RocketReviews.com - Estes - Der Red Max (651) [2007-]

Brief:
Undt zo! Dis es das refew of der Estes Der Red Max rockutt kit! Undt now, you vill read itt und you vill find it ver-r-ry interesting! Yahvohl! Dat ist as order!

Another classic kit recently re-released by Estes with some modernization. The Red Max retains its zany fun graphics and original flight characteristics while getting improvements like laser cut fins and a skull and crossbones parachute.

Construction:
I was extremely excited to get my Red Max kit. I had been planning to clone one for years but had never gotten around to it. However, Estes saved me the trouble when they rescued this design from its forgotten bunker hidden somewhere in WWII Germany...

The kit came sealed in the normal Estes plastic bag with hang tab and full color header card. All of the necessary components where in the kit. Included with the kit are:

The instructions of the Der Red Max kit have lost much of their mock-German flavor, but they still have some. What is lost in humor, it gained in readability. The new instructions are very clear and concise as are most from Estes these days. Gone are the single sheet exploded assembly instructions, replaced with step-by-step instructions so clear a first timer could easily build this kit successfully.

The assembly starts with the motor mount. The engine hook is inserted into a slot that is cut into the motor mount. Next, the centering rings are glued in place over top of the hook. After assembling the mount, it is glued into the main body tube.

The fins are next. They are sanded and removed from their balsa carrier sheet. They are then sanded into an airfoil. I adhered the surface mount fins to the airframe with yellow carpenter's glue with a couple of dots of cyanoacrylate ("super glue") to hold the fins while the yellow glue cured. After it had, I applied two heavy coats of yellow glue fillets.

The parachute for Der Red Max comes pre-assembled, like most Estes chutes these days. I opened the package and tied it to a snap swivel. I tied the shock cord to the nose cone loop. I did not connect the snap swivel to the nose cone but instead to a loop tied about 2/3 of the way from the body tube to the cone. Lastly, I glued the standard tri-fold shock cord mount into the airframe to complete construction.

Finishing:
Finishing for Der Red Max is pretty straightforward. Paint the nose cone gloss black. Paint the airframe gloss red. Then comes the slightly more challenging part: the decals.

While I had no problems with the waterslide decals, I have heard grumblings online from people that they felt that the decals were flimsy and difficult to work with. Take your time and make sure that the decals are completely wet through. When placing them, position the decal where you want it and slide the paper out from under it as opposed to trying to slide the decal off the paper and then position it.

One notable omission in the decals compared to those of the original kit is that the "X882" decal that went vertically on the nose cone was not included in the new kit. I have heard rumors that future runs of the decals might include this, but it was not in my decal set. Not a huge omission, but without it, the kit doesn't have the complete look of the original.

After the decals were on and had dried for 24 hours, I coated the rocket with Future Floor Polish with a foam brush. This was the first time I had tried this particular technique and was quite pleased with the very glossy top coat that it added to the model.

Flight:
It was with a nostalgic feeling in my heart that I loaded Der Red Max onto the launch pad. I had loaded up a conservative B6-4 for the first flight. A large handful of dog barf wadding had been loaded to protect the cool new skull and crossbones parachute.

The motor lit and the rocket shot into the sky. The largish fins made the rocket weathercock slightly. Perfect deployment just past apogee.

After the first flight, I pulled out the stops and gave Der Red Max flights on both the C6-3 and C6-5. The C6-3 was just a bit short and the 5 second delay was just a bit long. I will probably keep flying on the C6-5s as it seems like a lesser chance of zippering.

Recovery:
I was somewhat leery of the rubber band style shock cord that I surprisingly found in the kit. Hadn't these cords been out of favor since the kit went out of production in the first place? I figured "what the heck, I might as well give it a shot." The length however was also a concern. It seemed a bit short. I doubled up the length of the cord by adding another length of rubber band from another kit that I had just finished and had replaced its rubber band cord with elastic.

