Brief:
This kit is a fantasy sport scale plane called The Maverick by Sunward Model Aerospace. It is single stage and uses an 18" parachute for recovery.

Construction:

The kit came with:

• 2 sheets of laser-cut balsa fins
• 1 paper printed with duct pattern and wing reenforcement tabs
• Body Tube
• 18" plastic parachute
• 18mm motor tube w/thrust & centering rings
• Elastic shock cord
• Plastic nose cone
• Launch lug
• Self stick decals

There are many things that I really liked about the design of this rocket and a few that were sub-standard. On the plus side, I'll describe the fin installation. There is a body wrap that gets applied to make the jet intakes. The top of the wrap provides a platform on which to glue the large wings. This provides for an incredible amount of surface area and durability. There are also tabs that overlap the wings and secure them to the body tube. This combination is better than even through the body attachment. The intakes also provide a measure of stability to the rocket in flight. The tail fin is attached similarly to the wings by using two tabs that are first glued to the sides of the fin and then to the body tube.

As for the down side, the motor retention is sub par. The manufacturer provides a hook that screws into the centering ring of the motor mount. This is probably the worst design I have seen for motor retention. This problem was solved properly for model rockets years ago. If they didn't want to provide an Estes style motor hook, they should have recommended friction retention. I wouldn't feel comfortable flying with it so I replaced it with an Estes motor hook. Lastly they provide an old Estes style elastic shock cord. These don't tend to age very well and I replaced it as well.

Overall, construction of this level 3 kit was smooth and straight forward. The few minor nits I have are far outwieghed by the excellent design of this kit.

Finishing:

The drawback of the tabs is encountered when trying to finish the model. Quite a bit of filling is necessary to make the model look good. This is not hard, just time consuming.

Once I finished with filling, I primed and painted. The manufacturer recommends sanding the nose cone to make sure that the paint will adhere properly. The kit artwork show a camo paint scheme. I am not that ambitious and so chose a standard military gray.

The self stick decals made completion a breeze. I finished up with clear coat.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight and Recovery:
Flights on C's were excellent. The rocket lept off the pad and flew straight as an arrow. The 18" parachute was more than adequate for a damage free recovery. This rocket should fly problem free for years.

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary:
Overall, I love this kit. It is durable and looks great on or off the launch pad.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5