BaerWald vs VPI setup protractors

VPI's protractor is not designed according to a Baerwald alignment. You will never get a perfect alignment for both methods at once. You can find enough info to bore you to death here: https://www.vinylengine.com/vpi-tonearm-geometry.shtmlIn the end, it does not really matter which one you choose (they are both legit and a matter of preference) as long as you align the stylus properly.@helomech's advice is very good. +1

In my experience, the Turntable Basic protractor is fatally flawed in that it does not permit the user to precisely locate and align the spindle with the pivot point of the tonearm.

lewn FYI, the VPI alignment jig does just that... what it does not is give you Baerwald.
All of the protractors you mentioned are good, but they are not free like helomech's option... I'd rather spend my money on LPs, but that is just me...

If you print an arc protractor on photo paper, it will give you the same precision as the Mint, minus the mirror for azimuth. For those of us who care about $130....

@cleeds We agree: I know very little about the world. At least I know enough to not assume, and to be civil.