The Aerospace Specialty Products (ASP) 18mm WAC-Corporal is a "fun scale" model of the United States first sounding rocket. It is 15.75" long when complete, uses 18mm motors, and is approximately 1/12th scale. The kit I built represents the sustainer stage of the rocket. Since I purchased my kit ASP has introduced kits that include the booster section as well.

Construction: 5 points

The WAC-Corporal Kit comes in the thoroughly familiar clear plastic bag. It arrived in a express postage box and there was no damage to any of the components. There were no missing components in the kit. The parts are the standard paper body tube and motor mount, but ASP uses balsa for the fins, and nose cone. The parachute is mylar with an included swivel snap, a nice touch.

The instructions are on three double sided 8.5" x 11" sheets of paper. There are adequate illustrations for the unique steps, but it is not profusely illustrated like Estes instructions. Apparently the people at ASP expect you to be able to read :). The Instructions are in a logical order with check boxes beside the step numbers so you can keep track of your progress.

The parachute comes in its own clear plastic bag, and has it's own instructions. You will be cutting your own fins and there is a template for that purpose included that is made from heavy paper. There are also templates in the instructions for fin alignment and for shaping the balsa stick into the tunnel for the side of the rocket.

The kit is rated by ASP as beginner/intermediate. I agree. This is not the first kit you would want to build. It is not difficult to build, but to produce a nice looking scale model, you must be past the beginner-slap-them-together stage. Care must be taken with the balsa nose cone as it is conical, and the point is easy to sand into something else. I departed from the instructions and use epoxy to secure the washers to the nose cone and the screw eye. I feel that this is a much more secure way of installing the screw eye into balsa. The result is a solid rocket, but check the flight section later for some tips.

There are no special requirements for finishing. The instructions refer to the sanding sealer's instructions for finishing, as you will want a very smooth finish for this model. There is a painting guide included that included dimensions to make masking easier. Also included in the instructions is a reference to Peter Alway's "Rockets of the world: A Modelers Guide" from Saturn press for more information on the WAC- Corporal. There are no decals included in this kit as there is no need for them

Flight/Recovery Rating: 4 points

The shock cord is a combination of Kevlar® thread and elastic that are tied together. The Kevlar® portion is tied to the motor mount and the elastic is tied to the nose cone. They are tied together using a knot that is illustrated in the instructions. The recommended motors are: A8-3, B6-4, B8-5, C6-5, and C6-7. The motor retention method is friction fit, however you could add metal hook, but it would spoil the looks of the rocket on display.

Flight preparation follows standard rocket procedure, make sure that the wadding is below the Kevlar® shock cord and that the elastic is safely above your wadding. I have flown the model on three motors. The first flight was on an A8-3. The rocket flew very straight and stable, and the parachute lowered the rocket safely with a minimum of drift.

The next flight was using a B6-4. The rocket flew quite a bit higher than with the A motor, but it was still recovered safely.

The third flight was using a C6-5. The rocket took off very fast and climbed out of sight. Fortunately I had several spotters, and we tracked the parachute, which was the largest object at that time. As the parachute returned I found that the body was not attached. Subsequent searching of the field yielded the body. The damage to the rocket was a zippered body tube (about 1"), cut elastic shock cord, a shroud line ripped from the parachute, and a section of parachute ripped from the parachute and dangling from the a second shroud line. Since the rocket was too high for anyone to see what happened, the evidence suggests that the parachute was deployed while the rocket was still ascending at a high rate of speed. This is backed by the trackers that did not see the rocket reach apogee and head back to earth before the deployment. As a result of this, I do not suggest the C6-5 motor a all, the longer delay of the C6-7 would be more appropriate for this model. I even suspect the delay on the B6-4 may be too short. Try this model with upper stage motors, they might work better. Also the loop that the elastic is tied to the Kevlar® shock cord may need some more reinforcing as it appeared that the Kevlar® cut through the elastic. With the proper motor this rocket could possibly be a scale altitude contender.

Overall Rating: 4 ½ points

Everything considered this is an excellent rocket for the modeler that will take the extra time to turn this kit into a beauty. I particularly like the use of balsa for the fins and nose cone. The model is durable and with the right selection of motors, it will provide you many spectacular flights, and be a great model for display as well.