Brief:
Definitely not your typical 3-fin and nose cone rocket, the Battle Axe is an interesting design that's fun to build and a surprisingly good flyer.

Construction:
Parts arrived in good shape packed in a sealed plastic bag. The list includes:

• Basswood fins (precut, a huge plus given their curved design)
• Balsa nose cone
• BT-50 body tube
• 18mm motor mount kit
• Mylar chute (with Kevlar shroud lines and swivel)
• Waterslide decal

The instructions were very well written and easy to follow. They also included lots of color photos to help, which is a very nice touch for a kit in this skill level/price range.

Construction begins with a basic motor mount assembly consisting of an 18mm x 2.75" tube, a couple of 2050 centering rings, and a metal motor hook. This is then glued into the BT-50 tube.

Next comes marking the body tube (with the included wrap-around template) and attaching the fins. These fins are fairly heavy-duty basswood and since they have a relatively small bonding surface, it's important to get a good glue joint. I scuffed the body tube first to remove the waxy shine, which establishes a better bonding surface. I then applied a very thin coat of yellow glue to both the tube and the root edge of the fins, allowing it to set for a minute. I then applied a fresh bead of glue to the root edges, and attached the fins one by one. After they set, I followed up with 2 rounds of fillets.

This kit includes a pair of launch lugs which are attached to the body tube at the bottom and near the middle, just above the CG.

The nose cone gets a screw eye for the shock cord attachment. The shock cord is a combination of Kevlar anchor and elastic cord. While I liked the combo, I was not wild about the wimpy attachment--you get about 8" of Kevlar® to make a loop and attach to the inside of the tube with a paper mount. That's not much better than the basic Estes tri-fold, and I would have preferred a longer cord anchored to the motor mount.

Finishing:
With the fins being basswood, filling grains was not much work at all. I also filled the tube spirals with a couple coats of primer, sanded back down to bare tube.

The rocket itself was not too tough to paint. I put down a foundation of two coats of gray primer, followed by two coats of gloss black. After allowing a couple of days to cure, I then masked off the tube and painted the fins a nice silver, completing the "blade" look.

The kit also includes a nice set of Tango Papa waterslide decals, which were a little thin and wanted to wrinkle, but overall were fine and definitely added to the final appearance.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
For the first flight, I went straight to the max C6-5, flying on a clear day with winds hanging around 4-6 mph. The Battle Axe angled slightly into the wind and climbed steadily. It's a fairly high drag rocket, but still surprised most observers with a high flight.

Recovery:
The Rockethead heavy-duty Mylar chutes are a very nice feature. I've never seen one fail. Ejection was right at apogee, and the Rockethead pre-assembled Mylar chute brought it safely back to earth.

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:
This one draws lots of cool reactions from the kids and is a nice break from the ordinary. With precut fins, and a simple 2-color paint job, I'd rate it around a skill level 2 kit. It's certainly going to be one of the more unusual kits in most fleets.

Side by side with the Merlin Missiles Sword, you could engage in some interesting medieval air battles.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5