For rocketry the best tools in a wood shop are a 4" belt/6"disc combo sander (HomeDepot Ryobi $120) final OD on centering rings and fin airfoiling, a Scroll Saw (OD on centering rings), a bench top drill press for drilling/cutting IDs on centering rings, a power miter saw (cutting all kinds of stuff and cutting tubes squarely), a router and tablesaw are nice to have, and a bandsaw is nice too. I probably use the first 3 tools for 90% of my rocketry work. I do have jigs that fit the saws and sanders that allow me to cut circles, and final sand the ODs to a perfect fit inside the tube. For IDs on CRs I use 3/4", 1", 1-1/8" forstner bits for (18mm, 24mm, 29mm motor mount tubes, 29mm requires a little inside sanding to get MMT tube to fit, an 1-3/16" bit would be perfect), for 38mm to 98mm I use the adjustable circle cutter from General Tools (also called a fly cutter, the one on the right side in 3rd photo, the one on left is Harbor Freight and is not only cheap but sloppy,and cuts poorly). My preferred blade in the scroll saw is a spiral cut blade. For the cost of a 1/2 dozen MPR/HPR kits all these tools are easily had, and worth every penny. The router is very useful when paired with special jigs that allow me to do all kinds of things, but not really necessary. A set of sanding drums for the drill press is also very useful when having to slightly enlarge motor mount CR IDs. For a long time I used a Harbor Freight disc/belt combo sander (on sale for $58 currently) and a HarborFreight Scroll Saw. Be wary of the circle cutters to keep fingers and hands well clear.


