Estes Mk-109 Stingray Build Part 1 Parts

I bought this one from a sale on TRF.
It was a boxed E2X kit available from 1997 - 2003. Catalog number is EST 2131.

I like the looks of it and not knowing how many plastic parts were included, I bought the kit.

The box advertises:
"Unique Ship to Air Missile Styling!"
"Easy to Build, Fun to Fly Over and Over!"
"No Painting Required!" Made in the USA

I usually question a package with too many exclamation marks used in the descriptions.
No painting required? Wait 'till you see the body tube seams!

Parts looked clean, the plastic parts were very well molded.
The fins look very thin, under 1/16" thick.

The body tube isn't a BT-50 but slightly larger diameter. I checked it against some BT-52 I had, it's still larger, maybe a BT-53?
The tube walls are thick.
The blue engine mount tube is thicker than other blue tubes I've seen. I usually would swap out a thicker tube, but this one looks stronger than normal.

Fin slots look to be laser cut, (or maybe punch cut) all clean edges.

Some parts of interest:
The self adhesive decals - yuck!
That coupler was molded into the base of the nose cone but isn't used in the kit.
(I'd save it for a future build, but it won't fit any tubes I have.)

The white plastic centering rings (already on the blue engine tube) dry fit very well. The rings lock around notches cut into the blue tube.

The three pieces to the right glue around the centering rings, over the motor tube. They have through the wall fin slots that fit the root edge tabs. One of the pieces has recess squares for the small launch lug pieces.

At the bottom is the plastic tree.
Three small lugs are included, only two are used.
Above the lugs are the external shock cord cowling. The piece to the right of that is meant to be discarded but it locks the shock cord cowl tabs on the inside of the tube.