jugbutt

When you built your first kit? How much experience did you have?

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

My first kit was a Goldberg Falcon 56. That was in 1971 and I had zero experience at building.

foodstick

I tried to build a stick and tissue when I was about 14, couldn't figure out the covering..Built my first RC plane from a kit in my mid twenties.

ratshooter

I built my first stick and tissue plane when I was about 8 years old. I didn't get it to fly but that didn't stop me from keeping on trying. By 12 I was building control line planes and they flew just fine. Built my first RC ( Das Little Stik) in 1978 when I was 21. So far as I can remember I have built around 48 RC models. I have left the hobby and came back 2 times now. I took a couple of 10 year breaks.

jugbutt

I started one with a friend and I didn't get to finish it. So I want to build one by myself. And hang it up till I came fly it. I'm 47 yrs old and need a hobby.

acerc

I built my first when I was 8, it was a Guillows Cub, I think. My memory is not so good for I also was an avid plastic model builder at that time and had built numerous static aircraft models. Rubber band flew it only a couple times then had to build another. Did that with numerous Guillows models until I was 12. I had started a Monogram Piper Cub at 11 and was saving for a radio with gear but unbeknownst to me I would never have saved enough. Shortly after my 12th B-Day my dad gave me a nice surprise, the very radio system I was saving for. That was the beginning of a lifelong love affair with aircraft. I have no idea how many I have built over the years but do know I have tried just about every method, technique, and product. I am now 52 and going strong with this love affair.

Tom Nied

First kit that I can remember was an Aeronca K stick and tissue kit, not sure if it was Guillows or Comet, but it flew like crap as far as I could throw it. It was just pathetic. Had just about no experience building a kit. Parents said why would you want to try to fly it. ? Only got better from there. Probably was about 13 y/o.

foodstick

I flew a million balsa chuck gliders to death.. but I sure wish I had met someone , that new how to build kits back when I was kid.

52larry52

My Feedback: (1)

My first build was a scratch build in about 1952 at age 7 or 8. It was a simple stick and tissue, rubber powered plane with just a bigger stick for a fuselage. Plans were in a magazine, and I even had had to cut my own sticks out of sheet balsa using a metal straight edge and a single edge razor blade, no x-acto knife yet! Soon started to build a series of Comet rubber powered kits,De Bolt control line, Berkley 1/2a control line and free flight kits, and even a 6' wingspan Cleveland models Condor sailplane. When you're only 4 1/2 foot tall, a 6 foot model airplane is BIG! Ah yes, Ambroid glue!!!!! Remember that smell? I never got to RC planes back then. RC was in its infancy and I couldn't possibly mow enough lawns to afford that. I dropped out of aeromodeling after high school, and after a "40 year break", returned in 2001 expecting to glue sticks together again to get a plane, but there was this strange thing called an "ARF"! What the heck is an ARF? Well cool, I didn't have to glue sticks together to "build" an airplane. Quickly learned to fly RC and built up a hanger full of ARFs. My previous building experience allowed my to repair and keep my ARF fleet flying. After 2 or 3 years of ARFing I had the itch to build a kit again and a G.P. Super Sportster 40 was my first kit build in 45 years. No sweat, "like riding a bicycle". My goal was to make it as good looking as a good ARF, and (just bragging a little) I nailed it! I continue to do ARFs and once a year or so I glue sticks together (build a kit). A mix of both keeps me happy, and my hanger is overflowing.

Scott Douglas

I moved on from plastic kits when I was about 15.. my first kit was my high wing trainer in the early 80's, a Masterline Viceroy, followed by a Masterline Vandal. Again, this is all back in the day where if you wanted a plane you built it! My first scale model was a Flair SE5a.

Although I currently have 2 ARF projects on the go, a Hanger 9 1/5 Spitfire and a JetLegend 1/6 F16, I still have an on-going "proper" build in the background.. a Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer.

clpahodges

My Feedback: (3)

I built my first plane in 1959 when I was 14 years old. It was a Sterling Ringmaster Jr. with a Fox 15. Wish I still had it. The parts in the Sterling kit looked like they were cut out by a blind man using a dull axe, but I didn't know the difference. I flew it and had a blast (got addicted to this hobby) and have never looked back.

Bill Hodges

R. C. Day

My Feedback: (7)

One of my uncles had me buy the balsa sticks and taught me scratch building stick and tissue construction when I was 8.
I started flying U-control with the Cox PT-19 shortly after and started building U-control from kits (Carl Goldberg Little Toot was a blast) and scratch.
In high school I was flying larger U-controls, with the occasional 1/2 thrown in and then I found combat.
Started in R/C with gliders in 1983, went to glow powered R/C in 1986, changed to electric powered R/C in 1991 and now I am going into gasoline powered.

R.C.

Granpooba

My Feedback: (5)

Built my first stick and tissue at age 8. Am now going on 73.

