Aerotech Kits: Warped Fins: Anyone Else ?

[Suborbital Maniac]

I have Aerotech Mirage and Astrobee-D kits. These have been sitting around for quite some time and I'm finally getting to build them. However, I've discovered that fins in both kits are warped ! I've contacted Aerotech and left a message with their support people....

Is this common ?

Anyone else had this problem and is there a fix ? (heating and bending or some such).

I will see if I hear back from Aerotech and if I do, if they will replace them...

 

[mpitfield]

I have built two Arreaux, and one Mustang, no issues with the fins. I gave my brother the G-Force and Strong Arm and he also had no issues with the fins. Finally I have the Astrobee-D un-built and still in the box, and the fins look fine on it as well.

It is possible that you received a bad batch or another option is they were stored at some point after manufacturing in a spot that may have been too hot, which caused the fins to warp.

I think you are on track by approaching Aerotech, but to answer your question, from my experience this is not the norm.

 

[Suborbital Maniac]

I bought the kits about a year ago from the widdow of a guy who had *dozens* of kits -all new, in the box- just waiting for the day he had time to build them. How long he had them, I don't know but it's reasonable to suspect that these kits have been sitting for 5, 6 or more years. The fins were all taped together carefully from the factory, too.

 

[JJSR]

I had a Mirage with warped fins, I believe it was from the way they were taped together.
AT replaced them no problem. I tried to heat them, but never could get them to like they should be.

 

[Suborbital Maniac]

I contacted Karl at Aerotech Friday and heard from his first thing this morning. Apparently, there was -at one point, quite a long time ago- an issue with some fins warping. He will be shipping me new fins this week and I plan on flying both kits at the Sullivan Lake launch up here in mid-September !

 

[Winston]

I have Aerotech Mirage and Astrobee-D kits. These have been sitting around for quite some time and I'm finally getting to build them. However, I've discovered that fins in both kits are warped ! I've contacted Aerotech and left a message with their support people....

Is this common ?

I had a similar problem with the Astrobee-D, but it wasn't that the fins were warped, it was a molding defect on all four fins. The through-wall tab wouldn't lock in place because the root edge of the fins angled toward the body tube from the tab to both the leading and trailing edge causing the root edge to contact the body tube perhaps 0.1" before the tab locked in place. I contacted Aerotech customer service sending photos via email and got a new set of fins in short order even though the kit had been purchased over a year before I finally got around to building it.