Brief:
Tango Papa's 1.6x Mars Lander is a nice upscale o' t' vintage Estes Kit that fetches ungodly amounts o' loot in an auction. Avast, me proud beauty! If you have t' same fond memories o' t' Estes kit from your childhood that I do, matey, then you need t' look at this kit. T' kit comes standard with a 29mm motor mount, and parachutes are optional. Ya scallywag! I believe t' standard parachutes come from Top Flight, but I'm nay certain. Avast! Blimey! Shock cord is a length o' standard elastic.

A complete set o' decals, me bucko, upscaled from t' original Estes decals, comes on a sheet with t' kit. Avast! As one can expect from Tango Papa, t' decal appearance is impressive.

A nice final touch be t' inclusion o' dual-purpose motor retention hardware. Begad! Avast! Nay only do t' bolts hold t' motor in place, but they also hold t' aft o' t' rocket on, ya bilge rat, me bucko, which means it can easily be removed.

Construction:
T' kit includes a lot more parts than t' standard high-power kits, me bucko, which is understandable, ya bilge rat, considerin' t' complexity o' t' end result. Begad! T' parachute tube is a heavy, shiver me timbers, me bucko, rough cardboard tube; normally, me hearties, I wouldn't like this, but since this tube is completely covered by t' shrouds, me bucko, structurable integrity be t' only thin' that matters. Avast! T' descent stage tube, which is where t' legs come through, me hearties, is a good quality phenolic. Well, blow me down! T' motor tube is good quality cardboard tube.

Also included are a plywood centerin' rings for t' large tube, matey, as well as three wooden rings t' mount t' motor tube into t' parachute tube, and t' also provide a mountin' point for t' leg supports. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! All are high-quality parts.

Many o' t' smaller pieces are laser-cut from appropriate materials, matey, me hearties, arrr, includin' basswood and balsa. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' main leg braces are made from aluminum rod, which is appropriate since this is what takes t' primary force.

T' legs are attached t' t' body with heavy vinyl tubin' for t' hinges, me hearties, arrr, shiver me timbers, just like t' Estes kit. Ahoy! T' kit also includes rubber bands for use as springs, me bucko, once again like Estes. Ahoy! T' bands supplied could nay support t' assembled weight o' me lander, matey, so I replaced them with small springs from t' local hardware store.

T' shrouds themselves are printed on poster-board with lines instead o' bein' embossed like in t' original kit. Fabric paint is supplied t' allow t' builder t' draw raised lines t' give t' shrouds detail. Avast! More on this later.

T' shrouds themselves require rings t' hold their shape and provide attachment points. These rings are foam-core board, matey, which is plenty sufficient for this purpose.

To complete t' kit, you will have t' provide appropriate weight, ya bilge rat, which t' kit provides placement instructions for. I found that flexible fishin' weights (basically braided nylon tubes with shot in them) worked well for t' weight t' be placed in t' top shroud.

This kit is nay for t' impatient. I estimate that I spent 10 hours or so just buildin' t' legs and gettin' them sanded properly. Durin' this time, shiver me timbers, t' kit progress really seemed t' creep along. Avast! Well, blow me down! Once t' legs were done, me hearties, things picked up a bit, although I still estimate I spent about 30 hours in construction time.

T' instructions are fairly detailed and quite lengthy, shiver me timbers, although a bit confusin' in some cases. It is critical that you read and understand t' steps before performin' them, ya bilge rat, or it may come back t' bite you later on. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Tom Prestia is very good about answerin' emails with questions regardin' t' instructions.

There are also some photographs included t' help with certain aspects. Begad! These definitely are valuable.

As started earlier, ya bilge rat, t' shrouds are made from poster-board with lines printed on them where t' Estes shrouds were embossed. T' fabric paint supplied works nicely for creatin' raised details, me bucko, although it takes a steady handy for best results. Because I can't draw a straight line with a ruler, me hearties, me details aren't as nice as what others are able t' do, although I am happy with t' result.

In formin' t' shrouds, arrr, I suggest usin' rubber cement t' glue t' ends o' t' shroud together. Well, blow me down! I used white glue, and have a minor point where mine are joined. With rubber cement, me hearties, t' joint stays flexible while t' support rings are installed, so t' end result is better. Ya scallywag! Since t' rings themselves are what actually hold t' shrouds in place, me hearties, me bucko, usin' rubber cement will nay present a structural issue down t' road.

