Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Im looking for a 40-46 size aircraft kit. I have never built or covered one and i wanna start Building because it is cheaper.
So what is a good First Kit??(Oh yeah i dont what one over $150)

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Jason, You failed to mention if you were a capable pilot or a Newbie! If a Newbie, and need a Trainer type machine, the LT-40 is an easy build and great performer. If a capable pilot, the SIG Four Star 40 is an easy build and great flyer also ! Both under $90.00.

Ugo

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Can't go wrong with an LT-40!!

Pilot
 

I am Very experinced Pilot.

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Sig Four_Star 40,Sig Mid-Star 40, Goldberg Tiger, Great Planes Super Sportster all make great flying sport planes that are easy to build.

The easiest of course, would be to build a profile fun fly ship, but that wouldn't be much of a challenge.

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

A Sig Somethin' Extra is a very easy kit and a great flyer.

I'll second the four-star, as well. I'm building the four-star 60. Give the box a good shake and the plane falls together. :)

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Jason,

Just about ANY kit by Great Planes, Sig, or Goldberg are the nicest building kits on the market. GP is my personal favorite, the only bad thing is that their kits experience level does tend to go up with aircraft performance level. If you give us an idea of the type of plane you're looking for, (IE Sport Biplane, Extra 300, Pattern, Fun Fly) We could give you a much better direction.

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Hey bgi, you forgot mention you need to add glue before you shake the box:-)

Savong money by building?
 

Possible, but consider how many kits you plan to build before you think it will save you money. OK, it can be done cheaply, but there is a "right way" to build, and that means proper tools for the task at hand. Tooling up can cost more than a couple of ARF kits for the tools I consider essential. Covering iron, trim tool, heat gun, X-acto knife with 100 blade pack, hinge slotting tools, CAs, Epoxies, Wood Glues, building board, rasor saw, sanding blocks, sandpaper, drill bits, drill, taps and handles, pins, screw drivers, plyers, is my bare minimum. There are countless other specialty tools that enhance the finished product

So, before you get into building just to save money, plan your budget. Just as an example, to finish a Sensation the same way as Kyosho would cost you over $80.00 in covering. Of course, two color schemes are acceptable too, but it's hard to save money building over a quality ARF.

Now, I am a builder, I love building, I build for me, for friends, and I also build professionally for my favorite company. Building will give you more pride in what you fly, and the potential for perfection is always there. With an ARF, you are stuck with the quality of what you buy. Kits or scratch building allow room for improvement and perfection in almost every case. I encourage you to build, but I don't think you will save money in the short or the long run.

Mark

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Well said Mark!! ;)

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

For my first kit I went with the GP SuperSportster MKII (40 size) and it was pretty easy.

I agree after I purchased all the epoxy, glue, tires, irons, monokote, tank, etc it was about as much (more) than the ARF. I have 4 more kits sittng in my building room so the majority of the $$ I spent on gule, irons was money well spent - plus when I stuff my trainer, the ssmkII or any one of my other planes I have the material and exp. to repair them.

I suggest the MKII. It's fun and easy to build.

Here is the url of a thread that has a few pictures of my SSMKII before I was finished covering it.
http://www.rcuniverse.com/showthread...63&forumid=107

Good Luck - TRPP

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

After being away from the "build airplanes out of balsa" hobby for 20 years, I was just floored when I discovered that the ARFs could be decent quality and CHEAPER than you could build yourself. CA glues are the stuff! We had to use other glues way back then.

The sad thing is that I'm building kits now and I have so little time to work on them that I got so impatient I ran out to the LHS and bought an ARF. After many months I almost have a Sig SE, four-star 60, and GP cub 60 ready to go. But it only took me a couple evenings to get the Aresti (see avitar) ready to fly.

The other nice thing about ARFs is that if I smash one I won't be so upset about it like I would be if I smashed a kit plane.

I still like building...

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Even if you choose to go ARFing, you will still need some basic tools for building, and for crash repairs !!! :D So you can't run away from tooling up to a certain degree

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

I totally agree. And in my book, the term "Quality ARF" is an oxymoron. I have never built a BARF, but I have seen many both in the construction phase and at the field, and I have seen enough to make me wonder why anyone would spend that much money to save a little time (ok, if you have NO time to spare that's one thing, but more times than not, it's just an impatient flier who doesn't want to be "bothered" with building). IMHO the rewards of flying something that you built is so much greater than something you pulled out of a box.

As far as being cheaper, we could debate that forever. I think it is. If nothing else, even if the two planes cost exactly the same, you will win out in the "quality" division. Let's face it. You are paying someone to build your airplane for you. Imagine if you asked on of the good builders at your field to build your kit. You still have to pay for all of the covering, wheels, glue, etc, and do you think this guy is not going to charge you to build it? So where do the BARF manufacturers cut costs? There's only one place they can... QUALITY.

As I said, final cost can be debated, but there's one thing that can not. Initial cost... That is, if you have $100 to spend this month, you can go out and buy your kit and some glue. Next month you gan get your wheels, covering, etc. With a $100 per month budget, you'd have to wait 2, 3 or even 4 months to even walk into the store.

One last thing, I guess it's a generation thing for me having grown up in the 70's, but we were big on individualism. I don't want a plane that looks exactly like the one that Ralph, Bill, Jim, Fred, Jerry, Tom, Dick, and Harry have.

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Well let's face it. This IS an expensive hobby. It's not about what it COST, but what you can AFFORD !!!! :D

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Mike, I have to disagree with you on this one. I was initiated into the hobby in the 70's, so I've had my share of building and I still enjoy building.

In my book, to say that the term "Quality ARF" is an oxymoron is a bit of a stretch. :)

Considering that I've put together 4 ARFs for a total cost LESS than I would have had to spend had I built from a kit or scratch is quite a statement when you consider that these planes are all good quality. Not only did I spend less money, I also saved uncounted hours of building that I simply do not have.

I'll be the first to admit that there are some really crappy ARFs out there for sale. But give credit where it's due. The "quality" ARFs I've "assembled" include:

Hobbico Avistar RTF (not really an ARF, but the next step up). 50-60 flights so far and not a single problem. Still looks almost new.

H9 Aresti. Nothing spectacular but flies very nicely - low-speed stable, and looks great.

Lanier Edge 540T 1/4 scale. Even though most of the supplied hardware was trash and the LG block needed some beefing up, it's a great plane.

Kyosho SenSation 1400. Really nice plane. Beautiful finish.


The Kits I've managed to complete since re-joining the hobby:

None.

Sig SE almost ready (two more weekends?)

GP Cub 60 (2-3 more weekends?)

Sig four-star 60 (4-5 more weekends?)

But, alas, those weekends aren't available. :(

-the bradster

Whats a First Good Kit?
 

Brad,
Ok, maybe there are some out there that I haven't seen yet. But consider this, you live in Georgia where you could possibly fly all year. To many of us, Winter is building time, so time isn't really a factor. And as far as "I just crashed my plane in the spring... now what?" Well, as an example, of the two planes I was planing on flying the most this Summer, I re-kitted one, and I just sold the other. But after you've been doing this for a while (if you're like me) you have a basement full of "Hangar Queens" just waiting for a radio and engine. So, this Summer I'll be flying a few 10 yr olds until I finish my new 27% Extra 300 next winter. :D