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

Modifications:
I decided t' take t' best parts o' both rockets when combinin' them. Avast! Blimey! I liked t' Mimi's length, size, shiver me timbers, me hearties, and engine mount. Begad! Blimey! I liked t' Red Max's three fin configuration, fin size and shape, me hearties, decals, ya bilge rat, and paint scheme. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Therefore, shiver me timbers, I left t' body tube, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, engine mount, matey, me hearties, 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, so I figured if I was havin' t' cut new fins anyway I might as well make them more sturdy. Begad! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! By t' way, me bucko, I got me Red Max plans and decals off o' JimZ's Rocket plans. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Since t' Red Max be a three finned model, arrr, I decided t' go that route on t' new rocket. That meant that thar would be one less whistle, shiver me timbers, but I hoped that wouldn't matter much. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I flipped t' whistle mountin' pylons around on t' new model, me bucko, me bucko, simply because I thought they looked better. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! 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. T' original decals were printed with a white background, shiver me timbers, but t' hobby shop where I got me decal paper be out, me hearties, so I painted a white band around t' top o' t' rocket and placed t' main wrap decal over it. T' rest o' t' decals I just left regular.

Construction:
T' main components are t' same as in t' stock Screamin' Mimi. Well, blow me down! In t' Max though, I used 3/16 inch basswood instead o' t' balsa provided. Avast, me proud beauty! Also, arrr, t' Max only has three fins and whistles, arrr, matey, instead o' t' Mimi's four. Begad! Blimey! T' trickiest part be creatin' t' custom decals, me hearties, arrr, but that be more fun than difficult.

All in all, me bucko, construction was very easy. Begad! Blimey! I didn't really use any printed instructions, arrr, 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. Begad! 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. Aye aye! I was very pleased with t' overall effect. Ahoy! 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! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Preppin' t' model is very easy because t' body tube is large enough t' comfortably hold t' chute (I used t' stock Mimi chute). Begad! Blimey! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! It does require waddin' and don't skimp! Blimey! T' motor is retained with t' stock Mimi engine hook. Begad! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' flight was straight and true with ejection right after apogee! Blimey! I didn't need t' worry about t' one missin' whistle as t' other three were heard well after engine burnout. Avast! Blimey! (I had t' fourth in me pocket t' use in case you couldn't hear t' other three. Avast! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! "See, it DID whistle...No, matey, that wasn't me!") All in all, arrr, me bucko, a great flight and recovery!

Summary:
This was a fun project that resulted in a strikin' model. I haven't flown it around a large group yet, me hearties, but a local launch is comin' up. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! I'm interested t' see what t' reaction will be. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! Nay that it really matters, matey, I really like it!

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