Commonwealth Displays bills itself as the "Model Rocket Super Store," saying that they sell 1,400 model and high power rocketry products, more than any of the other model rocket stores. They have hundreds of parts for building a rocket from scratch, including phenolic rocket body tubes, altimeters to measure how high your rocket flew, and even a custom laser cutting and engraving service. One unusual offer for customers is custom cutting from RockSim files; design your fins and other parts, test them on RockSim, and if the rocket flies, send the RockSim files to Commonwealth and they will custom cut your parts on their precision laser. They will also make special rocketry items to order from your designs, if you're willing to pay for that custom service.
Commonwealth is not just a website. They are extremely proud of the fact that they have a real store. They are also insured, so if anything happens to your shipment, it can be easily replaced. Because they have a brick-and-mortar presence, unlike many model rocket stores, it's easier for the company to accept purchase orders from schools and youth groups. The large selection means they can consult with individual customers as well as those buying group rockets in bulk to match the right products to the customer's needs.
The site has a forum, but not many people seem to know about it, because it has few discussion threads. But there is a "Quick Rocketry Chat," where you can have an instant conversation with someone at the company. They are extremely responsive, in a come-and-go fashion. For proof, here's our experience: someone at Commonwealth evidently likes flash animation so much that they put an annoying image of a frantically moving hand jabbing fast and furiously at the category menu on the nearly every page. We sent an email complaining about that irritatingly distracting finger, without telling Commonwealth who we were. Within 20 minutes, the finger was changed to be stationary, making the site much more pleasant to explore. However, an hour later, the hand image was back to the jabbing motion again.
The site itself has few bells and whistles. It contains all the necessary information though; click on one of the manufacturers on the side of the page and a list of their available products along with the price comes up, click on the "Info" link for each product and the manufacturer's description of the product comes up, along with a photo. There's also a "Sales and Specials" section, which is a roundup of deals that various rocketry sites are offering.
Standout Features
- Sales and Specials section
- Detailed product description
- Wide selection
Commonwealth Displays claims to stock 1,400 different rocketry products. While we didn't count all the products available from the dozens of rocketry sites on their site menu, we're not going to argue that claim. Suffice to say that unless you want something so specific that you have to go directly to a manufacturer's site to get it, you'll probably find anything you could want on Commonwealth.
Aside from the annoying moving hand, Commonwealth has several things to recommend it. The custom laser cutting service can be a boon to rocketeers who don't want to deal with the tedious process of carving out their own fins. The Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC) has a section explaining the contest. There's another section on rocketry gift ideas, listing definite no-no's and yes-yes's. You're invited to call if you need advice or help.
The site offers a "Quick Chat" forum where you can contact a Commonwealth employee in an instant message fashion to ask a question or discuss a product. The company publishes its phone number and email, though the email address is a little hard to find.
Commonwealth Displays offers products from dozens of manufacturers, from the big dogs like Estes to dealers you may never have heard of. The company offers an unusual service: custom laser cutting. Send your RockSim files in .svg form, and they can cut your fins, rings and flat stock. Commonwealth has an actual store, and is quite up front about their mission: "Our goal is to make a profit so we can stay in business and provide you with the best assortment of model rocketry products on earth."
Be sure to read all our great reviews on model rocket stores such as Apogee Components and more.
