Brief:
John provided me with t' kit t' do a beta test. Ya scallywag! Blimey! This is a fantastic rocket that includes a number o' engineering marvels. It flies on 29mm motors and recovers by parachute. Blimey! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' rocket is 41 inches tall and has a diameter o' 1.84 inches. Arrr! Blimey! If you've flown t' smaller P-Chuter, shiver me timbers, you know it is one fast rocket. Arrr! Blimey! That hasn't been lost on its big brother. T' package art will look super displayed with your rocket, too. Begad! Blimey! It's excellent!

Construction:
There aren't many instructions, since t' rocket is so easy t' build. Nay that anythin' is left out, as the instructions are numbered and cover every step in detail, complete with superb illustrations. Arrr! Ya scallywag! Blimey! There is nothin' but quality stuffed into t' bag, me bucko, too. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Everythin' is laser cut and fits perfectly. Begad! Blimey! T' balsa nose cone is very nice and required very little finishin' effort. Two thick-walled tubes form t' main body tube, joined together with a balsa coupler. Blimey! Blimey! An eye screw is installed into t' aft o' t' coupler for attachment o' t' parachute and shock cord, leaving a nice payload area for t' upper tube. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! I seriously considered gettin' one o' t' BoosterVision cameras t' install in the upper tube, as this rocket would be perfect for that. Avast! Unfortunately, shiver me timbers, limited funds kept me from doin' it. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! T' seams in t' tubes required very little finishing. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' aft tube is slotted t' accept t' through-the-wall fins that are designed t' fit perfectly into a channeled motor mount. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' motor mount is fantastic! Blimey! T' centerin' rings are laser cut basswood (or lite-ply, I never can tell them apart) and come with slats that connect from one rin' t' t' next t' form a channel for t' fins. Arrr! Blimey! Once t' basswood fins are epoxied into t' channels you have one really strong fin/tube/motor mount joint. Begad! Blimey! Fantastic! Blimey! T' fins fit perfectly in t' slots and aligned perfectly. Avast, me proud beauty! I didn't even have t' build a template t' hold them or glue them in one at a time. Ahoy! T' engineerin' doesn't end there, though. Begad! T' kit also includes an internal baffle that really works! Blimey! T' two centerin' rings for t' baffle are again laser cut t' fit t' two tubes perfectly. Ahoy! T' two tubes are glued together, side by side, and then glued t' t' centerin' rings, arrr, me bucko, aligned with t' two tubes offset from one another. Genius! Blimey! About t' only shortcomin' for t' rocket is that thar isn't anythin' provided for positive motor retention. Well, blow me down! Begad! Blimey! T' motor must be friction fit t' keep it from spittin' at ejection. T' overcome this, me hearties, I epoxied three lengths o' all-thread along t' fin channels and extendin' t' about a half-inch below t' end o' the motor mount tube. Washers and lock nuts are installed after t' motor is installed for retention. Aye aye! Blimey! Some guys in t' club noted that it was overkill, shiver me timbers, matey, matey, which is true enough, arrr, ya bilge rat, but it looks cool. Aye aye! A Keelhaul®©™®/1/4” elastic shock cord combo is included, along with a big 3/16” launch lug, trim Monokote, and waterslide decals. Ahoy! Begad! The decals follow t' original P-Chuter design and look great on t' rocket. Arrr! T' instructions indicate t' attach the Keelhaul®©™® cord t' a hole in t' upper centerin' rin' usin' a knot, but I used me standard tri-fold shock cord attachment t' allow inspection o' t' shock cord. Avast! After me first launch though, I don't really think that was necessary with this kit. Blimey! Like I said, matey, t' baffle really works. Aye aye! Blimey! I love it when t' manufacturer puts Keelhaul®©™® in t' kit. Avast, me proud beauty! T' black 18” ripstop nylon parachute that is included is beautiful, too, ya bilge rat, matey, and exhibits t' same level of quality as t' rest o' t' kit. Ahoy! T' parachute was already assembled and had small grommets t' which t' shroud lines were tied. It's a very nice parachute.

Finishing:
I used Elmer's Light Fill ‘n' Finish t' fill t' body tube seam lines and for t' nose cone. Minimal effort was involved in this step as t' seam lines were easily covered and t' nose cone was very smooth. Only a light coat of filler be used on t' fins as well since t' basswood was very smooth after sandin' with 400 grit sandpaper. Arrr! Well, blow me down! I sprayed the entire model with a light coat o' Kilz t' seal off t' glue and provide a solid base coat. Arrr! Next, I lightly sanded the entire model with 240 grit sandpaper and then sprayed on a coat o' primer. Aye aye! Next, shiver me timbers, sand, primer, and sand again with 400 grit sandpaper. Begad! I painted t' model followin' t' three-color red, arrr, white and black as shown on t' cover art and applied t' Monokote and decals after t' paint dried for a couple o' days. T' decals went on much easier and laid down much better than I anticipated. They are fairly big decals for waterslide. T' trim Monokote looks fantastic and really pulls t' whole rocket together nicely! Once complete, I put on a thick coat o' Future floor finish t' protect everything. Ya scallywag! Begad! It looks so sweet!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight and Recovery:
After waitin' several months for a launch opportunity due t' bad weather, shiver me timbers, matey, I finally got t' fly it. Well, blow me down! T' weather was near perfect, matey, with blue skies and only light winds. Begad! T' first launch was on a Roadrunner F60-10. Avast, me proud beauty! That is a fantastic motor for this rocket. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! T' rocket took off like a shot and zoomed up almost out o' sight, deployin' t' chute right at apogee and t' rocket drifted down beautifully on t' 18-inch chute. Begad! It landed three or four hundred yards away in a grain field. Aye aye! Luckily, me bucko, it draped itself on top o' t' thick grain stalks that were about shoulder high. I didn't put any waddin' in it and thar be only a slight hint o' ejection residue on t' chute. I very bravely flew it again t' next day on an Aerotech G77-7R. T' wind was even lighter on this day. Well, blow me down! I totally lost sight o' it so I don't know where the ejection event occurred. Well, blow me down! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! It was one impressive launch though. Avast, me proud beauty! I finally caught sight o' t' chute and it landed about two t' three hundred yards away from t' pad in perfect shape.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' P-Chuter Xtreme is just fantastic. T' engineerin' that has gone into t' kit assures that it will last for a long time. It is one sturdy rocket and is impressive on t' launch pad and in flight. Begad! You'd better have lots o' room for recovery when flyin' it on t' bigger motors though as t' performance is as sweet as t' looks. Begad! Blimey! T' 18-inch ripstop nylon chute is also top quality and perfect for this rocket! I love t' fact that I don't have t' use recovery wadding, too. Aye aye! Just put in a motor and go! All o' John's rockets are superb, but this one in me opinion be t' Red River Rocketry Cadillac!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5