While what has been said about learning more by building from a kit, is true, it can also be a long drawn out & sometimes frustrating ordeal for someone with little or no experience. Especially if you are not set up with all the tools & a proper building table. Personally I like ARFs, & there is still plenty of work left to be done with a good ARF as opposed to a RTF. There is enough set-up/installation work still to be done that you should be fairly well aquainted with the aircraft & all it's components by the time you're done. We can't all start out as Master-Builders like Ken! I believe that if you get a few ARFs under your belt first, then try a kit after you've learned some things from assembling the ARFs & accumulated the neccessary tools & set up a building table that your first build will be much easier & the end result will be a much nicer bird than if you just jump right in & build a kit for your very first plane. I have built from kits many years ago as a kid back in the control-line days, so yes I do know what's under the covering of an ARF. However, I've been doing ARFs since getting back into the hobby this last year & I learn a little more with each one, & each one comes out straighter, truer, & cleaner. So far they have all been good flyers with very little trim needed during maiden flight by more experienced flyers than myself. Assembling these ARFs are giving me the chance to learn & gain experience thru all the great tips I get from ppl in here, so that I will be able to build a fine kit. I now have a building station set-up, have aquired most of the tools needed and soon I will do a full build kit. It will be the BTE Venture 60 because I'm convinced it is the finest & probably the easiest kit for a rookie available, do to all the little extra time & work Bruce has put into these kits. So I say go ahead & get your ARF, take your time & put it together well, and it will serve you well. ARFs have come a long way from the early ones, there are actually some very well built ones available today. Even my Dad who was a scratch & kit builder for over 40 yrs was amazed at the quality of these ARFs I have now. Good Luck 7 happy ARFing.