knightmagic. i know many people that have solo'd on the their fifth flight... they are on thier tenth plane in as many times back to the field. seriously, i know people that crash a plane every single time they are at the field. and each of them will show off how fast they got off the buddy box. if you ask me, they should still be on the buddy box.

it is second nature of us men to be on the edge, to be overconfident of our abilities. i went from a trainer to a cap232... that plane lasted all of what 2-3 trips to the field? i would say that you are doing it right. maybe the instructor is a little on the conservative side. let him know that you think you are ready. but cutting the cord don't make you a better pilot.

japanflyer - i like how you said that you now enjoy repairing more than flying... that's so JAPANESE! hehe... I also love to repair things. In fact, I beg my friends to buy new planes so that I can assemble them for them and see them fly. Actually, though, they force me to maiden their planes all the time... I really really hate that. Although I have yet to botch a maiden flight, I swear I'm still on the verge of a coronary when I fly any plane for the first time. You know my trick? Regardless of how confident I am of the plane, I always give it a little elevator so that no matter what happens, it goes up. That way you have time to trim.