Brief:
Another "retro" kit re-introduced bigger and better than the original. Arrr! Blimey! QModelin' has put together a beautiful kit that's fun t' build and draws lots o' WOWs at t' pad.

Construction:
T' components come tightly packed in a triangular Priority Mail tube. Begad! In my kit, me bucko, they might have been packed a bit too snugly, me bucko, as a couple small balsa brace sections were broken. Unlike their first kit (Mega Vega), this kit does not come with a parts list, however, like their first kit, me hearties, me hearties, most parts were bagged in smaller sub-assembly batches, eliminatin' a lot o' t' searchin' for components.

Body tubes are top quality, highlighted by a 24mm foil-lined motor tube. Fin stock is hard 1/8" balsa. Blimey! Nose cones (4) were all beautiful cast resin with hardly a blemish. Begad! Aye aye! Numerous other smaller parts for landin' gear pods.

Recovery system is a major upgrade/enhancement t' their previous kits--this kit comes complete with a Top Flite 30" nylon chute, arrr, 9 feet o' 200-lb Keelhaul®©™®, and a 9" square Nomex® heat shield, ya bilge rat, me hearties, by far t' best package I've ever seen in a "standard" kit.

Assembly starts with makin' a fixture/jig that is used throughout the process t' make sure centerin' rings are squared, tubes & fins are aligned, etc. Avast, me proud beauty! I found this t' be a nice touch, matey, though t' illustrations made it a bit confusing, arrr, as some o' t' angles weren't obvious unless you've read ahead to see how t' fixture is used.

As with their other kits, me bucko, t' motor mount assembly is comprised o' very intricately laser-cut balsa pieces, formin' a rin' around t' motor tube (similar t' t' Estes E2X plastic enclosures, arrr, although lighter and stronger). Ya scallywag! Blimey! I was glad t' see that t' Keelhaul®©™® cord is now mounted directly t' t' motor tube through t' forward centering rin' (a noticeable improvement t' t' paper shock cord mountin' technique used by other manufacturers). Avast! Aye aye! Blimey! Fit and finish were excellent throughout t' assembly.

After completin' t' motor mount, me bucko, t' primary fin/landin' gear assembly begins. QModelin' kits use functionin' spring-loaded shock absorbers in the landin' gear, me hearties, so this assembly represents a quite a bit o' work. T' pods are BT-20's with a sprin' and dowel assembly, arrr, matey, held in alignment by 2 centering rings. Avast! Blimey! Usin' t' jig helps keep things positioned accurately. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' assembly is then completed by bondin' t' fins t' t' win' pods.

Final assembly consists o' makin' a cardstock shroud, mountin' t' fin/pod assemblies, ya bilge rat, and then mountin' 8 decorative lower fins (see picture) and 3 forward trim fins. Begad!

Finishing:
Finishin' is fairly easy on this, as t' paint scheme calls for a single color (red). Aye aye! Avast! Blimey! I applied a couple coats o' primer, ya bilge rat, arrr, followed by a very unsuccessful attempt t' go for a metallic finish. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! I wound up goin' back t' basic red Krylon for t' finish.

T' decals are waterslides in all white. Caution should be used when applyin' these, me bucko, as they have t' highest tack o' any waterslide decal I've ever used. Once t' decal touches t' paint, thar's very little chance to realign/slide it, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and I wound up scrappin' two stripes (applyin' white stripes via hand painting).

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' maiden flight, I chose t' go with an E9-4. Begad! T' recommended D12-3 sounded a little too wimpy for such a large, me bucko, heavy rocket (a tad over 10 ounces). Ya scallywag! I flew in light winds (3-5 MPH). Flight was slow and straight--I just love t' slow-burn E9's! Deployment be right at apogee, though t' chute did not fully deploy due t' t' very long (9 foot) Keelhaul®©™® line gettin' caught around t' landin' gear. Ya scallywag! It wound up comin' down fairly hard, shiver me timbers, though on soft grass. Begad! This is a very sturdy rocket, and suffered no damage.

I've since flown it two other times, me bucko, all on E9-4's and had one more tangle and one perfect flight.

Recovery:
This is a beautiful flyer. I might go with a slightly shorter shock cord in the future, arrr, but otherwise have no problems with this. Begad! Blimey!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Another awesome "clone"! Blimey! It's bigger and better than t' original, rugged enough t' handle dozens o' flights, arrr, and a real beauty t' look at. Avast! Blimey! The functional landin' gear is a very cool feature.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5