I like the SIG LT 40. Its a Iowa thing.
NEDYOB

Avistar!
Aerobatic & durable. I did a WOT inverted landing due to a Transmitter battery failure.
All that broke was the rudder which I simply epoxyed it back on. Great plane.
I would reccomend it to anyone.

Well none of the ones I learned on are there. I first learned on a Tower Trainer which taught me just fine. Then after being out for a few years I just relearned on a Thuder Tiger T2000 which I think is also just fine. Got me back in the air by myself in no time. So I can recommend either one of those as being great

Although I have never flown a trainer, I have seen some of these trainers, but not all, out of what I
have seen I like the Hobbico Superstar the best. It is great for just simple flying, as well as a few stunts.
It also just floats onto the runway, and can handle a certain amount of crosswind.

Sig Lt 40
It is larger and easier to see than most trainers. It flys with less engine than most trainers. It is no more expensive than most trainers. It is very durable. It is less complicated to fly than most trainers. Its built to fly not built to indestructable in a crash.

Our local hobby shop sells any trainer interchangeably to the novice. They are experienced pilots and it is childs play for them to fly any of them....so they don't. Since they have not flown these planes their recommendation is given in ignorance. Some .40 recommended trainers could not be coaxed into the air with an OS .40 LA. Some trainers are hard to repair when damaged. Some come with hardware that is dangerous to use.

There may be better trainers, but the Sig LT .40 is the best I've seen for a prospective pilot.

I fly a GP PT40, the older one before the MKII, which I think is basically just like a Tower trainer.Only complaint I have is I built the HI dihedral wing, and it makes crosswind landings and takeoffs a pain on windy days.
Mine is forgiving, tough, easy to fix, and I can do some mild acrobatics as long as I am "two or three mistakes high". That said, I am not really thrilled with it, although it is doing exactly what it is supposed to do-train.
Like has been said before, I think any trainer would do the job of training...a buddy box helps a lot too!

I have been out of the hobby of several years now, but soloed on the original sig kadet. Bought from another club memeber after I crashed, repaired and recrashed my falcon 56 mark II. The 56 was a faster than the kadet, but did not have the stability I needed. Soloed in less than 10 flights. Currently have a hobbico superstar ep, and a avistar.

Great Planes PT- 60 KIT
Why? Big, easy to see, flies great, very strong.

Thunder Tiger 61 Pro
Why? runs great, easy to tune, needle valve on carb but angled back for safety, plenty of power for the trainer and a 60 size second plane.

I trained on the tower trainer .40. An that was ten years ago, i still have it an i take it out every year at the beginign of the season.

I built my first trainer, a Kadet MkII. Added an extra bay to each wing and took out about 1/2 the dihedral. I'd say it's my favorite because I learned to fly with it. Unfortunately, I also learned how to mid-air with it, with some assistance of a club member and his 1/4 scale Cub. He survived, I became balsa confetti. I have a Hobbico Superstar 40 that I bought from my nephew because he gave up on it, but I don't fly it much any more. It is a good plane, though, and lots of fun to thrash around.

Id have to agree that only listing ARFs seriously limits the choices here. the old SiG Kadet MK II was as good as it got back then and would still do a credible job today. the Eagle II was really the first in a long while to fly really well and was often flown well byond the training stage.a testemony to its outstanding charateristics. the LT 40 seems to have emerged among many as the best all-around .as for the others- super graphics and fancy packaging"looks"- dont help the flying one bit.can it do the job ? is the question.

I vote for the SuperStar 40 because it is a great flyer, simple in construction and does exactly what it is designed to do with a lot of success.

Bottom line - as long as they are easy to put together and fly, which most of them are, the only considerations are price and good looks. I would recommend a World Models Sky Raider but it's not there. In terms of looks, I like the Calmato. Naturally the kit-built ones are nice but really depend on the builder.

Once again, it's like buying a car... ultimately it's what you think looks best.

I would agree to get a semi symetrical wing because getting a flat bottom winged aircraft will just fall out of the sky when inverted.

My choice is the hobbico avistar because it has the forgivness of a good trainer and you can advance to basic aerobatics.