NC56er,
Hey Paula, I hope I can get my girlfriend to buy a plane too.....Her Dad is the CD for IMAC events at our field. Don't know why she hasn't yet. She did just buy me a little cub to play with. I think you made a great choice with the Tower package. I've been doing business with them since '86 or '87. The Tower Trainer flys very well, bought one for my friend last Christmas, but the kit version, don't be afraid to build the kit version for a great intro in building, but be aware that after the cost of the kit, and all the stuff you'll need to finish it, it will end up costing more than an ARF. But, its an investment in a great hobby and pasttime, so I don't worry about the 10's of thousands that I have already spent, and with this great forum, you can trade the stuff you don't use anymore. Anyway, Tower is a great place to do business with, and so is Quantum Models. Horizon is good too, but there isn't much of their brands that I like. Chief Aircraft is great too, and the focus on bigger stuff. Someone should print these dislikes and mail them to the club president/hobby store owner. He needs to loosen up a little, and if he does, he will end up with more happy customers in the long run. Just a pointer for the Tower airplane, the main landing gear flexed a whole lot, so to reduce bouncing around, I helped my friend put a homemade brace midway across the left and right legs. We just took a piece of pushrod wire and made a small bend at both ends to fit the angle of the landing gear, and fastened it with a couple of wheel collars that would fit over the two wires. Costs about 2 bucks and worth its weight in gold. Another great piece of equipment worth its weight in gold ( I have 2) is the Accucycle form Tower Hobbies/Hobbico. Its about 80 bucks + 10 for the wires......Seems like a lot at first, but it conditions your batteries, and with a full discharge and an automatic timed charge, you can get readings on your batteries storage capacity, and you won't ever overcharge or undercharge your batteries. I've blown up a few battery packs and one radio before because I forgot to unplug the charger....and I have seen people undercharge their batteries and stuff (crash) their airplanes. I'm not trying to scare you, just trying to give you advice that will make this hobby easier to enjoy. Happy Flying!
Ernie