to build. Its really as close to RTF as you can get and still call it a kit. If that's what you want then it's a perfect 5!

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
We've flown it on the A3-4 only. Its the perfect motor for this bird. RockSim puts the apogee at 450 ft. with A impulse, and 215 ft. with 1/2 A. I don't think we're getting all of 450 ft with ours, but we still get nice satisfying flights.

I believe (can't really remember...) that I replaced the stock shock cord with a longer Estes 1/8 elastic; I wanted to reduce the load on the cord and the payload section friction joints. Getting wadding, the cord and the streamer into the 13mm body tube is a tight fit, which may have contributed to the one problem we have experienced with the X-Ray.

The only weakness in the construction concerns the motor clip mount through the BT-5 body tube. After several flights I noticed that the clip had been forced back by ejection charge, and had torn the slit into a small "window". I should be able to fix it, but the clip, which is also the motor block, seems like the weak point. That small slit through the tube is not enough to restrain it.

Recovery:
Recovery is quick with the streamer, and the fins can take the landings with ease. Very little drift. The biggest risk, I believe, aside from the usual shock cord breakage, is that the friction fit of the nosecone or transition section will fail at separation and parts will be lost. We have not experienced such a problem, but I'm careful to get a snug fit.

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:
It's a kid's rocket and it does that job quite well. You can buy it, build it, and fly the whole pack of A3's in a day. The biggest disappointment my son felt was the difficulty he had securing 'passengers' to ride in the payload section. The package shows a 'stink beetle' (that's how he describes it) onboard the rocket, and he thought that was just ideal. Such beetles are hard to find just when you need 'em, however, and we were about to send up our third sample of clover when a flying ant landed on my wrist just as I was securing the nose cone. It seemed like he was voluteering for the flight so we scooped him up and sent him aloft. Afterwards my son got to the rocket first and opened the payload, but could not find our passenger. I think he made his exit as soon as the cone came off! All in all a nice little payloader for mini-engines and mini-rocketeers.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5