I'm trying to figure out who so many guys want to push the point that this hobby is cheap when they know darn well it's not. It's a straw man arguement to say that those such as myself believe that you must be rich to fly RC planes or that you have to buy everything at retail to get anything good. I buy a lot of stuff used. But good equipment is worth what it is worth, and you get what you pay for. Sure, cheap stuff sometimes works fine but if you take a broader look you'll also find that cheap stuff often fails, and for a new pilot that ends the hobby more often than not. For those who really think that the OP can get all set up and in the air at a flying site without being handicapped by his equipment for $150 total investment, I'd love to see the math you're using.