Brief:
This kit is a 3FNC (3 Fins and a Nose Cone) piston-ejection, me bucko, arrr, streamer duration competition rocket. Begad! The "ELM" stands for "Extremely Low Mass." It is a companion kit t' its only slightly larger brother the Stratos-18 ELM.

Construction:
My kit came with balsa nose cone, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, two sheets o' 1/32" balsa fin stock, me hearties, balsa nose block for t' piston, a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord, matey, an elastic shock cord, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, engine block, arrr, launch lug, me bucko, arrr, matey, white BT-5 body tube with very fine groves and a light glassine coating. T' instructions were written onto a compact disc in PDF format. Arrr! Even though t' kit comes with two sheets o' balsa, ya bilge rat, only one is needed.

I ordered both t' Stratos-13 and Stratos-18 together. Aye aye! Begad! When they arrived I found that t' body tube had been bent beyond use by t' post office. Begad! Begad! I sent Carlos at Heavenly Hobbies an email about t' tube and he sent me out a replacement right away and free o' charge. Avast, me proud beauty! I built t' Stratos-18 while waitin' for t' replacement BT-5. As that only took a few hours o' build time t' complete, I decided t' use a "modular" approach t' assemblin' t' rest of the rocket.

First I cut t' fins from t' 1/32" balsa fin stock. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' protect in from chippin' or splitting, I covered t' back with blue painters tape. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! After t' fins were cut I decided nay t' round t' edges. Aye aye! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! At that thickness I don't think it would have made a difference and why take t' chance on splittin' a freshly cut fin.

Next I assembled t' engine block and Keelhaul®©™® shock cord. Begad! A groove gets cut into t' outside surface deep enough t' fit t' shock cord in t' it. Ya scallywag! I secured it usin' a bowline knot and set it with CA.

After that came t' nose cone and elastic shock cord. Arrr! Accordin' t' t' instructions, t' elastic cord is t' be knotted at one end and stuffed into a pre-drilled hole. Blimey! There be no hole. I used a 1/8" drill bit t' make one. T' balsa also looked a bit soft so I coated it with CA and allowed it t' harden. Blimey! Followin' that came a brushed on layer o' thinned Elmer's Wood Filler. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Once that had dried I sanded it down until smooth. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! T' finish up I pushed the elastic knot into t' shoulder o' t' nose and secured it with 30 minute epoxy.

All that left was t' streamer. All I did thar be fold one end into a point and tie on a 9" section of Keelhaul®©™® cut from t' length provided. I used hole reinforcements t' keep it from tearin' out.

When t' body tube arrived at last, it was time t' put everythin' together. Aye aye! Blimey! Engine block in, matey, arrr, fins on, shiver me timbers, tie shock cords t' one another. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I do need t' mention that as t' rocket uses a balsa block as its piston. It comes with a small hole drilled through it and threaded on t' t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord. Knots are tied above and below t' piston t' hold it in place. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' piston provided be a good bit narrow and had t' be built up with maskin' tape. Well, blow me down! This may actually be a good thin' as I'll cover in a moment.

Finishing:
I left t' rocket unfinished as it is supposed t' be a competition rocket. Arrr! T' only finishin' I did was t' before mentioned work t' harden t' nose cone.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
For its maiden flight I used an A3-4T. Blimey! Well, blow me down! With t' piston ejection it requires no wadding. Aye aye! Blimey! Place an igniter in a motor and place t' motor in t' rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! T' motor is friction fitted and secured with two wraps o' maskin' tape. Avast, me proud beauty! T' take off was right quick and blended in with t' overcast skies.

Recovery:
I was able t' track t' rocket once t' ejection charge blew. Avast! Begad! Then I knew I had a problem. Begad! Somehow t' nose and streamer had separated from t' rest o' t' rocket. T' body landed gently in t' flyin' field but t' nose and streamer continued t' drift toward t' road. It landed gently enough but balsa be never intended t' hold up against cars. Avast! T' nose cone was crushed. Blimey! Turns out that t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord snapped at t' piston. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! It was either too thin, too short, ya bilge rat, or a combination on t' two. Avast! Also, ya bilge rat, after the flight t' piston was a bit resistant t' go in. Arrr! I peeled off a bit o' t' maskin' tape and all was fine. Well, blow me down! It was cool and damp when I flew and that may have had somethin' t' do with it. Begad! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This was a very nice little kit. Avast! I would nay recommend it as a first kit as you need a motor case t' set t' engine block in place. Avast! It would work well as a first completion kit as long as t' builder had some experience with cutting their own fins from stock.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5