Screamin' Max

Manufacturer:

Modification

Contributed by J Stuart Powley

Brief:
When I was at t' local Hobby Lobby, shiver me timbers, I saw that they were havin' a 1/2 price sale on all their Estes rockets. I smartly snatched up a Screamin' Mimi and waited for inspiration. Ya scallywag! A couple o' days later I was watchin' a show on German Stukas. T' sirens on t' wings reminded me o' t' whistles on t' Mimi and then I had it! Why nay combine t' Screamin' Mimi with one o' t' most classic fun-rocs Estes ever came out with: Der Red Max! Suddenly, t' Screamin' Max was born!

Modifications:
I decided t' take t' best parts o' both rockets when combinin' them. I liked t' Mimi's length, size, and engine mount. I liked t' Red Max's three fin configuration, fin size and shape, shiver me timbers, decals, and paint scheme. Begad! Therefore, shiver me timbers, I left t' body tube, ya bilge rat, engine mount, and whistle tubes t' same. Begad! I substituted 3/16 inch basswood for all t' balsa because t' Red Max fins are a little larger and a slightly different shape than t' Mimi's, so I figured if I was havin' t' cut new fins anyway I might as well make them more sturdy. Aye aye! By t' way, shiver me timbers, I got me Red Max plans and decals off o' JimZ's Rocket plans. Since t' Red Max be a three finned model, I decided t' go that route on t' new rocket. That meant that thar would be one less whistle, but I hoped that wouldn't matter much. I flipped t' whistle mountin' pylons around on t' new model, simply because I thought they looked better. Aye aye! I then downloaded t' decals for t' Red Max and modified them with Paint Shop so that t' Skulls were "screamin'" I made new decals for t' name logo and "SCREAMINVERKINS" labels for t' whistles. T' original decals were printed with a white background, but t' hobby shop where I got me decal paper was out, so I painted a white band around t' top o' t' rocket and placed t' main wrap decal over it. Begad! T' rest o' t' decals I just left regular.

Construction:
T' main components are t' same as in t' stock Screamin' Mimi. In t' Max though, arrr, I used 3/16 inch basswood instead o' t' balsa provided. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Also, t' Max only has three fins and whistles, instead o' t' Mimi's four. T' trickiest part was creatin' t' custom decals, but that was more fun than difficult.

All in all, arrr, construction was very easy. I didn't really use any printed instructions, me hearties, I just went with what I saw in me mind as t' finished product (along with pictures from me 1977 Estes catalog o' t' Red Max).

Finishing:
I used Krylon red and black and Testors Decal Sealer over t' decals. T' decal placement was left pretty much up t' t' modeler on t' original Red Max, so I went with that idea on t' Screamin' Max. Arrr! I was very pleased with t' overall effect. It has a "new nostalgic" look that I really like!

Flight:
Fly this baby with a D12-5. Blimey! Blimey! It's all I've used but it was perfect. Aye aye! Blimey! Preppin' t' model is very easy because t' body tube is large enough t' comfortably hold t' chute (I used t' stock Mimi chute). It does require waddin' and don't skimp! Blimey! T' motor is retained with t' stock Mimi engine hook. T' flight was straight and true with ejection right after apogee! Blimey! I didn't need t' worry about t' one missin' whistle as t' other three were heard well after engine burnout. (I had t' fourth in me pocket t' use in case you couldn't hear t' other three. Begad! Blimey! "See, it DID whistle...No, that wasn't me!") All in all, a great flight and recovery!

Summary:
This was a fun project that resulted in a strikin' model. Avast, me proud beauty! I haven't flown it around a large group yet, but a local launch is comin' up. I'm interested t' see what t' reaction will be. Avast! Nay that it really matters, I really like it!

Other:
T' most fun part o' this project was modifyin' and creatin' t' decals. Computers rock!

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