The Bucky Jones Space Cadet is a
Sleek Blast from the Past.

Flash back with me, if you will, to a time when handsome, brave, wide shouldered, square jawed, homogenized white guys made the universe safe for all mankind. Heroes such as Captain Video, Flash Gordon, Tom Corbett and Buzz Corry came to the rescue every week, thrashing bad guys and thrilling youngsters across the land. From out of that Wonder Bread World we bring you Bucky Jones – Space Cadet! Yes, yet another champion of the stars. From the bulbous nose to its flashy fins and multiple exhaust tubes, Bucky Jones is Super Retro Sci-Fi through and through. Like all spaceships from that era he is gaudy, stylish, sleek and silly enough to give aerospace engineers apoplectic fits.

Get ready to spend a few days on this kit. The builder cuts those cool 'exhaust tubes' and the canted aft body tube using a hobby knife with a brand new, sharp blade. It's not hard, but it takes patience. We know a lot of you will want to get right to the flying part, and that's great; if you assemble it, do some sanding and filling, and then paint it, the kit will look spectacular and fly straight. Your Bucky Jones will impress the bobby socks off every other flyer on the field. Pemberton recommends building this way in the "destructions".

For our display rocket (see photo at right) I did all the sanding, filling and final paint of the exhaust unit, then did the final assembly. This results in a gorgeous rocket. When you sand and fill the exhaust tubes inside and out, the resulting showpiece leaves fellow fliers amazed. One of the guys we showed Bucky to at our last launch just said, "Beautiful. Where can I get one?"

It is actually an easy to build kit. For example, the destruction step you may spend the most time on is cutting the exhaust tubes and canted body, and doing the prep work for painting. The tube cutting destructions are very clear. You'll find yourself flying this model after just a couple days of cool build time.

Most of the motors listed above are reloads, which cost less per flight than single-use motors. With altitudes depending on which F, G, or H motor you use, you have great options for altitude, loudness, amount of smoke, and color of flame.

I cannot think of a better kit to do a Level 1 Certification with, because you get officially welcomed into the exclusive realm of high-power rocketeers, but you do it with style. When you do your Level 1 Certification with the Bucky Jones, you get to step up to an H motor; you might want to bring binoculars, though, because Bucky flies to extremely high altitudes on an H.

I love this kit! It's big, sleek, fun, and no one will ever mistake it for some other lesser kit. It flies perfectly, too. You might expect it not to fly straight up, with the asymmetry in the fins, but it goes bullet-straight. The horizontal recovery rigging works great, too.

Pemberton does creative things with the visual impact of this kit that most rocket companies won't even consider. The swept fins are so radical they put this kit in another league altogether from the standard mid-power kit. The typical kit designer would give up on them before even drawing them because, typically, fins this long with this many curves are weak and break easily upon landing. Pemtec solves this problem by using extremely strong fin material, and then setting up the recovery system so the rocket comes down horizontally on a harness, eliminating even the possibility of damaging the fins.

An interesting build step is the addition of 2-part expanding foam inside the body where the fin tabs go. We highly recommend using foam when building Bucky. It's a lightweight engineering solution to a heavyweight problem: how to provide enough structure to keep those cool fins attached. 2-part foam is a standard build technique in high power rocketry, and this is the perfect kit to try it on for the first time.

Some construction requires epoxy adhesive. This can be messy and cause an allergic reaction in some people. Adult supervision and wearing rubber gloves is recommended when working with epoxy.

The Bucky Jones is a big rocket that uses heavy wall tubes. It also has substantial interior lead and epoxy nose weigh to provide added stability. While the tubes and weight don't make the rocket any harder to assemble, extra safety precautions are required when a rocket this big is flown. Patience and acquired flying skills to know when and where NOT to fly are just as important as quality construction techniques.

Exhaust Tubes - There are two BT-20 tubes you cut into the funky, retro 'exhaust tubes'.

For extreme builders (like me), these can be sanded and prepped inside and out, painted with final paint, then assembled for an incredibly good looking back end.

Plywood Centering Rings - These 1/4" thick 5-ply centering rings are a thing of beauty. They provide plenty of heft for G and H motors and they fit perfectly, so they don't need sanding. The motor tube is 29mm, so you are set up to fly high from the get-go.

Bucky has a unique wire motor retainer that works great with the sleek exhaust tubes.

Tools needed to assemble this rocket kit:

• Pencil
• Ruler
• Masking Tape
• Hobby Knife
• Dremel tool
• Finishing Supplies like paint and sandpaper.
• Wood Glue or 5-Minute Epoxy

To Launch This Rocket Kit, You'll Also Need:

• Rocket Motors (Not included with this kit - See the motor selection above)
• Launch Pad (see below for suggestions) & Launch Controller (Not included with this kit)
• Recovery Wadding - Disposable | Reusable

Q. What launch pad should I use to launch this rocket kit?

A. Since this is a big rocket, you'll need very stable launch pad. We offer the Aerotech Mantis Launch Pad and the Estes Porta Pad-E.

Q. What launch controller can I use to ignite the motors?

A. We offer two different controllers that can be used for mid and high-power size rockets. The Aerotech Interlock and the Pratt Hobbies GO-BOX Controller.

Q. Where can I get the 2-part foam for building the fin can?

A. We recommend talking with local rocketeers in your area to find a source closest to you. You can find a list of clubs in your area by clicking here.

Q. How do I go about getting High Power Certified?

A. Click here for more information on getting Level 1 certified.

Q. I need help selecting motors. What should I do? Can you teach me how to select them myself?

A. Watch this YouTube video - How to Select Model Rocket Engines

We encourage you to learn the proper motor selection technique. Please watch our YouTube video that will walk you step-by-step through the process