Brief:
The Aerotech Mustang is a Sport model using a 1.9" body tube and is 32" in length. It has a four fin configuration and has been designed to handle motors from the E thru G range.

Construction:
Aerotech kits are like the Cadillac of model rockets and this one is no different. High quality components and rugged yet simple design are what you expect to see when purchasing one of these kits. Thick walled tube and through-the wall fin mounting are good indicators of a quality design. The model came in a colorful box which doubles as a rocket stand. Components included a 1.9" thick walled pre-slotted body tube, 29mm Motor mount with a 24mm adapter, Pre molded and tapered heavy duty plastic fins, fin inter-lok system, 16" nylon parachute, ogive nosecone, shock cord, motor retainer, buffer system and instructions. Component Rating: 5 of 5

The entire kit is assembled using medium CyA glue and construction began with building the motor mount. Fiber centering rings are placed over the motor mount ends and sandwich a fin-lok frame. The frame is really slick because it allows you to snap in the fins without having to worry about alignment. Also during this build, you install a VERY heavy duty motor retainer which resembles an Estes retainer on steroids! Once this system is assembled, you build the 24mm motor adapter as this model can fly on small 24mm RMS motors. Before inserting the mount in the tube, the buffer system is installed. They give you a chunk of wire mesh, similar to the copper coiled scotch-brite pads you can buy at the store for doing dishes. This is stretched out and inserted in the upper section of the motor mount, then a plastic cap with air slots is glued to the top of the motor tube. The purpose of the coiled material is that it buffers and absorbs the heat from the ejection charge, so no wadding is needed. Simply load the parachute and go; very nice touch! An "eye" hook is then screwed into this cap and the shock cord is tied to the hook. Once all this is prepared, the entire assembly is glued into the body tube. Make sure that your Fin-loks are aligned with the through-the-wall fin slots on the body tube.

Some CyA is added to the bottom of each fin and in the fin-lok slots, then each fin is "snapped" in place. The parachute is attached to the 6 foot long shock cord and then tied to the nosecone. This kit, like all Aerotech kits, builds fast and can be assembled in no more than a few hours at the most. No modifications or fixes to poor design are necessary as the manufacturer has taken the guess work out of building. Instructions are top notch; just follow them and you will be fine.

The nosecone was sanded next to remove molding flash, which was minimal. 220 Grit paper was used on the nosecone during this process. Construction Rating: 5 of 5

Finishing:
Here is a hint with this model; fill the small spirals and primer the body tube BEFORE assembly and you will not have to deal with trying to sand around the fins. Make sure you sand the body tube down as it does have a glassine coat over it. I used 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper to take the "shiny" coat off so paint could adhere. Also, my spirals were so shallow that I simply used primer and sanding to fill them. Several coats of primer were applied to the tube and fins, then sanded with 400-600 wet/dry sandpaper.

Once assembled, White Testors Glossy paint was applied to the lower body tube, as I planned to follow the stock paint scheme. Something that worked well though was that I taped the upper tube so it could be painted later with the medium gray. Once the lower tube was painted with three coats of white, I removed the tape from the upper part of the tube and there was a definite "ridge" where the white paint stopped, which is what I wanted. The Testors paint does work well, as it is a bit thicker and flows together nicely.

The model was left to dry for a few days and then it was time to paint the upper body tube. I used some automobile 3M trim tape, excellent stuff to use for our hobby, and taped over the white paint even with the edge that had just been painted a dew days ago. The rest of the model was masked using masking tape and a garbage bag to cover the lower section from over-spray of the gray paint that was about to be applied. Testors medium gray glossy paint was then applied to the top portion of the body tube in three separate coats, then left to dry. When the masking was removed, the was NO RIDGE between the White and Gray paint where they met!!! This is what I was trying for and it worked out well. Once the paint has dried, the model looks like it's been plastic coated! I was pleased with the Testors paint as It was my first time using it for an entire model.

The nosecone was finished in Testors medium gray glossy and black satin Krylon was added to the tip. Decals are applied next and a large bowl of warm water with a few drops of detergent was used to dip the decals before application. This allows you to slide each decal around until it is positioned where you want it, then you can squeegee the remaining water out from underneath the decal when positioned. The final product turned out well and looks exactly like as advertised. Finish: 5 of 5

Construction Rating: 5 out of 5

Flight:
My rocket weighed in at 10.5 oz, which is right on the money for this model according to the manufacturer. Now here is the kicker. I have attended many launches and the Mustang always comes with me. Believe it or not though, I get so busy at the launches with HPR that I don't have time to prep this little beauty. I even planned at my last launch to drag race a friend of mine, Ken Parker with his Aerotech Cheetah, but we wound up never getting to it.

I did finally get to launch it; first load was a 24mm E18W-4. The motor lit instantly for a White Lightning and the Mustang soared to an altitude of around 1500 feet. It was a great launch; straight and true with the added bonus of the smoke and fire trail.

Recovery:
Parachute deployed at apogee and recovery was on. It settled down about 100 yards away without a mark. The heat buffer system for this rocket really worked well as the parachute did not have a mark on it. Three more flights occurred that day, one on another E18W, then two on 29mm RMS, an E16W and E23T. All four flights went well. This is one awesome kit!

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:
The Aerotech Mustang is a great kit and would make a nice entry level kit into mid-power rocketry. Yes, there are a few parts, but construction is very simple. Also, this was the first kit I ever assembled using CyA glue and the only bad part was it built too fast! If you want a top notch kit though, with quality components, all I can say is buy Aerotech & Their reputation is true to form!

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5