I'm new to this hobby and wanted to get som advice about my first plane. I was looking at purchasing either the Hobbico Nexstar trainer or the Sig Kadet LT-40 with a Futaba 6EXA 6 Channel radio and a Thunder Tiger Pro .46 engine. What would be the best setup. Ihave heard great things about the LT-40 and mixed reviews on the Nexstar. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Geoff

The trainer aircraft being flown at our club are 1 Nexstar and about half a dozen LT40's. So the LT40 seems to be the one to go with. The LT40 is easy to put together, is a very stable flyer even in windy conditions, and several of our club members have added floats and fly them off water or snow in the winter. I would go with the LT40. Good luck.
Bill

Another vote for the LT 40. I have the Sig Kadet Sr. Sig makes a GREAT product!

Go for the Sig, great company, great product. I've got the 6EXA, it's a good first computer radio. The Nexstar has a bunch of gadgets that sound good on paper, but are not really needed.

Go with the LT-40 setup. The LT-40 is one of the best trainers out there - you will not be disappointed.

The TT Pro 46 is an excellent engine and very user friendly.

Take a look at the Hobbico Sturdy Birdy II with a Super Tigre .51 and Futaba 6YG.......inexpensive combination and a riot to fly (and learn on).

I have nexstar the only thing that has helped me is the simulator my instructor tells me what i need to learn next so i practice on the the next week it seems to be working i am slow learning to be more confident in my flying have v mar plane that flys great had to move radior gear and motor from nexstar to it to work

I would suggest you go with the LT40. The engine you spoke of is fine. I've heard some people wish they'd gone with a 9C radio rather than the 6E, initially, despite the difference in $.

Exception : If you're going to teach yourself (not that I'd recommend that, but if you are...) then get a simulator, or the Nexstar (which includes one.) You'll find the sim allows you to practice and learn maneuvers without risk, and that the things you learn on the sim do transfer to the flying field.

Good luck!
Dave Olson

That 'll work fine.

My vote is for the LT-40 also. Or really for any ARF trainer. The 6EXA radio is more than you need now, but you will be glad you have it for your next plane. If you can afford the 9C, that would be good also.

One of the problems with the Nexstar (and all RTF trainers) is the equipment. The 4 channel radio is fine for the first plane. But when you get your 2nd plane, you either have to get a 4 channel plane, or another radio. My Ultrastick has 2 aileron servos and 2 flap servos. The 6EXA is the minimum radio to be able to use all the features of the Ultrastick. Sure, you can build it with strip ailerons and use a Y on the aileron servos, but then the plane does not live up to its potential.

So get an ARF trainer and the best radio you can afford. Get help setting it up (bring the book for the radio to the field with you).

Yup another for the LT-40, just finished building the kit and off to fly for the first time this weekend hopefully if the weather holds out. I have the 6EXA too and have found it real easy to use for my first radio when setting up all the control surfaces etc.. Good choice on the .46 engine, a good match for the LT-40, easy to use and fairly maintenance free. ARF or kit is up to you, i built the kit which has taken me around five weeks on and off, but i really wanted to build. If building isn't something you really want to do, go with the ARF. After buying tools and extra parts (covering etc) to complete the kit i've spent more than if i'd just gone ARF but my main motivation was building and I know its something i'll be doing again soon.

Do it, you know you want to!

No input on the plane, but I think you have made an excellent beginners choice in both Engine and radio!
(Keep in mind though that a Futaba 7c will allow you to fly helicopters later on, the 6exa won't)

ps. I have a TT 46-pro, it's excellent!

As mentioned already, if you are going to be self taught, or if you find this stuff difficult, the Nexstar is really the best way to go. If you are lucky enough to find this activity relatively easy, then the cheaper (& somewhat tougher) LT-40 is probably a better bet.

Bear in mind that the Nexstar package is very complete, & at a competitive price. If the completed cost of the LT-40 is close to the Nexstar, I'd go with the Nexstar. It is a realistic looking model, it flies very well, & the OS FXi engine is on par with the TT.46 Pro. The 4-ch radio, however, is inferior to the 6EXA.

My favorate trainers, in no particular order:
LT-40, Alpha, Superstar.

Getting a simulator, even the freely downloadable FMS, is well worth the money. Sim time is probibly the single biggest factor I've seen when it comes to learning curve among the student pilots.

My vote is for the LT-40 with either the OS .46 AX or TT .46 Pro and the Futaba 6EXA radio. Remember to get the instructor to check your airplane on the first few flights. The radio would grow with you for a while (until you move to one of those 3D airplane). Both of the engines are very reliable. The LT-40 is very easy to fly.
The NexStar has the filght sim which is really helpful if you don't get a lot of real life pratice, but I've heard few ppl have problem with the landing gears. They come loose after few hard landings. For the same price ($400) you could get the LT-40, OS .46 AX engine, and the 6 channel computer.
If you'd like the flight sim, then Hangar 9 Alpha Trainer 40 has one in the package. They just started to include the flight sim. software in October. This package is about $289.99. Lots of ppl like the Alpha Trainer 40 as well. This packange only comes with the 4 channel analog radio.

Good luck and happy flying!