Brief:
The Semroc Gee'hod is a single-stage, parachute recovery rocket and is the third release in their line of "Groonies" - grown up Gooney Birds. Where Estes Gooney Birds had 13mm motor mounts, Semroc's Groonies have 18mm mounts and are a bit bigger in diameter.

Construction:
Previous reviewers have covered the basics very well. I love Semroc's components...some of the finest in the business. I followed the directions and had no problems during construction. I don't think I had the same "flimsy balsa" issues others seem to have had with these kits. The kit does require some careful alignment of the four main fin components since they're not 90-degrees apart from each other. In fact as many rockets as I've built, I still managed to somehow get the lower "bomb" out of alignment. This didn't seem to affect flight though.

I waited to attach the "wheels" under the wings until I was completely done painting and decaling the rocket. Incidentally, I applied the decals to the wheels before painting them. One thing I would have done differently on the wheels was paint the center of the wheel silver or white before applying the decal. The "spokes" are in a clear portion of decal and therefore show the color underneath.

Finishing:
For the main fins "wings", I covered the top surface with a sheet of typing paper and wicked thin CA over it. After the CA dried, I sanded it smooth. This provieds a fairly nice surface for finishing. I used regular balsa sanding sealer on the bottoms of the fins (just a couple coats). The nose of the RPG got several coats of sanding sealer as did the "bomb" and that big nose cone.

I used Walmart's Color Place "Almond" to simulate the desert tan/sand color and it was a good, economical choice.

The decals were a joy to apply. I got as big a kick out of them as I do reading the instructions in Dr Zooch kits. I especially liked the "nose art". I'll leave it at that. Having spent some time in that region of the world, I can appreciate the Semroc version of a "pin-up" girl for this rocket. I placed the "quality parts stolen from Semroc" decals under the wing versus over the wing as shown on the instructions. I thought the recommended placement made the top half (as viewed from the side, like an airplane) too buzy. Just a personal preference.

Since this is supposed to represent an airplane that flies and supposedly lands, I have to assume they are goverened by some sort of air traffic control rules. I added a couple of extra dots of paint on the top and bottom of the fuselage as well as a red dot on the left wing tip and green dot on the right wing tip to simulate navigation lights. I also upped the armament on this beast by putting three small dots of black paint on the leading edge of each wing to mimic machine gun ports, similar to what you might see on WWII fighters. I just wanted to spice it up a bit and I think it looks pretty cool.

I haven't clear coated my rocket yet, even after three flights. I need to get on that though to protect the decals.

PROs: Cool decals and with a little imagination you can enhance it a bit.
CONs: LOTS of balsa to prepare for finishing.

Construction Rating: 5 out of 5

Flight:
Saturday, 13 December 2008 was a nice day for flying at Rainbow Valley. I'd prepped several rockets at home, including the Gee'hod. I used the included Semroc chute, lightly dusted with baby powder to increase the chances it would fully deploy in the chilly morning air. First flight up was on a C6-5 and the rocket performed perfectly with a little twist on the way up. Ejection was perfect at just over apogee and the chute fully deployed for a good landing. Second flight up was also on a C6-5 and was a repeat of the first except that the RPG on the tail cleanly snapped off on landing. Thankfully it was an easy fix with medium CA as I really wanted to fly the Gee'hod again. Third flight was on a B6-4 and was a nice flight with no damage on landing. I really like this little rocket - Semroc has a winner here.

Recovery:

PROs - Cool styling, great flier.
CONs - RPG has the potential to snap off if rocket lands just "wrong"; Minimal space to pack recovery gear, but it works out.

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:

PROs: Unique styling, quality components, awesome decals, overall a fun build.
CONs: Like all squat rockets, minimal space for recover gear.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5

Other:
For the two wheels, I put a thin bead of yellow carpenter's glue on the edge to build up a "tread." This is only a very thin coating of glue and in addition to sealing the edge of the balsa, it provided a nice surface to paint the rest of the tire black after applying the decals.