Built quite a few stick and tissue models, then got into control line. Stopped building for a number of years then back in the 1970's I started building RC. Was not really interested in flying them, thus I would just mostly give them to friends or sell them to people whom did not have enough time to build for themselves.

In the early 1990's, I decided that if I was going to build them, I might as well fly them, thus I did.

Now I am working on a BALSA USA Eindecker. Nice to get back to building a " kit " and not just putting together an ARF.

Funny thing Is, my desire to fly my models is tapering off.

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

It was either a Ringmaster or Tomahawk in 1956, I was 8 and that was my first year of flying also. In 1959 I built my first Free Flight kit, the Rascal. They were an all balsa 1/2A kit at the time. I got a kick out of it when SIG came out with the 110 inch RC ARF and people thought it was a new design.

FlyWheel

Wow, that's a tricky one. I did build a glider sometime when I was around ten, but never finished it. Something about the covering; I think my dad was leery about the dope, crazy because I would help him finish furniture in the garage all the time (there was no MonoKote in the early '60s). I don't remember what plane it was.

First model I built was an EasyStar "kit" in 2007 (Well, they called it a kit, anyway). First REAL kit was the Tom Hunt Miss Stik Sr.I built in 2011.

sgtmonte

Built my first kit (Sig Smith Mini) when I was 38. I had only been flying my Alpha Training for a year when I started building kits. Now I've got several kits in different stages: Sig Hog Bipe - complete, GP Extra 300 - Complete, GP P-51 - 25% complete, TF P47 - 20% complete, scratch built Ugly Stik - 15% complete.

Leroy Gardner

I built my first rubber powered silk span plane in 1952, I was 12 yrs. old, I continued building for about 7 yrs. and got on with life for the next 45 yrs. and got back into it at 65 yrs. old, that was 10 yrs. ago.

LG

popargr

my first kit was a Scientific Mercury c/l model, that was 61 yrs ago i was 8 yrs old. Also got my first engine at the same time an OK CUB 049. I have 2 pictures of me trying to build it that my mother took. I had no experience and never completed the model.Before that my older brother and I had a few rubber powered models

ballgunner

My Feedback: (1)

First kit was a Monarch Combat when I was 12 . I'm now 91 - - ballgunner

lavi rider

My Feedback: (6)

Built my first glider in 1541 ... Boy how time flys .. He he

Leonardo.

5skyhawk172

1968 age 12 Sterling Ringmaster McCoy 29, 1969 first R/C, Carl Goldburg 1/2A Skylane OS pet 09, Citizen- Ship single channel GALLOPING GHOST with Rudder Elevator & Throttle. Boy those were the Good old days. I still have the Citizen-Ship & McCoy 29, Keith

Antares100

My Feedback: (12)

I was 12 in the 60's when I built my Sterling Piper Cub. During the build it got moved (not by me) to a couch and the fuse got sat on. The fuse sort of folded the long way, so I was able to straighten it out.and finish it. It had the talcum powder "crop duster" feature. Didn't fly very far, but I loved seeing how far I could make it go.

R/C Art

My Feedback: (38)

Hey Mr Wells! Great to hear from you. I ended up with your old plans of the Pete. I was planning on doing it in 1/2 scale but haven't got around to it yet.

My first plane was a Falcon 56 bought partially build from a fellow Army man whose wife wanted to go home on leave (he wouldn't have sold the pane otherwise). I was 27 or 28 and my neighbor just had to show me how to do it so I never really got to do much building on this plane......but I did learn how to fly RC! Next plane was an
Ace Allstar bipe.......again my neighbor took over, he had a new fuselage jig and wanted to show me how it worked. I don't actually remember the first plane that I built by myself because we collaborated on most all the stuff we flew. This continued for about 3 years or so until he got orders to go to Panama. Talk about the good ole days! I'm 66 now, my how time flies!

My Dad was a crew chief on a PB4Y1 (Navy version of the B24D). He was in the Marine Corp and his unit was the Photo Recon unit which flew the first 2 planes out to the South Pacific and set up the initial recon missions........never talked about it much, but........to make a long story a bit shorter, after he came back from the war he he exposed me and my brothers to many car rides that ended up at a bridge over the railroad tracks overlooking the local airport here in Shelbyville, In. That's where my fascination of anything which flew took hold. It was some of my earliest memories - must have been 3 or 4 when it started.

308jockey

My Dad got me into this when I was 4, he did the same with my nephew. I probably built something from Guillows by age 8, more planes and rockets followed, soloed r/c at age 11, built my first u/c at age 13, first r/c a Smoothie, at 15. Still going at it at age 55. Dad is still at it at age 83 and nephew Kyle has 20 years of experience at age 24. He hasn't done a kit yet but can get a 50cc arf together with no problem.

Rick H.

rgburrill

I was in high school when I built my first U-control, an .049 U-control balsa airplane.
I was in grade school when I learned English and the correct way the topic should be said is "How old were you?"