Brief:
This kit is part of Estes "E2X" series of kits which are easy to assemble 'almost ready to fly' types. The Mach 12 comes with pre-colored body parts, and needs only plastic cement to build. It comes with an 18" parachute.

Construction:
This kit is BT-55 based, and come w/ a body tube in two sections which are joined via a plastic coupler which has an integrated launch lug. The nose cone is plastic, and was the best I'd ever seen from Estes. Not one imperfection or any bit of flashing.

Two interesting things about this kit -- the motor mount & the fins. The mount is simply a plastic tube glued together, which also serves as the fin can. Motor retention is done via a screw on plastic tail piece. The kit comes with 3 sets of 4 fins which allow for up to 12 different fin configurations, so says the box. The fins can be easily changed, and fit nicely into slots on the fin can. The parachute was 18", and I have opted to use a 12" in its place. This is a light kit, and any wind would blow it away in no time. the shock cord was too small.

This kit is the easiest Estes kit I've ever assembled. The instruction are clear, and leave no room for questions. It doesn't take much to finish this off. I did use a length of Kevlarthread as a shock cord anchor, but otherwise I build it stock. The decals are self adhesive, and look good. As stated above, I swapped out the 18" chute for a 12".

The only thing I didn't like about this is the plastic-to-paper joints. They don't inspire much confidence, although they did hold together for the 2 flights it has had.

Finishing:
PROS: no finishing required, since all parts are pre-colored. Can't say the black/yellow/orange scheme is the best I could think of, but it will be hard to lose in green grass :). Decals go on easily

CONS: none, really. There was nothing to go wrong with it.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
I've flown it twice, both times on B6-4's since that was all I had kicking around. Nice straight flights each time, w/ nice recovery. The 12" chute works fine. I used the same fins on each flight, but may experiment in the future. On a C6, this kit would go nicely. No damage on either flight.

Recovery:
The 12" chute is sufficient for this kit. I'd keep the 18" for some other kit that needs it.

The Kevlarthread used as an anchor is now standard procedure for all my kits, and I've not had a burn through failure yet.

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary:
If you are looking for a real easy to assemble, fun kit and want to fly it soon, this is your baby. I bought it since it on sale for $4, and my visiting nephew would probably like to see it fly. Its a great kit to have for when you want to fly a small, but interesting rocket.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5