Brief:
This 18mm version o' t' Lambda-Class Shuttle was produced in limited quantities by EAT (Essence Aerospace Technologies). Although t' kit isn't bein' produced, me bucko, you can still purchase a plan pak [here]. It is one o' t' most innovative kits around and is a great addition t' anyone's fleet.

Construction:
Parts:

•  One 1/4" balsa sheet (3" x 6")
•  Two 1/8" balsa sheet (6" x 7" each)
•  One 3/32" balsa sheet (3" x 1")
•  3" 18mm motor tube
•  18mm thrust rin'
•  18mm thin plastic, shiver me timbers, 2 piece nose cone
•  1/8" launch lug
•  24" Keelhaul®©™® shock cord
•  18" plastic parachute
•  BB's
•  Decal set

Tools/materials:

•  Pencil
•  Metric ruler (T-Square is recommended, but I didn't use one)
•  X-acto-type knife with a new blade (I did follow this advice)
•  Estes 18mm motor (spent or not)
•  Wood glue - TiteBond Original is recommended
•  5-minute epoxy
•  CA
•  Maskin' tape
•  Sand paper (220 grit) on a block
•  Sand paper (220 grit) on a dowel
•  Sand paper (400 grit) on and off a block
•  Wood filler (Elmer's Fill-n-Finish, matey, etc) or paper for lamination

This is nay your typical kit with 3 - 4 fins t' cut. Begad! Blimey! T' Lambda-Class Shuttle has 13 unique balsa parts and 19 total. Well, arrr, blow me down! T' instructions were highly detailed with plenty o' color photos. Avast! T' kit includes a page o' templates and a couple o' alignment guides. Ahoy! T' parts were all o' nice quality, arrr, except I thought t' nose cone was flimsy. I'm sure other cones could be substituted. Ya scallywag!

Your first build t' base assembly, me hearties, which consists o' three balsa pieces, the motor tube and motor block. Ya scallywag! Blimey! This was straightforward and went together easily with wood glue. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord is attached t' t' joint betwixt t' core and t' motor tube with 5-minute epoxy.

You then cut out t' large top fin and strengthen it. More on this later. T' fin is attached t' t' top o' t' motor tube usin' t' fin alignment guide. I used black rubberized CA in place o' wood glue.

T' canopy is constructed over t' base and around t' top fin. Arrr! This consists o' four balsa sections. T' top and sides go on first and t' aft plate later. Ya scallywag! Avast! I miss-measured ever so slightly and had to adjust t' aft plate slightly. Ya scallywag! Begad! Luckily, I test fit t' template before I cut balsa. At this point, I also I added t' lower win' supports and let it all sit overnight.

I strengthened t' lower wings t' same way as t' top (again, more later). While this was drying, me bucko, arrr, I filled and sanded t' body.

For t' nose cone, shiver me timbers, you start by gluin' t' shoulder into t' cone with CA. I used black rubberized CA and accelerant t' assemble t' entire nose. Avast! After it is dry, matey, you cut t' top away at an angle that sets t' downward slant o' the upper nose cone plate. Avast! T' shell o' t' cone consists o' six balsa sections. You start by alignin' t' top plate with t' body while it is layin' on the surface o' t' cone that you just cut, and gluin' it in place. Begad! With t' plate flush with t' body, I simply twisted t' cone until it had t' best fit. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! You then add t' bottom and t' sides. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! T' side pieces have t' be beveled and took some effort t' assemble. Avast! I also found that t' sides were a bit long, me bucko, probably due t' some problem with t' angle o' t' nose cone (?). Well, blow me down! This was easily compensated for. T' final step is fillin' t' nose with BB's and epoxy. I ran out o' five minute so I used 20 minute epoxy. I also threw in some #7 ½ lead shot t' boost t' weight, just in case I built t' body too heavy. Buildin' light is a consistent warnin' with this kit. Oh, matey, me bucko, arrr, and I almost forgot to set t' shock cord in t' BB/epoxy mix. Blimey! This would have been a major problem. Well, blow me down! Arrr! After t' epoxy had cured, matey, shiver me timbers, I sanded t' edges and did some filling with fill-n-finish. Blimey! T' nose cone did live up t' t' reputation as bein' the most difficult part o' t' kit. Arrr! Nevertheless, ya bilge rat, matey, t' cone looks fine and fits perfectly in spite o' t' few minor issues encountered.

