Brief
54mm minimum diameter high performance rocket.

Construction
The instructions are complete and accurate, but are somewhat minimalist, and assume some HPR knowledge. This would not be good for a beginner.

The tubes are LOC-style, and the kit includes a 54mm to 38mm adaptor kit. I added an adaptor for 29mm motors. Body tubes are 54mm LOC style heavy duty motor mount tube. There are two airframe tubes which are joined by a coupler. The shock cord mount is first tied to this coupler. The included sleeved Kevlar® shock cord mount is nice and can survive any stress you might subject it to. The shock cord is 9 feet of 9/16th inch elastic. This is attached to a screw eye on the bulkhead plate of the payload section. The payload section has about 9" of usable space.

The fins are pre-cut (thankfully) G-10 fiberglass. A nice touch is the included altimeter mounting kit and wiring harness. It is designed for use with the Adept altimeters. I drilled new holes to fit a Missile Works RRC2 altimeter, and didn't need the wiring harness, but did use the pre-cut foam blocks that came with it. Construction is fairly simple, with basic HPR skills needed.

I mounted the fins as per the "optional" method which is to slot half way through the body tube. A little more work, but a very solid way to do surface mount fins. This technique makes for very strong surface mounted fins. It is achieved by carefully cutting through a couple of layers of paper at a time and peeling them out of the slits.

The nose cone is LOC-style heavy-duty plastic, and is attached to the payload section with three screws. The holes for the screws are pre-drilled in the nose cone and payload section tube. The holes in the payload section tube are already "counter-sunk" so that the screws are flush with the tube surface.

Epoxy was used throughout for assembly. I used thin CA to reinforce the tube ends and the vent holes in the airframe.

The kit includes a nylon parachute, a 3/4" heavy elastic shock cord (replaced later - see below), and a heavy LOC style launch lug for 7/16" rods.

Finishing
Finishing was as expected for LOC-style tubing. A bit of work to fill the spirals, and a little bit of sanding to roughen up the G-10, and a bit more work to clean up the excessive mold lines on the nose cone, then primer, sand, and paint. I used automotive paints and had very good results. I primed and sanded three coats of store-brand automotive sanding primer, then used midnight blue metalflake for the base coats (again store-brand). My wife then supervised the application of the handprints by my kids with fluorescent acrylics, then I applied several coats of clear over that to protect it all.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight
Motors Used: G80, H128, H220, H115, H142, H300, I160, J125.

This has been a great flyer on G through J motors, although the J125 is probably the limit without fiberglassing it. On the J125 it went to 15,500 feet. On the H's you get high flights, but can still see it in the clear skies out here. My favorite motors for this rocket are the Vulcan H300 ("rippin" flights) and the Aerotech J125 (bye!).

Recovery
This is my "highest mileage" HPR rocket - it can be flown at non-waivered launches on "F", "G" or small "H" motors, then launched to incredible altitudes when your waiver allows. I drilled small holes in the base of the fins to use as anchors to wire in reload cases. The masking tape method is adequate for smaller single use motors. I replaced the stock (and by then well used) elastic shock cord with 20 feet of 5/8" tubular nylon for the "J" flights. The final prep'ed liftoff weight was still under 5 pounds, including the Missile Works altimeter and (mostly) the J125 motor. I flew this configuration at LDRS at the Bonneville Salt Flats - don't try this at home without modifying this for drogue/main dual recovery and installing some form of tracking. You *will* lose it. This disappeared while still under thrust in clear blue skies. We recovered it two miles away on the salt.

Recovery on F through H flights is fine as it comes. Even "I" motors can send this out of sight. I would recommend modifying this for drogue/main 2-stage recovery for any "I" or greater flights. Well built, this will survive a J350 or J125, but anything more would need to be fiberglassed. Then you could lose it on a "K"...

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary
Pros: versatile, high performance
Cons: none

Most fun for the money HPR kit available.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5