Brief:
T' Hydra 7 is a currently t' "newest" kit by Semroc Astronautics (originally released in 1969 and re-released on January 1st, 2004). Avast! T' rocket is based around six 18mm motor tubes and is a great clustered, high altitude payloader, shiver me timbers, and retails for $23. Avast! T' rocket can fly on anythin' from 1 C6-3 t' 3 C6-5s t' 7 C6-7s. Arrr! With its largest motor setup (7 C6's) it is supposed t' reach 1700'. Avast! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! For recovery it splits into two sections, me hearties, t' payload comes down under one 12" parachute, and t' booster on two 12" parachutes.

Construction:
All parts came packaged in a large plastic bag, with t' smaller ones being inside their own small bag. Ya scallywag! All parts were in excellent condition and all present.

Parts List:

• 2 Body Tubes 1.69"
• 7 Body Tubes 0.79"
• 1 Body Tube 3.63"
• 1 Nose Cone 1.631"
• 3 Nose Cones 0.714"
• 4 Laser Cut fin sheets
• 1 Balsa Tube Coupler for 1.69" Tube
• 1 Launch Lug 1/8"
• 1 Screw eye
• 2 Elastic Shock cords
• 1 Keelhaul®©™® Shock cord
• 3 Parachutes 12"
• 3 Sets o' shroud lines
• 1 Wooden dowel 3/16"
• 7 Thrust rings
• 6 Plugs for thrust rings
• 1 Decal Sheet
• 1 Engine spacin' tube
• 1 Q-Tip for glue application

Construction starts with sealin' t' fins, me bucko, because thar are so many it would be hard t' reach them after t' rocket is finished. I used about 3 coats (on each side) o' some type o' spray-on sealer, me bucko, although I'm nay sure what brand it is. Arrr! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Next, you glue together t' 7 motor tubes in a six-point star pattern. Arrr! Avast! Blimey! From here, you attach t' 6 shroud support fins in betwixt t' joints of t' motor tubes (LOC Viper style). Begad! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Then you glue on t' shroud and put in the motor blocks. T' six outside blocks are plugged with cardboard disks, and the central one is left open for t' ejection charge t' go through. T' next step is where t' rocket begins t' get its unique appearance. From t' outside, the nosecones in t' kit appear t' go halfway through t' body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! However, instead o' cuttin' t' body tube, me hearties, ya bilge rat, you are supplied with 3 nose cones. Arrr! Blimey! You have to cut each one in half and then sand t' curvature o' t' 1.6" tube into the side o' them so they conform t' t' body tube. I thought this step would be the trickiest o' them all, however, it was quite easy. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! First I cut the Nosecones in half with a microsaw, then I used a drum out o' a drum sander to sand down t' curve on t' nosecones. Begad! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Once you get that done, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, you test fit them into t' booster tubes and slide t' Main body tube down onto them. Avast! Ahoy! Blimey! You are supposed t' re-sand if necessary but I didn't have to. Avast! Arrr! Blimey! T' next few steps involve gluin' on t' fins, matey, which I'm sure everyone here knows how t' do just fine. T' only little catch with t' fins is that...there are 21 o' them! Blimey! (And thank goodness they were all laser-cut!) After that is done, you assemble the payload section (glue in coupler and screw eye), arrr, and t' other little things you do at t' end like fillets, launch lug, matey, etc. Construction was pretty fun, and I liked t' way that everythin' fit almost perfectly.

Picture courtesy of SemRoc        

Finishing:
For finishing, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I first sprayed t' entire rocket with white primer. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I then touched up rough spots with sandin' and putty until when I primed it everything was smooth and filled in (spiral, shiver me timbers, balsa grain, fillets, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, etc.). Blimey! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I then sprayed the entire rocket with white gloss Krylon paint. When that be dry, matey, I sprayed the payload tube and nose cone Krylon gloss blue. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! After that was dry, arrr, I applied 4 o' t' many decals t' rocket comes with.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
At long last, ya bilge rat, me hearties, I finally got t' fly it! Last month's launch was cancelled due to snow, matey, so I had been waitin' anxiously for this month.

First flight was with only one C6-3 just t' test things out. Arrr! Worked nicely, with a slow, majestic ascent.

Second flight was with seven C6-7s.

First attempt: Wired up 7 high current igniters t' t' motor and twisted the wires together. Avast, me proud beauty! 5-4-3-2-1-Lauch...nothing. Ahoy! Too little current comin' from the launch controller.

Second attempt: Same igniters and setup, me bucko, but used leads from the high-powered pads. Blimey! Still no go.

Third attempt: Took out 3 motors t' have a 4 motor cluster. Blimey! Avast! Used leads from high-powered pads. Avast, me proud beauty! 5-4-3-2-1-Launch...Smoke...nothing. Ya scallywag! Igniters in all 4 motors burned but nay t' motors. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! T' igniter plugs seemed t' have insulated some of the current because only t' lower-most part o' t' igniter had burned and the pyrogen be still intact on t' upper portion--the motor touchin' portion.

Fourth attempt: Used a clip whip (Thanks t' Dave Morey for supplyin' it) to wire up 7 Estes igniters. Arrr! 5-4-3-2-1-Launch....Smoke....FIRE!!! T' rocket roared up into t' sky with t' full fury o' 7 C6 motors burnin' in t' rear. After about 3 seconds, ya bilge rat, with t' rocket barely in sight, me bucko, ya bilge rat, POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! As t' 6 outboard motors were ejected. Ya scallywag! T' central motor ejected the parachutes and it drifted about 1/2 mile downwind. Ya scallywag! Post-flight inspection showed that all motors had apparently burned, because all o' t' motors ejected.

PROs: Full cluster ignition is incredible t' watch. Begad! Ahoy! Attracts a lot of attention on t' pad.

CONs: Hard t' light all motors, arrr, especially with high-current igniters. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! The only igniters I found that would work are Estes Solars, but for those you need a clip whip because t' wires aren't long enough t' twist together.

Recovery:
First Flight (1x C6-3): Loosened one fin on impact, but that be me fault, because I only attached one o' t' parachutes t' t' booster section. Fin was easily fixed with some CA glue and accelerator.

Second Flight (7x C6-7): If you ever fly this rocket on t' full load-out of motors, matey, you may want t' consider tyin' t' two sections together or installin' a micro dual-deployment device because this rocket DRIFTS! I had to walk about 1/2 mile for t' booster and then t' payload be another 1/2 mile past that. Begad! Well, blow me down! Whew! I'm glad I didn't put t' two parachutes on t' booster for that flight! Anyway, t' same fin loosened again at t' fillet, me hearties, but that can still be repaired.

PROS: Recovery device is well made and anchored well. Begad! Well, blow me down! Provides an okay decent rate.

CONS: Drifts very far even without one o' t' three parachutes. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Overall, me bucko, me bucko, I really enjoyed this rocket in buildin' and flying. T' only thing that needs a little work be t' recovery system. Avast! If you buy it you will not regret it and you will have a lot o' fun with it. Arrr! Currently this is me favorite rocket out o' a fleet o' about 20. Ahoy!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5