This kit is my first high power capable kit. Instructions are minimal, so a person needs to have experience building rockets before tackling this build. Epoxy was a little more involved that wood glue - you need adequate ventilation and need to use gloves to keep it off your fingers. There are some instructive articles on the web on how to make smooth epoxy fillets for the fins which I found helpful. Quality of components is excellent. My local rocketry club experts recommend I replace the elastic shock cord with tubular nylon which I plan to do. My first launch was on an Estes F50-6T motor, and the rocket flew beautifully. Nice, fast flight, very straight. Deployment was easy to see and film at about 800 feet. A blue sky with high, wispy clouds made the red rocket and parachute really pop. Very light winds allowed the recovery to occur within about 300ft of the launch pad. I’m looking forward to more launches with this rocket using more power motors (G, H, and I). G and larger motors will only be attempted at club launches as the altitude for the Vulcanite gets up there in a hurry. You can launch this with a 38mm J motor, but would need to have high end binoculars and calm winds and a large field if you plan to launch single deployment. Otherwise, modify the design for dual deployment for flights over 1 mile.

This kit is my first high power capable kit. Instructions are minimal, so a person needs to have experience building rockets before tackling this build. Epoxy was a little more involved that wood glue - you need adequate ventilation and need to use gloves to keep it off your fingers. There are some instructive articles on the web on how to make smooth epoxy fillets for the fins which I found helpful. Quality of components is excellent. My local rocketry club experts recommend I replace the elastic shock cord with tubular nylon which I plan to do. My first launch was on an Estes F50-6T motor, and the rocket flew beautifully. Nice, fast flight, very straight. Deployment was easy to see and film at about 800 feet. A blue sky with high, wispy clouds made the red rocket and parachute really pop. Very light winds allowed the recovery to occur within about 300ft of the launch pad. I’m looking forward to more launches with this rocket using more power motors (G, H, and I). G and larger motors will only be attempted at club launches as the altitude for the Vulcanite gets up there in a hurry. You can launch this with a 38mm J motor, but would need to have high end binoculars and calm winds and a large field if you plan to launch single deployment. Otherwise, modify the design for dual deployment for flights over 1 mile.

We bought this as our first high-power rocket. It is an amazing value. All of the pieces, such as the plywood fins, are very sturdy. We built this with epoxy, after having used CA glue and wood glue for prior rockets. Epoxy is definitely harder to work with, but makes the rocket bullet-proof. We recommend epoxy, especially if you plan to fly this rocket a lot and/or with higher-power engines. The diameter of this rocket would require quite a *lot* of standard recovery wadding, so instead, we've been using attic insulation (AKA dog barf), supplied by our local rocketry club. This rocket supports a tremendous range of engines. It can be used with as small as an F35-5 (24/60). And can be used with as large as an I, and possibly even a J engine, if built very well. Note that we have successfully used nested adapters: putting a 24mm engine, in a 29-24 adapter, inside a 38-29 adapter, inside the rocket. This rocket is a little bit of a challenge to build, such as when the instructions have you drip epoxy deep inside the rocket from a long distance. Also, the slots for the fins were a little longer than the fins themselves, leaving small gaps, which we filled with epoxy, which probably made the rocket even stronger. We love this rocket, and recommend it highly. It is a great value.