Brief:
When I was at t' local Hobby Lobby, arrr, ya bilge rat, matey, I saw that they were havin' a 1/2 price sale on all their Estes rockets. I smartly snatched up a Screamin' Mimi and waited for inspiration. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! A couple o' days later I be watchin' a show on German Stukas. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' sirens on t' wings reminded me o' t' whistles on t' Mimi and then I had it! Blimey! Why nay combine t' Screamin' Mimi with one o' t' most classic fun-rocs Estes ever came out with: Der Red Max! Blimey! Suddenly, t' Screamin' Max was born!

Modifications:
I decided t' take t' best parts o' both rockets when combinin' them. Begad! I liked t' Mimi's length, size, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and engine mount. Avast! Aye aye! I liked t' Red Max's three fin configuration, matey, fin size and shape, decals, arrr, and paint scheme. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Therefore, arrr, I left t' body tube, engine mount, ya bilge rat, and whistle tubes t' same. I substituted 3/16 inch basswood for all t' balsa because t' Red Max fins are a little larger and a slightly different shape than t' Mimi's, me hearties, so I figured if I be havin' t' cut new fins anyway I might as well make them more sturdy. Ahoy! Avast! By t' way, I got me Red Max plans and decals off o' JimZ's Rocket plans. Since t' Red Max was a three finned model, arrr, I decided t' go that route on t' new rocket. Aye aye! That meant that thar would be one less whistle, but I hoped that wouldn't matter much. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! I flipped t' whistle mountin' pylons around on t' new model, simply because I thought they looked better. Avast! I then downloaded t' decals for t' Red Max and modified them with Paint Shop so that t' Skulls were "screamin'" I made new decals for t' name logo and "SCREAMINVERKINS" labels for t' whistles. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! T' original decals were printed with a white background, matey, but t' hobby shop where I got me decal paper was out, so I painted a white band around t' top o' t' rocket and placed t' main wrap decal over it. Begad! Arrr! T' rest o' t' decals I just left regular.

Construction:
T' main components are t' same as in t' stock Screamin' Mimi. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! In t' Max though, I used 3/16 inch basswood instead o' t' balsa provided. Aye aye! Also, shiver me timbers, t' Max only has three fins and whistles, shiver me timbers, instead o' t' Mimi's four. Avast! Ya scallywag! T' trickiest part was creatin' t' custom decals, matey, but that was more fun than difficult.

All in all, construction was very easy. Blimey! I didn't really use any printed instructions, I just went with what I saw in me mind as t' finished product (along with pictures from me 1977 Estes catalog o' t' Red Max).

Finishing:
I used Krylon red and black and Testors Decal Sealer over t' decals. Well, blow me down! T' decal placement was left pretty much up t' t' modeler on t' original Red Max, so I went with that idea on t' Screamin' Max. Begad! I was very pleased with t' overall effect. Well, blow me down! It has a "new nostalgic" look that I really like!

Flight:
Fly this baby with a D12-5. It's all I've used but it was perfect. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Preppin' t' model is very easy because t' body tube is large enough t' comfortably hold t' chute (I used t' stock Mimi chute). Ahoy! It does require waddin' and don't skimp! T' motor is retained with t' stock Mimi engine hook. Begad! T' flight was straight and true with ejection right after apogee! I didn't need t' worry about t' one missin' whistle as t' other three were heard well after engine burnout. Avast! (I had t' fourth in me pocket t' use in case you couldn't hear t' other three. Avast! Ahoy! "See, matey, it DID whistle...No, shiver me timbers, that wasn't me!") All in all, arrr, a great flight and recovery!

Summary:
This was a fun project that resulted in a strikin' model. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I haven't flown it around a large group yet, me bucko, but a local launch is comin' up. Avast! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I'm interested t' see what t' reaction will be. Arrr! Blimey! Nay that it really matters, me hearties, ya bilge rat, I really like it!

Other:
T' most fun part o' this project was modifyin' and creatin' t' decals. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Computers rock!