soaringhigh718

Hi All,

Is there a kit that would be good for a beginner with no experience building? Suggestions please?

canadian8apilot

If you can find a Sig Kadet Sr. kit they are a great first build, the instructions are geared toward a first time builder and you will learn a lot from the instructions.

Bill

HighPlains

My Feedback: (1)

It kind of depends on how old you are.

Over 60, the Sig Kadet Sr. is good
Under 60, the Sig LT-40.

Really it just depends on how good your eye sight is.

Mk23socom

My Feedback: (7)

Iliked my Sig LT-25, the 40 is the same and Ihave both.. wonderful frames, great construction..great fliers.. both.. cant go wrong with either! Th 25 was my first and really helped to build my confidence..i also learned about sticking my fingers together with sloppy CAapplications..

ho2zoo

My Feedback: (5)

Get a Goldberg Eagle 2. Tower has them in stock...

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXYXF4&P=7

mike109

G'day

It really depends on what sort of things you have already done, how old you are, how much you want to spend, how big your car is etc etc.

The Sig kits are really good to build. There are several versions of the Kadet ranging from quite small to quite large. Some need some woodworking skills, the others less so.

So ... if you are under 40, then I'd suggest one of the LT series. There is the LT-25, which only needs a small engine as it is quite light but it is still a good size model. It will fly with a 25 two stroke and really well with a 30 four stroke. The LT 40 is a larger version of the LT-25 and will fly really well with a 40 two stroke or a 45 plus four stroke. Both use sheet sided fuselages which are easy to assemble and their wings have flat bottoms so they build flat on the plan which makes things easier. Both fly really well and I currently have one of each thought the 25 is in retirement.

If you are over 40, then I'd suggest the Kadet Senior or its smaller sister the Seniorita. They are essentially the same plane - the Seniorita is simply a scaled down Senior. A Seniorita will fly with quite small engines. I used to fly mine with a 15 size diesel though originally it had a 30 four stoke. A 25 two stroke will also be fine. The Senior needs a 40 or larger two stroke and a 45 or larger four stroke. I currently have four Seniors with the following engines. Saito 56 (great), Laser 70 4c (amazing), Saito 90R3 radial (total overkill), Saito 72 (almost as much overkill). I modified the one with the Saito 72 to add ailerons with less dihedral (the angle between the wing halves). I recently sold my Seniorita to a friend who needed a model urgently.

There is also the Kadet Mk II but I have never had one and can't comment.

Have fun choosing and building.

Michael in Oz

gene6029

Just a thought here on your first kit. If you narrow down your choices to a few kits, and one of them is lazer cut, I'd reccomend that one to start with. Most lazer cut kits assemble like a jig saw puzzle, and would assure you of a better/faster chance for success. This way you still get to build something with the minimum amount of work.....Gene

MinnFlyer

My Feedback: (4)

A lot depends on your flying experience. Are you an experienced flier? If so, you might not be interested in building a trainer.

SirDank

For my first kit I am currently building a great planes pt-40 you can find that at tower also, I got the combo which has just about everything I would need (I hope). I am taking it really slow maybe a step or two a day, and so far so good. Besides if I just have questions about the build I can always ask RCU they are a great help. By the way this is my first r/c model and I'm 29, also the instructions seem to be straight and easy to follow.

I also have a kadet senior kit that has some of the tail feathers built, but that is on the back burner because it is just too big for my vehicle. The guy I bought it from threw in a built and covered wing, needless to say it was a task getting it home in one piece in a jeep liberty lol.

Clay Walters

A "Trainer" can be many things. A "trainer kit" even more. Not only a forgiving flyer making it a good choice for flight training it can provide insight into contruction techniques useful when making the inevitable repairs, approaches to future builds, or if anything an appreciation for what is the marvel of flight.

On the other hand a kit is an abomination to those without the maturity or patience to address it or see it to completion. The SIG kits mentioned above are all great options with the LT-25 providing to my way of thinking a low-budget highly useful and with a high likelihood of successful outcome...both in the contruction and with the flight training. A simple Magnum XL-25 2-stroke engine and standard servos make for a very nice low cost airframe.

You didn't say if it is for you or intended as a gift and whether or not the builder has any previous R/C flying experience. This could impact any recommendations.

Kindest regards,

Clay

Mk23socom

My Feedback: (7)

Thats awesome man! Nice to see that there are other younger guys taking on the hobby, I'm 28 myself! Been in the hobby for about 4 years now..cant remember exactly when the bug bit me on my first buddy cord flight..I then bought an LT-25 as my first EVERYTHING.. built it with some help, covered it and put her up in a matter of a few weeks! Now here Iam with TWOtrainers, (LT-25 and LT40), two in mothballs that need updated servos that Ibought from a guy leaving the hobby, 3 warbirds and a warbird wannabe. Its so easy to spend money in this game!

soaringhigh718

Thanks for all the great responses. I guess I am still young at 36 years old. My first plane was a Supercub LP. The next planes that I progressed to was both a Parkzone T-28D Trojan and Parkzone Stinson SR-10. I am doing well with both, but I am still very much a newbie to RC in general. I heard that kits are very difficult to build unless a person has an experienced builder to assist them with the project. That's why I am looking for something really easy to start with and possibly try my first fueled engine with as well. Thanks again for the suggestions.

