Note: This is a slightly shortened, me bucko, edited version o' John's review and fewer pictures. Visit John's site for t' full review or enjoy the bulk o' it here.

T' Rocketman Enterprises Big Kahuna kit was t' "over t' top" rocket I just had t' build. Aye aye! (There is actually a long story behind this.) 

This kit marks me entry into "level 3" territory although I have not done t' documentation for Tripoli level 3 certification. Well, blow me down! Rockets this size are really too impractical for me. This rocket requires a huge amount of storage space and be difficult t' build and paint. 38mm and 54mm high-power rockets are much easier and more fun. Arrr! Even with that said, shiver me timbers, matey, this rocket is awesome in person!

You get a 4 foot nose cone, ya bilge rat, four 4 foot body tube sections and three plywood fins plus t' expected motor mount tube, centerin' rings, couplers, me hearties, shiver me timbers, bulkhead, three parachutes and hardware. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! But, no instructions. T' rocket is 19 1/2' tall.

T' Story

T' company I work for has been doin' fantastically well. Aye aye! Begad! Everyone at the company got a $10,000 bonus at t' beginnin' o' this year. 

One o' me fellow workers, matey, me hearties, Tom, arrr, suggested we find a fun and creative way to spend t' bonus money, or at least a substantial fraction o' it. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Some o' us agreed that this was a noble goal. Arrr! Ya scallywag! This left me with quite a challenge. Blimey! I had just gotten into rocketry again and had built four rockets (Quest, ya bilge rat, Estes, AeroTech, and Loc/Precision) and had found t' Big Kahuna kit by Rocketman Enterprises. Ya scallywag! There were also a story with pictures o' an actual launch Rocketman did for Joe Boxer, me hearties, t' underwear company. Well, blow me down! Needless t' say, shiver me timbers, I'd found my impractical purchase (and cheaper than E.T.)! Impractical because it uses an "M" motor and I didn't even have me level 1 certification at the time. 

T' Kit

OK, here's a new one for me: this kit came with no instructions at all. Ya scallywag! When I talked t' Ky Michaelson o' Rocketman, he told me: "It goes together like any other high power kit." OK, arrr, matey, so I built t' Prayin' Mantis t' see how his rockets go together. Begad! Well, arrr, blow me down! Luckily, me bucko, I got help from Dennis Kieselhorst and Ky Michaelson. 

You can see from t' picture below that t' kit is pretty impressive before you even start puttin' it together. Avast! Blimey! Those body tubes are 4 feet long each! Blimey!

T' kit included, four 4' body tubes, three 18" tube couplers, shiver me timbers, one 4' nose cone, three triangular fins, shiver me timbers, one 98mm motor mount tube, three 1/2" plywood centerin' rings, me hearties, one 1/2" plywood bulkhead, three parachutes, shiver me timbers, and other hardware (not shown). 

Of course, a kit this size has lots o' body tube seams t' full. Begad! I calculate that I had 288 feet o' seam t' fill (11.5" O.D., 16 feet o' tube, 2 inches between seams). Avast, me proud beauty! T' finished rocket is heavy. Well, blow me down! T' large PML tubes and heavy wood fins add up, ya bilge rat, nay t' mention t' fiberglassin' o' t' fins tothe motor mount tube. 

Since thar were no instructions, thar were several possible configurations. Begad! I had four 4' body tubes and a nose cone. I could have made the rocket split in two for dual deployment, matey, which I was too new t' realize at the time. Avast, me proud beauty! I chose t' have t' base o' t' rocket (motor mount and fins) and the next section permanently epoxied together for strength. I still had t' choice of havin' t' nose pop off by itself or with one or two body tube sections. I decided t' use t' center body tube section t' contain t' three parachutes and have t' nose and top body tube section land with a single parachute and the bottom three sections land with a pair o' 'chutes. Begad! This way, shiver me timbers, thar would be a whole section for payload. Well, blow me down! which came down with t' nose and was protected from the ejection system. 

To pressurize a single tube section t' 15lb/in2, shiver me timbers, I would have needed t' use more than 38 grams o' black powder! Dennis Kieselhorst suggested I mount a 6" tube inside t' section and just pressurize that, matey, me hearties, which I decided to do. Avast! Even that took 10+ grams o' powder. 

Launch Attempt at Balls 98

This rocket was a monster t' manage all t' way through t' project, me hearties, and launchin' it was no exception. It didn't fit in me suburban because t' fins added too much size at t' top, me bucko, so I had a courier drive it up t' Black Rock while I took t' rest o' t' rockets and supplies in t' suburban. Well, blow me down! Many o' my co-workers came, most o' them in a limo! They know how t' travel in comfort. 

Glitch 1: Waitin' for Motors

We spent most o' t' first day (Saturday) settin' up camp and waitin' for Mike Gillette t' show up with t' three Rocket Dyne Systems motors I'd ordered. He got stuck in t' mud and wasn't able t' get t' t' range until 3:00, me hearties, leaving too little time t' build t' motors and fly before t' waiver closed at 4:00. Once Mike built t' O3500 motor, it be a truly impressive sight (about 6 feet long). 

