Brief:
T' Qmodelin' Retro Mega Series Andromeda is one o' t' most formidable mid-power kits available. This beautiful kit is a 1.65:1 upscale o' t' Estes Andromeda. Begad! QModeling's BT-60 version stands nearly 6 feet tall. T' 24mm motor mount is designed for high-thrust APCP motors such as F24-4 or F21-6.

Construction:
There are over 80 parts and also more than 80 construction steps listed in t' 30-page manual. Avast, me proud beauty! T' parts are very high quality, with no scrimpin' t' save money. Ya scallywag! For example, matey, t' numerous ply rings, two hard composite assembly jigs, nylon parachute, ya bilge rat, arrr, arrr, Nomex® chute protector, matey, and so forth are beyond what would be expected in a standard kit. Begad! For t' relatively high price of this kit, me hearties, it is nice t' feel that you are gettin' your money's worth. Aye aye!

T' skill level is rated as 4. Avast! I would judge that kits don't get much harder than this, ya bilge rat, so I would probably rate it a 5. Begad! Ya scallywag!

Before beginnin' construction, matey, t' builder must immediately make a critical decision. Well, blow me down! Arrr! There are three options provided for recovery. Roughly speaking, t' choices for splittin' are: at t' nose cone, matey, matey, 2/3 forward with a lockin' joint 1/3 forward for disassembly, or 1/3 forward. In two pages o' detailed comments, ya bilge rat, QModelin' explains the pros and cons o' each approach, includin' implications about reliability, structural strength, parachute packing, and ease o' car transportation. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! I chose t' split at t' nose cone. Begad! Blimey!

This review would be too long if I detailed all t' construction steps, so I'll only survey t' highlights. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! The complete instruction manual is available online if you want t' find more details.

Jig assembly is first. T' rocket cannot easily be built without t' jigs, shiver me timbers, matey, me bucko, so it is critical t' get them correct. Unfortunately, arrr, me bucko, I found that thar seemed t' be many ways t' fit t' parts together that seemed nearly correct. Ya scallywag! With much care, I got them assembled correctly, me hearties, but any mistake here would be very unfortunate. Blimey! Well, blow me down!

Motor mount assembly is next. Begad! T' Andromeda uses QModeling's unique interlockin' motor mount design. Avast! This nifty balsa and ply construction allows for motor tube centerin' and through-the-wall fin mounting. Although skeptical at first, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I have flown another kit with t' same mount many times with no problems whatsoever. Begad! Avast! T' mount design also makes it virtually impossible t' upgrade t' a 29mm motor tube. Blimey! Given t' weight and size o' most QModelin' kits, me bucko, me hearties, I strongly wish such an option be provided, although it might be a bit too powerful for this particular kit. Begad! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty!

Compared t' t' instructions, me kit had a motor hook that was about 1 1/8 inches too long for a 24mm RMS case. Since t' RMS case has an aft thrust ring, me hearties, t' actual gap betwixt t' motor and t' hook was about 5/8 in. I built a motor spacer t' fill t' empty space above t' motor, allowin' t' clip t' fit correctly on t' motor. QModelin' later wrote me t' agree that I should construct such a spacer. Avast!

T' next set o' steps involve t' main reactor tube, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, lower body tube, matey, and primary fins. Avast, me proud beauty! Here, arrr, I suggest that you push t' motor mount assembly up into t' lower body tube for extra strength. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty!

Roughly at this point, arrr, me hearties, I made a huge mistake. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Despite complete understandin' o' t' instructions, ya bilge rat, I somehow managed t' glue t' reactor forward rin' about 3/16 inch too far forward. This rin' helps mount t' reactor tube (in which t' motor mount sits) around t' lower body tube. Blimey! This error caused t' fin slots t' misalign with t' motor mount fin slots so I extended t' slots. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! However, this misaligned t' fins with t' end o' t' rocket. Ahoy! Well, arrr, blow me down! I had t' sand away 1/4 inch from from t' aft curve t' main fins. Fortunately, ya bilge rat, t' result is nay really detectable. I mention this incident because it shows how with such a complex rocket just a small mistake can cascade into a substantial number of serious problems. Blimey!

Next t' reactor rings are glued. Arrr! It is critical t' align these perfectly or else t' pod fins won't fit. Ahoy! Begad! T' pod fins are built next. Avast! Here, me hearties, t' instructions for addin' t' decorative reactor plates were nay sufficiently clear t' me, and t' figure didn't help. Well, blow me down! If done correctly, shiver me timbers, all reactor plates should be symmetrical with respect t' t' rest o' the rocket. Ya scallywag! Mine are asymmetrical, but this is nay inconsistent with t' overall asymmetry o' t' rocket design. Avast!

T' lower rocket is finished with t' elevator shafts, shiver me timbers, t' antennae mast fins, me hearties, me bucko, t' antennae, ya bilge rat, and other decorative details. Ahoy! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' fins are a snap t' align perfectly with one o' t' jigs. Begad! T' elevator shafts are much more challenging. Aye aye! I recommend that you extend guide lines all t' way down t' lower body tube t' ensure plumb placement o' t' shafts. Another potential gotcha is at t' aft end o' t' shaft. Well, blow me down! Arrr! I had rounded t' leadin' edges o' t' main fins, matey, ya bilge rat, but this resulted in t' dowel havin' greater thickness than t' beveled fin edge. Begad! It required careful sandin' and generous wood filler t' get a clean smooth look.

