ARF's versus KIT's the saga continues
Hello everyone,
I got to tell that this thread and the other thread on ARF vs kits are great. It's nice too see so many different view points. I have been in and out of this hobby/sport for the past eighteen years. When I first started an ARF was a plane you bought from another club member or friend. While I do not consider myself a master builder or flyer I do enjoy both aspects of this hobby. I own several kits and Several ARFs both are great!!. As to which type of aircraft is better I would have to say neither. Since I would term all of the models today as (A)most (R)eady (T)o (F)ly. With the main difference being the time it takes to make the model air worthy. Now before everyone gets up set think about this for a Second. You buy a kit from a reputable manufacturer it has been fully tested and proven airworthy BEFORE being kitted. The manufacturer will usually provide step by step assembly instructions. it will most likely be made from balsa, ply, spruce and corvered with monokote, ultracote etc. You will need to use Epoxy, CA or some other adhesive. No please don't misunderstand I am in no way attempting to belittle the skill and craftsmenship of any builder my only point is that when you compare building materials and construction methods they are similar. An ARF from a company like Hanger 9 in my opinion is constructed in such a manner that I think it would be difficult for the average modeler to tell the difference (I got one of there Cubs 4 years ago and let me tell you the craftsmenship was outstanding) What I am trying to say is that if you compare the end products they are so similar that it makes the models origin irrelevent. If you enjoy building keep building. If you don't go for an ARF and have a blast.
As far as hobby stores not stocking building supplies because of all the ARF models out there I think this is simply because this is a business and businesses as we all no are out to make profit or go bankrupt. The CEO's of these manufactures are simply responding to the demand. I do not think that reducing ARF production would increase kit manufacture. I think ARFs have kept some of these manufactures solvent. Without ARFs who knows maybe Sig or Great Planes would be out of business.
Being out of the hobby for a couple of years may have given me a different perspective of hobby stores in general. When I got back into it The first thing I did was go back to the stores that I used to use guess what they no longer exist!! I did happen to find a Chain hobby store I won't mention the name but let me tell you this extremely high prices with people who know next to nothing about RC planes. They are good about giving advice even if it is wrong. To give you an example last time I was in there kid and his father want to get a plane. the clerk starts telling them how easy it is to fly and if the buy this firebird XL and watch the video and read the instructions they can fly it no problem.. I couldn't believe it never once was club or instructor mentioned. The guys who ran the stores I remember were all active members of the local clubs and actually Knew something about the hobby. I think that when it comes to the quality of today's hobby store's Technology Not ARFs have caused their demise. Look at R/C U or ezone what Great concepts to be able to share information with such a large and diverse audience. Look at mail order and internet shopping want the best price on something post a message and people resond with suppliers. How can we expect a local shop to compete?
Just my opinion