Estes Fin Marking Guide

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Wonderdog

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I'm considering buying this guide. Its cheap enough, but I wonder if its a useful tool or something that gets thrown in the corner. I'm not interested in building tools, just rockets, and am not so comfortable using the door trim to mark tubes.

Thanks,
The Dog
 
I'd definitely pick it up. I use mine all the time and it is very useful for marking tubes accurately. The door frame/desk drawer method is OK too, but the marking guide is handier.

Of course, if you have 'non-Estes standard' tube sizes, it's not completely accurate. But it's no big problem to use the wrap-and-fold method to set your fin placement for those. And the tube-marking ruler still works fine pretty much no matter what tube size you're using.
 
I've just got myself one of these. I brought a kit at IRW04, and the marking guide, in the kit, was about 1mm out. I used Starbug's Estes fin guide to mark the fin points, and extend them down the bt. It was so easy I had to get one for myself. Its supposed to help with holding the fins, while the glue is drying, but the usefulness of this function is 'debateable'.
 
Originally posted by wonderdog
I'm considering buying this guide. Its cheap enough, but I wonder if its a useful tool or something that gets thrown in the corner. I'm not interested in building tools, just rockets, and am not so comfortable using the door trim to mark tubes.

Thanks,
The Dog

I use one and it works fine. It also has a fin alignment guide that can help you get the fins on straight. The body tube marking guages can be used as stands to hold a tube while the fin dries also.

If your only interested in marking the lines, you can get a piece of angle iron from the home improvement stores.
 
I just bought, the estes, marking guide with fin attachment guide.so far i marked and attached all the fins on my comenche-3,i found that it works well so far holding the fins while glue drys.for the price it is a good tool..
 
Thanks for the input. Hadn't thought about a piece of angle iron - interesting and cheap. I'll buy the Estes guide and cop a piece of angle from work. Thanks again,

Da Dog
 
I find myself using the ability to mark a tube to a given length a lot. I found I had to sand a pencil down to fit the hole, but it makes very nice marks once you get the hang of it. That's something the angle iron doesn't have.
 
One of the hidden benefits of the estes marking guide is the ability to mark perfect circles around nosecones. Like marking the top of a big baddy for the yellow color.
 
For what it's worth, I have three of these.

Has something to do with my lack of patience...

I find the fin clamping jig very useful, although without a roll of masking tape nearby, it is tricky to use.

A
 
I like the marking guide but for fin alignment, I have 2 different jigs. The first uses a metal plate [the steel side panel of an old pc], old hard drive magnets and small right angle shelf brackets.
The second usues the same principle, but I used thumbtacks and a old bulletin board. I got the idea from jigs that model ship builders use.
 
Originally posted by BobH48
you can get a piece of angle iron from the home improvement stores

I think a better choice might be the angle made from aluminum. It has a much 'cleaner' edge, is a nice light tool, and comes in a two or three foot long piece. (You could cut one up and share it with a friend) The stuff is available in various widths like 1/2 x 1/2, and 1 x 1, so you can pick out the alumimum angle that will work best with the sizes of BT you plan to use. You can buy a piece for a buck or two, it's usually stocked in the same bins where the all-thread and round-rod is displayed.

Downside: aluminum angle stock is a little fragile and can be dented fairly easily if it is banged around-----you will have to handle it accordingly
 
As a marking guide, it's not quite as nice as the thin, sharp edge of a piece of 1/4" aluminum angle stock.

However, as a fin alignment jig, helping to keep a fin positioned and *square* to the body tube while I'm tacking it with a drop of thin CA glue, it works really well. Unless you have one of the old-style jigs that holds all the fins simultaneously, this is about the best tool I've found for the job.
 
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