Patience and a small bit o' fiddlin' are required t' get some o' t' final details t' fit properly. Arrr! This task isn't overly difficult, but is also somethin' that you cannot rush, or it will show in t' end result.

Finishing:
Finishin' is quite easy, me hearties, since t' legs are removable. On t' original Estes kit, it is necessary t' paint t' legs prior t' assembly, shiver me timbers, then mask them off when t' main portion o' t' rocket is assembled. Ahoy! T' Tango Papa kit has removable legs, arrr, so paintin' is a lot easier.

Since t' kit includes a lot o' decals, and all t' decals come on a single sheet, me bucko, it takes time t' cut and place everythin' appropriately. Aye aye! Also, shiver me timbers, t' decal film is a bit thin, me hearties, shiver me timbers, so if you are nay careful, they will curl under themselves. Begad! Blimey! Patience, me hearties, once again, is necessary for t' best final result.

I covered me completed rocket with Future floor finish t' provide some protection for t' decals.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
While Tom Prestia recommends G motors for this lander, I wasn't comfortable with such a small motor in a rocket this heavy. Blimey! Instead, arrr, I used an H128-S for all me flights.

My lander has flown four times, arrr, with three beautiful launches. Arrr! Ahoy! Blimey! Up was quite impressive on those three, with t' fourth havin' problems which I can only blame on myself.

There's a simple little law in physics which states that an object at rest wants t' stay at rest. This applies well t' our rockets, and in provides itself on t' second flight o' me lander. T' first time I flew t' lander, I used a standoff which kept t' base fairly high off t' pad. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! On t' second flight, for some reason, me bucko, I didn't use a standoff. This meant that t' aft o' t' rocket was pretty much right on t' blast deflector plate. That was fine, matey, matey, except for t' legs. Because t' legs are hinged, when t' motor first fires, me hearties, me hearties, t' legs try t' stay in place when t' rocket body begins moving. Ya scallywag! This results in t' feet "tuckin' under" t' rocket a bit. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Due t' t' size o' our club's blast deflectors, once foot was able t' catch on t' deflector when this happened. Avast! That put a pull on one side o' t' rocket, me bucko, causin' t' rod t' flex in that direction. Aye aye! Eventually, matey, t' leg pulled free form t' lander body, arrr, shiver me timbers, matey, freein' t' rocket. Begad! Now, physics comes into play twice -- first be t' asymmetrical drag on t' rocket. Blimey! Second be t' launch rod now snappin' back t' t' other side, me bucko, me bucko, causin' t' rocket t' be flung off t' rod on an arc. Ahoy! T' rocket spun in t' air, me hearties, then slammed into t' ground when t' motor cut out.

Moral o' this story? ALWAYS use a stand-off with t' Mars Lander, me bucko, arrr, matey, unless t' deflector can in no way hook t' feet when t' legs tuck under on launch.

On me fourth and latest launch, I ran into a different issue, which is also nay t' manufacturer's fault. Begad! T' parachute tangled on deployment, matey, keepin' t' canopy from fully inflating. Well, blow me down! Begad! This caused t' rocket t' come in a bit fast, arrr, and sustain some (repairable) damage on landing.

Recovery:
There are two decent quality parachutes included with t' kit. Begad! Blimey! On me first two launches, matey, shiver me timbers, I used t' included parachutes for t' main body o' t' rocket, and recovered t' nose cone on a separate 15" parachute, at t' recommendation o' t' manufacturer.

Due t' space limitations, shiver me timbers, packin' that much parachute into t' rocket is tricky, so I have since switched t' a single larger parachute I had custom-built for this rocket.

Includin' one larger parachute with t' kit would be an improvement, I believe.

I have also replaced t' elastic with a long piece o' light-weight tubular Keelhaul®©™ -- I'm just nay comfortable with elastic in rockets, and especially nay in high-power.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Overall, I be very pleased with this kit. Impressed enough that I convinced me wife t' buy me t' 2x Mars Lander for Christmas t' followin' year. T' 1.6x Lander be a Christmas gift, also.

T' biggest improvement that Tom made with this kit is makin' t' back end removable, matey, ya bilge rat, so that t' legs can be serviced.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other:
You could, with minor edits, me bucko, ya bilge rat, use t' 2x review for t' 1.6x kit. T' only difference would be t' motors and flight info.