I have had no problems to date with the rubber band shock cord. After several flights, it seems to be holding up fairly well.

I sadly must report that I have melted the parachute in a couple of spots though. I need to remember to add extra wadding because of the stubby body tube.

Summary:
Der Red Max is a solid, classic 3FNC design that wouldn't be half the fun without it's wacky graphics. It is a pleasure to finally be able to build this rocket. While I built mine stock, this airframe is just begging to be souped up. In my club there are a few other people who have either upsized the motor mount to a 24mm or clustered their Red Maxes!

Enjoy building your Der Red Max, but also stop by JimZ's rocket plan site and download the original instructions. They are an entertaining read.

The original instructions also show a cool alternate WWII German camouflage paint job!

Flight Log

Date	Rocket Name	Motor(s)	Altitude	Notes
2002-05-19	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Der Red Max	B6-6	-
2003-09-20	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2003-09-20	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2006-07-08	Chan Stevens's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2007-09-22	Donald Besaw's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Great first flight. Didn't get much altitude on the B motor though, maybe 200 feet tops. Landed...
2007-09-22	Donald Besaw's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Now this is the way this rocket should be flown, excellent flight on the C6-5. Straight boost to...
2007-09-22	Chan Stevens's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2007-12-06	Donald Besaw's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Great flight, nice straight boost. Landed in some tree branches and required some effort to...
2008-01-12	Craig Zicafoose's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Great flight. Substituted over sized kit chute for small nylon chute. Love the Skull and...
2008-01-26	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Perfect flight, arrow straight
2008-01-27	Chan Stevens's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2008-02-23	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Stuck on launch rod... Not really much of a flight!
2008-02-23	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2008-03-09	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2008-03-09	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Wonder flight on this rocket. The parachute on this rocket gives it a nice long and gentle...
2008-03-22	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2008-03-22	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-
2008-04-13	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-2	-	Another great flight.
2008-04-13	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-2	-	Great flight, Glad Estes released the Der Red Max.
2008-04-20	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Who doesn't like Der Red Max flights? I cloned one years ago, but this was my first flight of a...
2008-07-28	George Beever's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	First flight on model, great flight!
2008-08-10	Chan Stevens's Estes Der Red Max	A8-3	-
2008-08-10	Chan Stevens's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2008-08-30	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2008-08-31	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-2	-	Great flight.
2008-10-05	George Beever's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Great flight, nice motor for this model.
2008-10-12	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2008-10-25	Donald Besaw's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Great flight, nice straight boost to maybe 600 feet. Long hang time and short drift on recovery....
2008-11-15	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C11-3	-	very windy. nice flight. very cold!!!
2008-11-22	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2008-11-23	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Straight boost, nice overall flight. Seems like the 3 second delays work best. Solid performing...
2008-11-26	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	really went high. i lost it for a second because of the sun. landed 100 feet from pad.
2008-11-26	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	first flight. due to the cold the chute did not fully open until about 50 feet high. no problem.
2008-11-29	Mark H's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Nominal C6-5 first flight for re-issue DRM. Not too high, maybe 500 feet.
2008-12-20	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Der Red Max is a great flyer period! Nice straight boost, ejected perfectly. Recovered with no...
2009-01-11	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-01-11	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-02-15	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-02-15	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-02-23	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	this is my red max with 15 inch extended body tube. weathercocked somewhat.
2009-02-23	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	perfect flight. minor fin break on landing.