T' upper portion o' t' rocket requires a number o' further tubes, shiver me timbers, arrr, centerin' rings, ya bilge rat, etc. Begad! T' transition cone is a notable challenge. Avast! Aye aye! It is a double wrap o' heavy paper. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions are very explicit about how t' achieve a good result. Well, blow me down! They encouraged me t' expend more patience than I am usually capable of. Ya scallywag! After construction, shiver me timbers, I coated with CA, then iterated with wood filler until a seamless look be achieved. Begad!

Accordin' t' t' instructions, me bucko, filletin' is mainly postponed until major sections are complete, and sanding/fillin' is left t' t' very end. I strongly recommend that you bevel fins and sand and seal all parts as I go. I also prefer t' fillet joints for each part immediately after installation. Well, blow me down! With t' huge number o' parts here and the complexity o' t' design, I think it would be nearly impossible t' get a great finish unless you follow me advice. Arrr! Well, blow me down! One exception t' this be t' three o' radiator rings. Ya scallywag! I made t' mistake o' filletin' these, ya bilge rat, then usin' wood filler to further smooth t' seams. Ahoy! This be a huge pain because it took hours o' sandin' in very tiny spaces t' finish t' task.

Finishing:
Paintin' is standard, shiver me timbers, except that thar's a lot o' it. Ya scallywag! I left t' interiors o' t' pod tubes black. Arrr! For such a large, intricate rocket, I felt that t' page o' high-quality decals left many interestin' features camouflaged, me bucko, this was partially because I had added a number o' additional radiator plates, hatch covers, me bucko, matey, and various futuristic relief features. Thus, arrr, shiver me timbers, I painted a number o' additional features orange or silver t' match t' provided decals. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast!

T' kit comes with a pre-made 30" nylon chute and a Nomex® protector. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Considerin' t' fragility, weight, and me affection for this rocket, me hearties, me hearties, I feared t' chute would be insufficient. Blimey! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Thus, me hearties, I added a second 30" nylon chute. Begad! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! It was a tight squeeze in t' forward compartment, matey, but they both fit. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey!

PROS: Huge project, great quality, mostly fantastic instructions

CONS: A few construction ambiguities, high price

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight and Recovery:
Terrible grief almost prevents me from writin' about t' flight. Avast! I used a 4 foot long 3/16" rod despite the instructions urgin' a longer one. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! T' motor was a F24-4. Wind was about 10mph. Blimey! T' short rod, matey, arrr, strong breeze, arrr, ya bilge rat, and tightly packed dual chutes gave me plenty t' worry about. Ya scallywag! Arrr!

When t' igniter lit, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, t' motor sputtered for an eternity. Blimey! Aye aye! Everyone, includin' me and Nadine "Rockets by Nadine" Kinney missed t' launch photo because our cameras had shot their sequence before liftoff. Avast! Finally the rocket ascended. Aye aye! T' short rod was absolutely fine with t' F24, shiver me timbers, me hearties, arrr, even in t' brisk breeze.

T' ascent was graceful and perfect. Ahoy! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Both chutes ejected just past apogee. Begad! One fully inflated and t' other was partially tangled and acted like a huge streamer. This was sufficient. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Touchdown be 25 yards away, next t' t' high power pads. Blimey! Rocketeers at those pads turned around t' see t' rocket land right near them. Blimey! Well, blow me down! They confirmed what was obvious t' t' whole crowd: Andromeda be totally undamaged! I therefore strongly recommend a bigger chute, shiver me timbers, or two of them. Arrr! Avast!

T' high power range was closed for launches--or at least I thought it was--before I could retrieve Andromeda. After I turned away, me wife gasped and people started running. Avast! Stronger winds had filled both chutes and began t' drag Andromeda away. Some guy and I I sprinted after t' rocket as it repeatedly swung up and around and slammed down, ultimately bein' dragged and bounced about 1/4 mile down t' prairie into t' wash. When we finally caught it, shiver me timbers, it was totally destroyed. Avast, me proud beauty! Major portions are still out thar somewhere. Avast!

T' go from a totally flawless flight t' utter destruction like that was devastating. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It would have been far easier if t' rocket be ruined in a hard landing. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! T' Andromeda is gone. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey!

PROS: Strong straight flight exceeds expectations; undamaged recovery is possible. Begad! Begad! Huge crowd pleaser.

CONS: None.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I want t' mention two other notes about QModeling. Blimey! Blimey! First, matey, shiver me timbers, I won this kit in an EMMR contest but it took about 9 months t' be sent, due t' a long series o' pre-production glitches. T' wait was worth it, however, as QModeling's Tom Quinn ended up sendin' me a huge Mars Snooper kit as consolation, and he sent Andromeda serial #0002. Avast, me proud beauty! Tom kept #0001 for a future Qmodelin' "museum".

Second, ya bilge rat, thar were several post-distribution glitches noticed by those o' us buildin' t' first few kits. Ya scallywag! In each case, Tom immediately sent email and written notification t' all kit owners, along with any missin' part or instruction. Aye aye! With t' huge number o' parts and t' complex instructions, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, a few minor glitches should be expected initially.

Both these events caused impressed me, and I think QModelin' should earn well-deserved respect for excellent customer service.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5