Brief:
A single-staged D-powered scale representation of the Space Transportation Corporation's entry in the competition for the Ansari X-Prize.

Construction:
The rocket kit consisted of a 24mm motor mount tube, a motor block ring, a motor retainer hook, a thick stage coupler-like hook retainer ring, six tank tubes, a large main body tube, a truly massive blow molded plastic nose cone, a set of six plastic fins, a plastic fin canister, a plastic bulkhead, an assembled plastic 18" parachute, a set of six plastic nozzles, a big die-cut cardstock centering ring, a sheet of pressure sensitive decals, and a 30" x 1/4" rubber shock cord. I bought the kit at Hobby Lobby in Killeen, Texas. All the parts were included in the kit--no broken ones were found.

Estes sent an update sheet with the instructions to replace the first three steps in the instruction sheet. It would not have gone together at all well if the original instructions had been followed. This rocket is as solidly built as any Estes product I have ever seen. The temptation to go back and get another one and build it for "E"-size motors is significant...

It was easy and quick to build. I started it at 8am and finished it except for paint by ten! I added an 18" length of 1/8" round elastic cord to the existing rubber band.

PROs: solid plastic parts, Estes on the ball with instruction update.

CONs: typical too short length of shock cord.

Finishing:
Rubicon has a slightly complicated multicolor paint scheme, but it's not really that bad. Lines between colors match up neatly with lines between parts. This model is well thought out to be fairly easy to paint too. I did most of mine with a brush and Testor's acrylics. I felt that the tank tubes were pictured as black and the nose cone and fins were pictured as red, so my paint scheme is not exactly as described.

I also prefer waterslide decals to the stickers Estes is using these days, as the waterslide decals can be positioned more easily than stickers with less risk of bubbles.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
The Rubicon's recommended motors are the D12-3 and D12-5. I flew it on D12-3s.

It was easy to prepare for flight. Lots of parachute space in that 3.21" diameter main body tube! I stuffed four squares of Estes wadding down the motor mount tube and laid two more on top of it. The typical Estes motor retainer hook was the method used on the Rubicon.

If I had been a little more inclined to make minor modifications, I would have installed the shock cord differently. It seems to me that drilling two 1/4" holes in the uppermost centering ring and tying the cord there would result in a better setup than the usual paper mount.

Recovery:
Estes should make 20" parachutes. This rocket falls into the slot of too heavy for an 18" chute and not heavy enough for a 24" one. It is fortunately sturdy enough to land under an 18" chute and take no damage, even on concrete!

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary:
Another well-done X-Prize contender.

PROs: solid construction, excellent plastic parts, a headline-grabbing subject.

CONs: none worth mentioning.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5