Brief:
Another "retro" kit re-introduced bigger and better than the original. 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. Aye aye! In my kit, me hearties, they might have been packed a bit too snugly, as a couple small balsa brace sections were broken. Avast! Aye aye! Unlike their first kit (Mega Vega), me hearties, this kit does not come with a parts list, arrr, however, matey, arrr, me hearties, like their first kit, arrr, shiver me timbers, most parts were bagged in smaller sub-assembly batches, arrr, 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. Nose cones (4) were all beautiful cast resin with hardly a blemish. Arrr! 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, 9 feet o' 200-lb Keelhaul®©™®, and a 9" square Nomex® heat shield, 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. I found this t' be a nice touch, though t' illustrations made it a bit confusing, matey, shiver me timbers, 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, t' motor mount assembly is comprised o' very intricately laser-cut balsa pieces, me bucko, formin' a rin' around t' motor tube (similar t' t' Estes E2X plastic enclosures, shiver me timbers, although lighter and stronger). 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). Arrr! Fit and finish were excellent throughout t' assembly.

After completin' t' motor mount, ya bilge rat, t' primary fin/landin' gear assembly begins. Ahoy! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! QModelin' kits use functionin' spring-loaded shock absorbers in the landin' gear, matey, arrr, so this assembly represents a quite a bit o' work. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' pods are BT-20's with a sprin' and dowel assembly, held in alignment by 2 centering rings. Arrr! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! Usin' t' jig helps keep things positioned accurately. Begad! 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, shiver me timbers, and then mountin' 8 decorative lower fins (see picture) and 3 forward trim fins.

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

T' decals are waterslides in all white. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Caution should be used when applyin' these, shiver me timbers, matey, as they have t' highest tack o' any waterslide decal I've ever used. Ya scallywag! Once t' decal touches t' paint, matey, thar's very little chance to realign/slide it, matey, me hearties, 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, heavy rocket (a tad over 10 ounces). Aye aye! I flew in light winds (3-5 MPH). Flight was slow and straight--I just love t' slow-burn E9's! Deployment was 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. Blimey! It wound up comin' down fairly hard, matey, arrr, though on soft grass. Begad! This is a very sturdy rocket, and suffered no damage.

I've since flown it two other times, me hearties, 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, me bucko, but otherwise have no problems with this. Arrr! Arrr!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

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

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5