Mk23socom

My Feedback: (7)

I dont have any experience with anything other the the Sig kits that Imentioned before, my close friend built a Goldberg Eagle II and said it was a nice easy build.. when I started with my first plane, the 25, Ihad no experience prior to that build, Ithought it was a nice easy build that required some thought and care like any other kit would, the manual I swear was as thick as a phone book, there wasnt much left to the imagination, they lined everything out quite well. Iam sure that nobody here is gonna steer you wrong with any of their suggestions and you will be happy with whatever approach you take. Me, Ilike the Sigs, but that's because I have two of their trainers and "Somethin Extra". I enjoyed the build and the flights on the trainers immensely, the "Extra" had the engine taken away from it to outfit a friend who needed to get up in the air. I will probably have that one ready to go next season. There is alot of guys here willing to help with ALOTmore experience than I have but when it comes to beginners, Ijust cant help myself. Ilike to share my experience and knowledge with the next guy that wants to get into the hobby.

scooterinvegas

My Feedback: (1)

SIG four star 60. I have built one of the two kits I have. Stright forward build. Lots of four 4 build threads on RCU, plus tons of people have built them, so if you get stumped, just ask in the "kit build" section. You'll have an answer in a matter of min.

Oh ya, they fly super too. Scoot

shd3920

I highly recommend the PT-40 http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXJ557&P=7

It is so extremely easy to build, and the manual is very well written and detailed. The kit practically builds itself with self-aligning parts. The wing and fuselage are designed to hold itself together without glue which makes the building easier. You assemble the wing and fuselage without glue, holding the pieces together with rubber bands, and then when the entire structure is assemble you apply CA glue to all the joints.

Check out the manual and see just how easy it is . . .
http://manuals.hobbico.com/gpm/gpma0...anual-v1_2.pdf

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

Not really hard to learn. A lot of us learned as kids with no one around to help, it just takes some time and you need to know what the parts are so if the instructions call for a rib or spar you know what it is. SIG and Great Planes have great instructions with some good photos to guide you. Trainers are easy to learn with, I use the 4* 60 that Scooter mentioned when I'm teaching someone. Just make sure you pick a plane that you will be able to handle when you finish it. An instructor is a big help but it sounds like you are doing pretty well. Fun fly planes and profiles are pretty easy to build too. Just take your time and build straight.

soaringhigh718

Thanks for these recommendations. I found this guy who documented his build of a Four Star 60. Ithink the idea of building a plane is becoming more and more appealing to me. If for nothing else the experience and the opportunity to see something I build from the ground up

pdm52956

My Feedback: (1)

Just to throw my .01 in here, building is a great way to learn about the way planes are designed and how they work. It's also a great way to keep you involved when weather doesn't cooperate!

There have been a lot of comments about a good kit for you that involve your flying skills. That is something you want to consider since it doesn't make a lot of sense to build something you wouldn't want to fly........unless you just like to build. There are people that are like that too, but I would like to offer that you might want to take into consideration what skills you might have other then flying.

If you are not very "mechanically" inclined, then a simple kit might be best to start with and it might serve to increase your skill level. On the other hand, someone that posses more technical thought processes might be able to build a more complex kit and it wouldn't get boring, or they wouldn't be overwhelmed.

Why do I say this? After about 1 1/2 years of flying, I decided I wanted to build a kit. My first kit. I thought it would be cool to build something that I hadn't seen out at our flying field. I talked to my LHS about it and he had a kit stashed for a number of years that he knew he would never take the time to build. It was an old Yoshioka Dash 5 pattern ship. I decided that I would like to give it a go since I didn't see much in the way of pattern aircraft at our field.

This kit has no instruction manual and the plans have nothing other than Japanese text on them. [sm=what_smile.gif] One sheet of paper and nothing but a language that I was not about to learn to read. My first thought was "what in the $&^* have I done"!?!?

Well, it took me a year + to build it working on and off, but it's my baby. There are a lot of things that I would do different if I had it to do all over again, and that's the learning part, but I think I would have been bored to tears building a "beginner kit" and probably wouldn't have finished it. Even if it was more plane than my experience level would have allowed me to fly once it was finished, I still would have been glad I did build it. It could have sat on the dining room table the rest of my life so I could show it off and I'd be happy but man, what a feeling it was when I did fly it the first time.

So, I'm not telling you that you should go cut down a balsa tree and have at it but build something that you think you'd enjoy building as much as flying. You'll love it when you get it to the point where you have it headed down the runway for the first time...............ask me how I know.

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

JollyPopper

My Feedback: (6)

Building can have its own rewards. I don't fly well but I do build well. So I have a friend who is the best pilot I have ever seen fly my creations for me the first time. A couple weeks ago we took a 4 * 40 that I built several years ago to the field. It has an old HP .40 in the nose and it was a little rocket. It required absolutely no trimming to fly well. Now, that was a real rush. I am currently looking for a four stroke engine to put on a plane that I bought off Ebay a couple years ago. It is called a Laser 3D, produced by a Belgian company that I had never heard of. I bought it because a picture of it caught my eye and it was cheap. It turned out to be an all laser cut kit with good instructions. Probably the easiest to build that I have done in years and it turned into a beautiful craft. It needs a four stroke on the front. Below are a couple pictures of it. The point is that building can be very rewarding all on its own.

JollyPopper

My Feedback: (6)

Guys, I don't know what the hell happened to that last post. I have posted on this site for about eight years now and that is the first time one came out like that. RCU having some issues?

scooterinvegas

My Feedback: (1)

YOU PRESSED THE WRONG BUTTON!!!!!

Not really, just yanking your chain.

Yes RCU is having some problems with the new servers that the web site was moved to.. There working on getting the bugs worked out.
Scoot

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

That was a good yank too Scoot, busted me up anyway. If you click on the photos they go down to normal full size so people can see them all at one time.

JollyPopper

My Feedback: (6)

Yeah, Gene, but one came out normally and the other, as the man said, you could wall paper your house with. And with only one button push.

scooterinvegas

My Feedback: (1)

You obviously have some sort of Super Button Pushing Power (SBPP). Be very careful, you might push the wrong button and get RC jets / FPV outlawed!! [:@]