Thanks Yel.  I will have to try and get down to the club a couple more times I think so I can chat to few more guys and see if I can work out who my instructor might be before I buy my radio.  I will leave it to the last minute before I get one.  I like the idea of a cheap but good second hand radio just to get started with.  I will have to keep my eyes and ears open.

I actually bought some plans when I was having trouble getting a hold of a kit but then I opened them up and quickly shut them again.  It looked way to hard but like you said, once I've built a few kits, I'm hoping I'll have the know how to build from the plans?