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The Sabres or Yak55 from Value are very good, and quite durable for the inevitable dorks. Even better is a foamy for learning the basics; that will transition well to the nitro profile birds with a little practice. I started out liking pretty full fuse planes (started with a .46-sized Reactor), but quickly learned they don't suffer abuse well. Some of the lite 40-48" planes from 3DHS/Extreme Flight/Precision Aerobatics would be good learning tools as well, as they are quite light (2-3lbs) and don't have as much kinetic energy to smash themselves if you mess up...