Brief:
This is an AeroTech Mustang made longer with an additional body and payload section. Also installed PVC motor retainer.

Modifications:
Not being content to leave well enough alone, I took one of my favorite flyers and stretched it out to double its original size. I got the parts listed above directly from AT since I couldn't find one dealer that had all of them. It's not the cheapest way to go, but I wanted all real AT parts. After tying on 8' more shock cord, I glued the coupler to the existing Mustang body and the new body tube to that. I built the 9" payload section (I'd wanted 12" but AT was out of the 12" tube) and hung the shock cord to it. I also broke off the AT motor hook (rather than having it break on me by accident) and installed a PVC motor retainer as described elsewhere.

Construction:
Additional parts include:

• 1 full length AT 1.88" body tube
• 1 1.88" coupler
• 1 9" length AT 1.88" payload section kit (tube, coupler, bulkhead, screw eye)
• 1 8 foot extension to AT shock cord

As a simple extension, there were no plans to work from but none were needed either. Having built an AT payload section before, that was even done from memory.

Finishing:
It all got a new paint job: a double coat of black appliance enamel for everything except the nose and a spin stripe on the payload section.

Flight:
First flight after the mod was an F20. Flight was flawless but too much chute carried it a quarter mile. Second flight on an F25, also flawless and impressive. Third flight, F50. BOOM. Massive CATO of the motor blew the nozzle off and blew the flange off the PVC bushing cap. The motor casing was removed with the fuel grain intact, the delay end had broken off, and was still in the tube. Except for the bushing cap, there was absolutely no damage to the rocket. I consider this a successful if unplanned test of the retainer, proving it to "fail safe" by blowing out rather than having the motor rupture the rocket. The E clip portion of the retainer was retrieved and was unbent, proving it is plenty strong enough to stand a normal ejection charge.

Summary:
On its first flight I found out I wasn't the only one to have this idea. While searching the field next to the flying field for my drifted away rocket, I was met by someone else doing the same, also with a stretched Mustang.