Brief:
PDF format video-book on CD-ROM for Macintosh and Windows computers.

Construction:
The package contains 1 CD-ROM.

As a kid, I built Skill Level 1, 2, and 3 rocket kits, but looking back I would not call myself a Skill Level 3 rocketeer. I could follow most of Estes instructions and usually produce a rocket that would fly reasonably well, but there were things I didn't understand, like sealing balsa or selecting the right engine, and skills I had never seen done by a skilled craftsman, like painting or aligning fins. My rockets looked and flew like they were built by a 10-year old.

When I returned to the hobby as an adult, I joined a club and began talking with more experienced rocketeers, gathering information on the internet, and reading Sport Rocketry. I quickly became aware of skills I hadn't known I was missing. I would hear or read about a new skill or technique, then go home and duplicate it through trial and error. My skills improved, but it was a long and difficult process.

Then Tim Van Milligan announced his Building Skill Level One Rocket Kits. I was excited about the idea. Here all the skills a beginning rocketeer would need were gathered in one place as done by a skilled craftsman and demonstrated on video so even the youngest rocketeer could master them quickly. Even if I already had the skills, this was something I had to support!

When I got the CD-ROM, it was even better than I'd expected. First there was an article listing the skills needed at each skill level from 1-5. Now I could see which skills I was missing. Then there were the videos. For example, I'd read endless descriptions of the proper consistency of Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish but on the video I could see it. Even though I'd already mastered all the skills shown in this video-book, some of Tim's techniques were different. Now I could try both techniques side by side and see which gave better results.

I emailed Tim and asked if he were planning a video-book for each skill level. He said he was but warned that it would take a long time to produce each one and he had several other projects in the works. Four years later, here is Building Skill Level Two Rocket Kits.

The format is the same with 28 movies demonstrating the skills listed for Skill Level 2 kits. This CD also includes printable templates for a fin alignment jig and a fin spacing guide.

Again, I had acquired many of the techniques since returning to the hobby seven years ago, but think how much more quickly I could have learned them if this video-book had been available at the time! And this time there were alternate ways of doing several jobs using handy, inexpensive tools. See the Apogee web site for the book's table of contents.

I found two minor technical snags but they were easily worked around. Clicking Movies 18A and 21 produced an error message that the file could not be found. Open the Linked Files folder, double-click on the file by that name and it plays fine.

The other problem was even smaller: If you stop a video that demonstrates a computer technique, you can't restart it or return to the text without quitting and restarting Acrobat Reader.

Summary:
If you are an experienced rocketeer looking to improve your skills, this video-book is money well spent. If you know someone new to the hobby, or who is introducing others to the hobby do him or her a favor: give or loan a copy of Building Skill Level 1 Model Rockets, and encourage him or her to acquire Building Skill Level 2 Rockets with his or her first skill level 2 kit!

Overall Rating: 5