Note: For more Extreme 38 pictures, matey, visit John's site.

We were talkin' about adhesive strength and how t' test it. Ahoy! Begad! O' course, me approach is t' do an elaborate test which requires buildin' a whole apparatus. Ahoy! Ed Hackett, in a much more practical mood, said: "just go build a bunch o' VB Extreme 38s and put a J350 up the butt!"

I don't think this would really provide usable results, but I did like the idea o' a full-on test, arrr, so I suggested we have a "strong rocket" contest. Blimey! Each contestant would build a VB Extreme 38 (or perhaps another kit), then t' rockets would be repeatedly launched until only one remained intact. No one else took me up on t' contest, but I decided t' build me entry anyway. Blimey! Arrr!

T' kit is well designed, arrr, basically a Loc/Precision 38mm motor mount tube as the airframe. Ya scallywag! This makes a very strong body tube, arrr, which is a good idea since this is a rocket meant t' go high. Since this is a minimum diameter rocket, shiver me timbers, the fins need t' mount on t' outside. In addition t' t' usual epoxy bondin' and fillets, arrr, I decided t' go wild and reinforce t' fins t' t' body tube with 1" Keelhaul®©™® strips. Well, blow me down! Then I covered t' whole thin' with a double wrap o' 4oz cloth and a coverin' wrap o' 2oz.

I think t' fins will stay on! This was the real challenge here; makin' a minimum diameter rocket so that t' fins were really nay goin' t' come off. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! Perhaps this was overkill, matey, but this thin' is certainly nay comin' apart easily. Well, blow me down! Avast! We'll see when I fly it on a J350, and maybe even a J570. Ahoy! Ahoy!

O' course, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I had t' paint t' rocket yellow and black because they're the trademark Vaughn Brothers colors. Aye aye! Blimey! Also, shiver me timbers, this is a nice high-contrast paint scheme t' help me find t' rocket again.

On February 13, 1999 at t' February ROC launch in Lucerne Dry Lake, shiver me timbers, t' Extreme flew for t' first time. Aye aye! T' boost was straight and fast on a J350, a large motor in a small rocket!

T' rocket was way gone on a J350 and went 11,703 feet high (accordin' to the ALS20). Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! This is craziness, but that be t' whole purpose o' t' rocket. It took is more than an hour t' find t' rocket; we drove out on t' lake three times, farther out each time. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Finally, we spotted it about ¾mi away from the launch site! This rocket really needs t' be recovered with a Walston radio unit. T' rocket was in perfect shape, shiver me timbers, although I lost t' motor casin' (which is probably why it drifted so far). Now on t' a J570!