2009-02-23	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	my extended red max. perfect on a c-6-3.
2009-02-28	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-03-28	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Predicted Duration Entry - 45 sec est., 57 sec. actual
2009-03-28	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-2	-	Good Flight.
2009-03-28	John Venable's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	A perfect spinner to 700. Nice deployment on a 12 X-chute.Nice flight.
2009-04-04	John Venable's Estes Der Red Max	C6-7	-	Nice flight to 700'. Short walk due to the long delay.The LCO sounded like Chris Berman waiting...
2009-04-12	Mark H's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	A little windy. This rocket drifts. Nice flight as usual.
2009-05-05	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	perfect flight. straight up with a very slow roll. like i planned it that way. some drift but good...
2009-05-31	Eric Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	this red max is 25+ years old!! perfect flight. nice to see old rocket rip.
2009-06-04	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	more wind, more weathercock. several spectators for my 30 inch red max. fin popped off. this...
2009-06-04	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	my 30 red max. straight up. nice flight. cracked fin.
2009-06-06	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	Another great flight, recovered with no damage.
2009-06-16	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-2	-	Great flight.
2009-06-22	Jamie Martin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-06-23	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	my extended red max. another perfect flight. no damage
2009-06-24	Jamie Martin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2009-06-24	Jamie Martin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2009-07-04	Eric Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	first flight of my extended red max.(standard kit + 18 inch body tube). perfect flight, it took a...
2009-07-04	Eric Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	another perfect flight on the extended red max!!
2009-07-13	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	another perfect flight for my 30 inch red max!! i flew it for 3 young neighbor kids that had never...
2009-07-19	Eric Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	my brother and i tried to drag race but my weak batteries made for a slow take off. perfect...
2009-07-19	Eric Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	my extended red max. extra delay was ok today, it was calm. perfect flight
2009-07-19	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	like a broken record... another perfect flight for my extended red max.
2009-07-19	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-	i will say it again.... another perfect flight for my extended red max!!!!!
2009-08-08	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	D12-5	-	my MEGA MAX. scratch-built red max + 18 tube+ 24mm motor mount. rips on a D-12. lots of wind =...
2009-08-09	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-
2009-08-15	John Venable's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Nice fast spinning flight to 750'.Broke fin upon landing. WFA
2009-08-22	Chan Stevens's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-
2009-08-29	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B4-2	-
2009-09-21	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	First Flight of Der Red Max at Blackrock dessert. Used a loaned nylon chute and Dog Barf because...
2009-10-03	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Third Flight at Plumas Lake. Excellent flight.
2009-10-03	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Got a second Red Max kit with the Pirate Chute - attached with a swivel. Perfect flight on new...
2009-10-10	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	standard max.. weathercock with all this wind today.. another nice flight.
2009-10-12	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	red max = perfect!!!!!!!!!!
2009-10-12	Mark Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	SEE ABOVE
2009-11-14	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Delay a bit long, but otherwise a nice flight.
2009-11-15	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Another great flight!!
2009-11-21	Monty Liu's Estes Der Red Max	A8-4	125 feet	Got Supprizing proformance from the recently re released A8-4 Motors it Was a first flight so i...
2009-11-22	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Ejected just past apogee, but a nice flight.
2009-12-05	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Ejected just past the top, but nice flight.
2010-02-14	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2010-02-14	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-
2010-02-14	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-3	-
2010-02-15	Judy Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-4	-	Great flight, landed on all 3 fins.
2010-02-15	Judy Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-4	-	Good flight.