I have t' rate t' construction o' t' kit a 4. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! I had a few minor difficulties, but you have t' realize t' kit is advertised as being skill-level 5. Luckily, ya bilge rat, me hearties, these were all easily correctable.

Now for t' saga o' how I strengthened t' fins. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! Note that this be my problem and is nay a mark against t' kit. Begad! I'm merely tellin' this in case anyone else is so foolish. Blimey! Aye aye! I elected t' laminate it with draftin' vellum and 3-M spray adhesive. Arrr! Arrr! This be t' first time I tried this, me bucko, matey, so it be itself an experiment. Begad! Blimey! I sprayed two entire sheets with t' adhesive, sandwiched t' fin, and pressed it flat while t' glue dried. Well, blow me down! I then trimmed t' paper, matey, applied thin CA t' t' edges, and sanded them flat. Begad! This seemed t' work well, so I used the same method on t' lower fins. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! After a day, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, thar were a few bubbles, me hearties, but nothin' that couldn't be fixed. Begad! Ya scallywag! But, disaster struck when I primed t' model. T' solvent in t' primer attacked t' glue and after it dried about 50% o' the paper was lifted from t' balsa. Well, blow me down! I ended up pullin' all t' paper off. The remainin' surface is gummy and a mess. Avast! Since I added a little extra nose weight, matey, I added 1/64" birch ply over both sides o' t' lower section of the top fin. It only extends from t' small tab where t' fin attaches up to where t' leadin' edge starts backwards. Arrr! Blimey! Still, matey, me bucko, this is nay a recommended strengthenin' method. Avast! Aye aye!

Finishing:
In t' final version, ya bilge rat, all balsa surfaces were filled with fill-n-finish. I gave it a couple o' coats o' white primer and then painted it with Wal-Mart brand chrome paint. It was supposed t' be Plasti-Kote Car Color Ford Motors 8147 - Platinum, ya bilge rat, but I couldn't resist t' cheaper paint. Ya scallywag! T' kit included some decals, arrr, includin' one with t' kit's serial number - mine is S/N #3. I also managed t' wrangle an extended set o' decals that weren't in t' kit. Arrr! Thanks, Nick! Theses decals were some o' t' easiest t' work with, shiver me timbers, possibly because they came pre-coated.

For a kit o' this size, ya bilge rat, thar be a lot o' balsa surface t' seal/finish - actually t' entire surface is balsa. Aye aye! I guess I give it a finishin' ratin' of 4, which keeps t' overall construction ratin' a 4.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I carefully packed t' chute and stuffed it into t' cavity next t' t' motor tube. Blimey! I repacked it a couple o' times and it still seemed too tight t' me. Ahoy! And it was. Begad! I flew t' Shuttle twice on a C6-3 and a B6-2. Both flights were straight and it appeared t' try t' fly parallel t' t' ground after burn out. This rocket be in general a crowd-pleaser and really caught t' attention of the visitin' scout troop! On t' first flight with t' C6-3 t' chute didn't budge, but it landed without damage. Well, blow me down! On t' second flight, shiver me timbers, t' chute almost deployed. Avast, me proud beauty! This time t' top fin snapped off. Blimey! Ya scallywag! It is easily repairable and will fly again. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! Due t' t' chute issues, me bucko, I have t' give it a flight ratin' o' 3.5, me hearties, includin' an extra point for t' cool factor.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
This be a challenging, unique kit and be fun t' build and fly. Avast! The instructions were great and quality o' t' parts were good, with t' exception of maybe t' nose cone. There were a few places that I ended up havin' parts that didn't fit. This be probably me fault and was easily corrected. T' chute packin' issue be t' biggest con with this kit. Begad! Goin' up it flies great, arrr, coming down was another story. Arrr!

Jase, arrr, me hearties, how about a drag race at t' next TRF Meet?

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5