Brief:
BT-50 storm research style sport rocket with 3 main fins and 3 canards, plastic nose cone, plastic parachute, and extreme waterslide decal coverage.

Construction:
BT-50, plastic nose cone, 6 surface mount balsa fins, thick fiber board centering rings, BT-20 motor tube, steel clip, engine block, full wraparound clip retainer, two sheets of waterslide decals, plastic parachute, adhesive reinforcement rings, shroud line, swivel, and elastic shock cord.

Standard hang tag packaging with color face card. Received kit from Apogee, quick delivery, no damage to kit. Instructions are easy to follow, illustrations are OK. Simple, quick assembly. Everything fits. Root edges weren't quite straight, so they had to be sanded. Good fin material, not too thick or thin. Assembled with Elmer's glue.

Finishing:
I used EMRR fin tip #29: It's like making slots, only you lightly cut along the lines (the thickness of the fin) only cutting the first layer off. Then peel off that first layer. Then glue as usual.

I finished with one coat of Elmer's Wood Filler on fins, two coats of high solids automotive primer with sanding, then white single stage automotive paint with one coat of black rattle can enamel for the nose cone. It's a nicely proportioned model that looks great, but I hesitated to cover it all up with decals. Finishing is extremely simple with this model because even though it looks complex, the full-body decals do most of the work.

The decals are a challenge to get on without wrinkles. It's best to cut them into smaller pieces rather than try to put them on large. I prefer waterslide decals normally, but with full body wraps, self adhesive stickers would be better.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
Motors clip in for easy prep. Requires wadding. Fine flights on A8-3 and A6-4 motors. Would probably fly OK on 1/2A and A10 motors with a 13mm adapter. Apogee lists altitudes of almost 1800 feet with a Medalist D10-7, and fortunately that's a single use motor because I don't think you'd ever see it again.

Recovery:
Shock cord is affixed with a tri-fold paper mount. Everything worked fine. Recovery velocity is appropriate, with no damage on any flights. Parachute is a thicker material than any other vendor I've seen. Heavier but probably less prone to burn damage. Provided swivel and reinforcement rings are a pleasant surprise.

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:
PROs: Lightweight, high-performance, nice looking design. Straightforward build. Interesting research project look. Some nice touches with deluxe materials.

CONs: Full-body decals tough to apply without wrinkles.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5