Well, the marines of my raiding party, will be the beetle pipes. Testing has increased both my pride and concerns. Performance was simple and flawless, as it pulled nicely and lighting her up was not construed as technical, challenging, or stressful. It had a simple, straightforward operation with no learning curve, and felt compact. Brass components added to a solid weight and feel.
Stress was however expressed in the initial handling, particularly around the index finger toward the beetle's bum. Extending the legs and tightening the slot resolved this sense of imbalance as the increased sensation of pressure from the legs nullified any psychological doubt on finger placement and balance.
Slack in the abdomen was addressed with planed bolsters to prevent the twisting action that some felt created a sense of looseness and fragility. Lever action is now constrained to its intended vertical movement. I never shared the concern of fragility, but understood the discomfort associated with the superfluous yet minute twisting motion. It felt unintended and hinted at design carelessness.
Finally, an amendment in name once again. Sir John is now Sir George. A Japanese Rhinoceros Beetle is far better suited to Sir John, the three horned rhino beetle suits Sir Pete, while Sir Paul tentatively suits the rainbow scarab beetle presuming my design solution for length is robust in the test panels' hands. Sir Paul will require mechanical redesign, while the rest only surface considerations.
Thanx for sparing the time.