thanks for the replies about ARF vs kits. i do have a bunch of tools, except for dremel, sanding blocks, build surface, heat gun. didn't know all the glue and covering would be that expensive. i used to make hinge pins and fuel tanks from tin sheets the good ol' days when i was a kid and had no video games or internet or 400 TV channels or women to distract me (i'm only 31 btw).

i do think building from scratch is fun, but extreeeemely time consuming. kits seem to be a bit quicker, but still take a while. are there any simpler kits that may not have the best rigidity, but won't make you cry a river when you crash while learning to fly?

speaking of unassissted learning. it seems like most pilots say it's mandatory for planes because of take offs and landings, but optional for heli. i built and learned to fly my first .50 nitro heli with absolutely no one looking over the machine when it was built and yet it hovered perfectly hands off and nothing came apart. For airplanes though, is it also important for an experienced pilot to look it over, considering it's all covered up anyway and the only outside adjustments are for throws, thrust angle and CG? I've also noticed a lot of Nazi grannies here "encouraging" people to venture on their own. Now, do you guys think a flat foamie is a good first plane that can be learned unassissted? Will it teach a lot of bad habits?