Bare in mind that the recommended upgrades are only needed if you want to extend the flight envelope of this plane.

The stock setup actually performs VERY well.

The long horns on the rudder ( that is the only place you really need them ) are suggested because "Eric" the NP reviewer was flying the plane with the default low pitch prop and the lowest voltage pack it will fly with.

So that makes the plane fly relatively slowly even at full throttle, and it therefore has low rudder authority for knife edges.

What HE should have done is swapped out the included 13x4 pitch prop for a 13x6, as he was running the 4S pack... OR he could have moved up to a 5S pack and left the default prop in place.... he didn't adjust for the difference in performance between the two packs.

That said for 3D it's nice to get as much rudder throws as possible... but this is not something you'll need to worry about into you're well into torque rolls and translating that into a knife edge...

So your only real choice is what pack to use.

I'm flying mine with 4S 4000mAh packs since I have plenty of them, with a 13x6E APC prop. This is a very good combination. I may also try a 14" diameter prop for more vertical performance.

However a 14" prop with the 5S pack will burn out the motor unless the pitch is very low to compensate for the extra diameter.

Choose what type of pack you are going to use with the plane, and let that dictate the prop diameter & pitch.

Otherwise the build is very straight forward and simple. Most of the work has been done for you.

Do remove the cowl & tighten down the screws holding the motor in place, but don't overtighten them.

A bit of tri stock around the gear mounts will help reinforce that area. Remember that you use Tri-stock to help DISTRIBUTE torsional forces out further, thereby providing more strength and resistance to ripping out the wood holding the landing gear in place. I also hardened the wood with thin CA after installing the Tri-stock.

Double and tripple check all of the arms, etc. and make sure that with the stick centered all of the surfaces are set neutral/centered.

And ideally have someone more experienced maiden the plane for you.

It's a pretty sweet flying and IMHO and good buy for what you are getting.