2231 Fin Alignment Guide Model Kit , Color Varies

Cheap and effective. I wish I had this when I was a kid. 90% of the time when I had a problem with model rockets as a kid it was because of fin alignment, and this goes a long way towards eliminating that problem with model rocket kits that need balsa wood fins attached to a cardboard tube. I have built several kits with my son and have had no problem with fin alignment. You still have to be careful, but this eliminates the guessing and trying to line up measurements on a curved surface so everything is straight and spaced evenly.

I bought one of these almost 20 years ago and lost it while moving. This handy tool will align your fins so that they are perfectly even. Fin alignment is necessary if you don't want your rocket to spiral out of control. There are 4 forces that act on rocket bodies and if your fins are not aligned properly they will fly off during launch. The only time I ever lost a fin was because of improper alignment and I tried to eye-ball that the fins were even. Now, with this tool just bought off Amazon.com it was $5 less than every price I was finding. I have 7 rockets to build and utilizing this tool will help me more than trying to do it the old fashioned way. I am sold on fin alignment if you want to properly launch and recover your rockets successfully.

Son enjoys using it to build his rockets.

Grand kids built rockets on rainy days. For sunny days .

This is kind of pricy for what it is, but it is very nice when it comes time to put the fins on a kit such as the V2. For kits that have grooved placement of fins, this jig makes it way easy. For kits that directly glue balsa to the body tube, there is some technique involved with getting one fin aligned and held at a time. This would involve patience to let the fin set up a little more before using the included clips. The alignment plates are helpful, but you really need to read the instructions on which side of the plate to use depending on whether the rocket is using 2mm (common) or 3mm thick fins. This jig also uses the motor mount to line things up, so you may need to change your order of building to get the motor mount in first before the fins get put on. This jig has helped me on the V2 and Magician build that uses D-E sized (24mm) motor mounts. It can be used on 18mm (ABC) motor mounts and micro motor mounts. There is nothing included for 29mm motor mounts. But, you can probably rig it to take larger motor mounts. This is definitely my "go to" fin jig now that I have it. I plan to use it on all my future 18mm and 24 mm motor builds.

My kit came without the engine tubes.

Great product, aligns the rocket fins as advertised.....just be careful with the glue! I wound up just being very careful with the gluing process and did just enough to make the fins stable while in the holder. Then once removed I would finish gluing them to the rocket body. This was to prevent gluing everything, including the holder, to the rocket body.

I was a little concerned when I saw the reviews saying it was flimsy but I took a chance and bought it. I didn’t find it to be flimsy at all. You can use it for 3 or 4 fin rockets. It’s simple and straightforward to use.

I'd have given it a star or two more if one of the backets on the three fin arrangement wasn't loose. Causes these rockets to fly with bit of a wobble. The four fin arrangement works great, but I seem to be on a 3 fin kick.

Viele Jahre habe ich die Flossen meiner Modellraketen mit Augenmaß und Flosse für Flosse angeklebt, was doch recht mühsam und Zeitaufwändig war. Jetzt geht es in einen rutscht. Ich habe das Teil auf ein Brett montiert was ein umkippen vermeidet. Die mitgelieferten Adapter passen gut bei normalen Flossen, ich habe mir noch eigene Adapter aus alten Motoren gebaut um noch flexibler zu sein, mittlerweile möchte ich das Teil nicht mehr missen.