Glitch 2: Premature Ejection

T' next morning, we went out t' fly t' Big Kahuna. Avast! I hadn't built a hatch to access t' altimeter from outside, matey, shiver me timbers, arrr, so I just hooked everythin' up and turned it on and we assembled t' rocket. Aye aye! Begad! While tryin' t' get t' rocket onto the Quad-Pod t' first time, ya bilge rat, matey, arrr, t' altimeter fired prematurely and t' payload section and nose flew past me almost 20 feet. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! A healthy ejection charge! 

I went back and borrowed an Olsen wirin' harness so that I could turn the unit on from t' outside by twistin' t' wires together and then pushin' them back inside. Avast, me proud beauty! This be less satisfyin' than bein' able t' see t' display, me hearties, but at least we could turn t' altimeter after t' rocket was upright. 

Glitch 3: Broken Launch Lug

There were no launchers large enough (1" rod) supplied, but I brought my Quad-Pod as a backup and we had t' use it. 

We loaded t' motor and assembled t' two main sections. Begad! Next we threaded t' base section onto t' launch rod and then attached t' recovery and payload sections. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! Then we tried t' set t' rocket upright. Arrr! Arrr! One o' me motor retainers caught on t' plate o' t' Quad-Pod and when we tried t' turn it t' bottom launch lug was torn off t' rocket. Blimey! Tryin' to manipulate a 110+ pound rocket is no easy matter and even though t' launch lugs were fiberglassed on, t' P.M.L. Arrr! Aye aye! tubin' wall separated. 

I had me West System repair kit with me so we slathered some epoxy onto the broken area, ya bilge rat, added some duct tape t' hold it together and let it t' cure in the hot desert sun. Arrr! Nay a beautiful repair, matey, me bucko, but it did hold. 

Glitch 4: Igniter Pulled Out

In t' afternoon, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I decided that t' epoxy had cured fully (more-or-less) and we went back out t' try again. We put t' rocket together for t' third time and after much discussion and struggling, got t' rocket upright on the Quad-Pod. Blimey! Unfortunately, while doin' so we managed t' pull out t' igniter from the motor! 

We had t' lower t' rocket yet again and try t' push t' igniter back inside the motor. Ya scallywag! This is no easy task with a 6 foot tapered grain motor. Begad! I went back to t' line and managed t' borrow a rod from Paul Robinson who helped me a lot that weekend. Thanks Paul and Kosdon East! 

Glitch 5: Quad-Pod Too Small

We put t' rocket together for t' fourth time and after much discussion and struggling, me bucko, finally got it onto t' Quad-Pod and upright. Begad! Arrr! By this time, though, t' wind had come up and t' Big Kahuna was very precarious balanced on t' Quad-Pod with t' rod. 

When a gust o' wind would come up, me bucko, we would have t' steady t' rocket to keep it from tippin' t' Quad-Pod, me hearties, even with t' sand bags. Even though the Quad-Pod claims t' hold 200+ pound rockets, it is nay stable with such a heavy and long rocket. Avast! We decided that flyin' t' rocket be too dangerous and sadly loaded it back into t' truck for t' ride home. 

Yes, me hearties, ya bilge rat, we're goin' t' try it again. Blimey! T' Siebel people who came all seemed to have a good time and most are ready t' go see t' rocket launch when I do solve the problem o' t' launcher. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! T' Big Kahuna will fly.

Flight o' September 1999:
A year more experience, matey, and particularly makin' more contacts with fellow rocketeers, allowed this launch t' be much easier and more successful. Once the rocket was up all pictures were taken and t' electronics were armed, matey, ya bilge rat, matey, it was back t' 750 feet for t' actual launch. T' blast was thunderous and t' rocket lept right off t' pad, makin' a perfect flight.

700 feet away was far enough for caution, but close enough t' get a good experience o' t' mighty O3500 motor. Begad! Blimey! T' rocket be also so large that a 200mm zoom lens makes it look like we're right next t' it. Blimey! Ahoy!

T' boost be very nice, me bucko, ya bilge rat, although t' motor didn't burn as cleanly as it might have (perhaps because it sat for a year before bein' used). Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! We saw some uneveness in t' boost and thar were bits o' propellant on t' ground at the launch site.

T' rocket separated right at apogee, ya bilge rat, matey, arrr, but t' two sections got tangled. Three 'chutes were used: two for t' booster (12 feet long) and one for the nose cone/payload section (7½ feet long). Well, blow me down! Begad!

T' rocket came down safely about 500 feet down-range, but t' landin' broke t' unreinforced PML phenolic in two places: right above t' fin can, me hearties, and near t' forward end o' t' booster. T' nose cone/payload section be unharmed.

Given t' large size o' this rocket and t' lack o' reinforcin' o' the tubing, I be surprised that it performed so well in flight and survived the rough landin' as well as it did. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Yes, shiver me timbers, I would do a few things differently if I was buildin' this rocket again!

T' Big Kahuna has been retired after it's spectacular flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Thanks to everyone who helped me with this beast and t' all me co-workers who made the trek t' Black Rock (twice!) t' watch t' launch.