I will give my $.02 worth. I started this hobby at the beginning of this year. I also have the futaba 6 channel radio and I like it a lot. The plane that I would start with is the avistar made by Hobbico. It is a great trainer and a nice second plane, too. The next plane I got was the Goldberg Tiger II. I have been flying it for weeks now and all I have to say what a great plane. I love flying it!!! I power both planes with OS 46 AX. I would go with OS because it is very dependable would not use anything else. Yes, they are a little more expensive, but worth every penny.

I like arf's because I really do not have time to build kits. I would build an arf now and build a kit in the winter months when you have plenty of time to spend on it.