Brief:
SEMROC's Tau Zero is a futuristic looking, fighter styled, single stage model rocket. Designed by Jay Goemmer, it has a long, bulbous nose cone, a ring tail with 3 forward swept fins capped by laser guns.

Construction:
In the kit you get:

• Balsa nose cone
• Main body tube
• Ring fin body tube
• Laser cut fins (3 outer fins, 3 inner fins)
• Engine hook
• Thrust ring
• Retainer ring
• Empty engine casing
• 1/8" Launch lug
• 3 3/16" launch lug (laser guns)
• 3 1/8" wood dowels (laser guns)
• Elastic shock cord
• Kevlar® shock cord
• Screw eye
• Streamer
• Adhesive disk (streamer)
• Glue applicator (cotton swab)
• Tau Zero gluing jigs
• Waterslide decal sheet

For the construction, the instruction set is first rate and is simple to follow with diagrams to aid every step. You even get 2 separate glue jigs to aid in fin placement and spacing. The model is easiest to build in two parts: the main body and the ring fin assembly. This will greatly aid in finishing the model to match the instructions paint scheme. Just use some cut strips of masking tape to cover the areas to be glued together after painting.

Finishing:
One thing I don't agree with is sealing the balsa parts early on in the construction. I have never known sanding sealer to accept wood glue very well. It is better to wait until the fins are on then seal the balsa on the two separate assemblies. Perhaps Semroc needs to look at this and rearrange or modify the instructions to better suit this approach. Beyond that small hiccup, finishing is straightforward model rocket finishing.

Construction Rating: 4 out of 5

Flight:
First flight with an EST A8-3 was underpowered but a nice stable flight. Ejection was a bit early.

Second flight went better with an EST B4-4. This should be the smallest motor to use with this rocket. Ejection was dead-on at apogee, just nosing over. A nice, straight, and stable flight.

Third flight was with an EST B6-4. Much like the B4-4 the ejection was dead-on at apogee, nosing over. The B6 gets it up in the air for a very nice flight.

Fourth flight was an EST C6-5. The C power really send this rocket into the air. A beautiful arrow straight flight. I could just see the ejection as the nose started to point down.

Recovery:
After years of flying with elastic shock cord, I've gotten tired of the snap back damage from the nose cones. With this kit I substituted a 36" length of 100# Kevlar® to replace the elastic. It makes for a nice, smooth ejection. Also, based on previous reviews here on EMRR, I switched out the kits streamer for my own 3" x 36" pleated mylar streamer. This was still not enough for an easy recovery. The rocket came back to Earth in a controlled crash more than a landing. I think the soft grass soccer field I was in kept the rocket from being damaged with not so much as a stress crack. A chute with a spill hole would be a better match to this small but slightly heavy rocket.

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary:
The Tau Zero is a very nice rocket to build and fly. With a B4 or larger motor, this rocket really loves to fly. It is recommended though that a small parachute be used instead of the included streamer. This rocket is somewhat heavy for its size.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5