2010-02-20	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Drag race with Blue Max for EMRR challenge. Nice flight.
2010-03-07	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	D12-5	-	24mm Blue Max, great flight. Gets some altitude with a D12!
2010-03-07	John Bergsmith's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Windy, but a great flight!
2010-03-27	Ken Tsai's Estes Der Red Max	F35-8	-	24mm motor mount... wheee!!!
2010-04-18	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-4	-	Out launching with my daughter today, Good flight.
2010-04-18	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-4	-	Good flight trying get a shot of a drag race.
2010-04-18	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Another good flight.
2010-04-19	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Nice flight. Happy rocket.
2010-05-15	Ken Tsai's Estes Der Red Max	E15-7	-	Red Max really does love 24mm motors. Might be time to build one that will take 29mm?
2010-05-29	Ken Tsai's Estes Der Red Max	F35-8	-
2010-07-17	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	D13-4	-	Flew it a Fresno on a D13-4 Composite. Really fast takeoff, but not too high a flight. Really...
2010-08-04	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Fun flight at NARAM 52. Perfect apogee eject and nice flight.
2010-08-15	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2010-08-15	Todd Mullin's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2010-08-28	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Tangled chute. Minor BT damage.
2010-09-11	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-
2010-09-11	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2010-11-06	Jim Bassham's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Used Der Red Max to try a Badmitton loft for an upcoming contest. Got an 11 second badmitton toss,...
2010-11-13	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2010-11-13	Howard Smart's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-
2011-02-07	Jason Orosco's Estes Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Nice straight flight,
2011-05-28	Luis Vazquez's Estes Der Red Max	Estes B6-4	-	With the B6-4, Der Red Max flew straight up with minor twisting and reached appogee rather...
2011-05-30	Matthew Bond's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	First Flight of Der Red Max! Also the first flight of what turned out to be a perfect day on the...
2011-05-30	Matthew Bond's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Nice second flight of Der Red Max. Quick boost, arcing over at the top of the climb. Past apogee,...
2011-05-30	Matthew Bond's Estes Der Red Max	D10-5	-	Last flight of the day, decided to send Der Red Max for a ride on an AT D10-5. Tried to light it...
2011-07-03	George Beever's Estes Der Red Max	Estes C6-5	-	Good flight.
2011-08-05	Chris J Taylor's Der Red Max	B4-4	-	Solid maiden flight, no damage next time C6-5 will push the limits
2011-08-20	Dale Marshall's Der Red Max	C6-3	-	This is a beauty of a rocket and it flies great. This was a great flight in light winds.
2011-09-06	Matthew Bond's Estes Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Nice boost, smooth and straight. Arcing over, still climbing a little at ejection. Nose cone...
2011-09-06	Matthew Bond's Estes Der Blue Max	D12-5	-	First Flight of the 24mm Blue Max. Great boost, fast and high. Arcing over at the top of the...
2011-09-11	Douglas Hurstell's Der Red Max	B6-4	200 feet	Still has only a coat of primer, but it was a nice straight boost, and a nice soft landing. ...
2011-09-16	Kirk Mona's Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Maiden flight. Not very high on this engine. Parachute came out but did not unfurl. I think it was...
2012-01-14	Matthew Bond's 1.61x Upscale Der Green Max	F40-7	-	First Flight of the upscale Der Green Max, with the cool decals from Stickershock! Nice boost,...
2012-01-15	Luke Wolski's Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Motor burned through on the side, and the ejection charge blew about 30 feet in the air.
2012-03-10	Matthew Bond's 1.61x Upscale Der Green Max	G53-7	1870 feet	Nice second flight for Der Green Max. Wind starting to pick up a bit. Flown off the low power...
2012-03-17	Hans "Chris" Michielssen's Estes Der Red Max Clone	Estes C6-5	-	Perfect Red Max flight. No damage on recovery.
2012-03-24	Kirk Mona's Der Red Max	C6-5	-	Beautiful straight ascent. Excellent engine choice for this rocket. Drifted far, approx 300 feet...
2012-03-31	Luke Wolski's Der Red Max	B6-4	-	Good flight
2012-04-15	James Hamilton's Der Purple Max	Estes C6-5	-
2012-04-28	Matthew Bond's Estes Der Blue Max	D12-5	-	Doubled up the nomex chute protector to try and avoid some of the "toasting" seen on the last...
2012-05-06	George Beever's Estes Der Red Max	Quest C6-5	-	Perfect flight!
2012-05-12	Hans "Chris" Michielssen's Estes Der Red Max Clone	Estes B6-4	400' est. feet	The 18" parachute was switched out for the 12" chute from the Pipeline rocket. Good thing - the...
2012-05-19	John Bergsmith's Der Red Max	Estes C6-3	-
2031-05-05	Eric Grisco's Estes Der Red Max	B4-4	-	weathercocked a good bit so not to high. no damage.

Estes - Der Red Max (651) [2007-]

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