I have been in the hobby for far too long and am a bit biased on what is an easy kit to me. So I thought that I would put this question to the younger members out there, what is an enjoyable kit that I can recommed to a beginner to gain thier first skills on and could be proud of after finishing. There are some proviso's:
1. Price:
2. Smallest number of tools needed.
3. A little putty and sanding is encouraged, but just enough to give experiance.
4. No aftermarket.
5. Brush painting a must.
And this is for that person who has never seen a kit before. Ok my neihbor is a geek and needs help.

Bob

1/48 Tamiya Spitfire Mk I. Assembles easy, great fit, and not priced out of reach. "Q"

Matt,
Thanks for the input, I just looked it up on Squadron and the Mkl is $26.10 USD. While on their site I noticed the A6m for 11.99 and remembered some one here recommending this as a pretty good build. For the price I think I will look into it and check out the Spit as well.

Bob

Any of the Academy P-40 kits in 1/72 would work just fine. Or their F-86s. Easy to follow instructions, simple paint schemes. Only issue would be the decals. 1/72 Tamiya kits would also be great. They are small enough in that scale to paint easily with a brush or a rattle can.

I had totally forgot about the early Tamiya Zero's. Another good one for not a lot of cash and they can be found at Hobby Lobby where a 40% off coupon will bring the price down even further....that is provided you have a HL nearby. "Q"

Anything from Reve Germany. I've built several of their kits. They have a good amount of detail, and the instructions are very clear and neat. There will be a need to fill, but it will be minimal. Every piece has it's necessary color clearly established.

@ C: thank you for your input on the instructions, I will check Revell / Germany out for their 1/48 scale kits.

@ Russ: the P-40 is my favorite a/c I only hope my neighbors eye sight is better than mine. I will check out Academy's lineup.

@ Matt: I checked into the locations for Hobby Lobby and the nearest is 163 miles. I guess a Saturday outting is not in the near future. I think the last time that I visited one was back in Texas.

Bob

Revell of Germany are indeed usually a good choice. Prior to buying, it's good to take a look at some previews though. RoG has a diverse range of kits, those from the 90's onward tend to be generally very good.
They also do a lot of reboxing of other manufacturers' kits, ranging from recent Hasegawa kits to ancient kits from the 60's and 70's. The origins of the kit inside aren't usually marked in the box, so if you're unfamiliar with the kit in question, it's good to check it up beforehand or ask for a permission to take a peek inside in a LHS.

Hello,

the one which is often recommend for beginners in french forums is the Revell P-47 at 1/72° scale (and not only necause there's a french deco !).

Easy, nice and low price. It's also a very famous plane,so it can easily attracts beginners...

cheers
nico

@ Eetu: I have been looking at what the LHS carries to verify what is readily availble.

@ Nicolas: thanks for that description it will be my next kit to research.

Bob

Just to cast my $.02, I always recommend and cut my own teeth on old monogram (now revell) 1/48 WWII aircraft as long as its one of the single engine jobs like the P47, P51, Typhoon and my personnel fav monogram kit, their Me 109G. many of these dont stand up to todays accuracy standards, but are cheap, simple kits that can be built into respectable models. Early tamiya aircraft kits are also cheap easy builds. Only potential drawback is their subject matter is limited to japanese aircraft. I also built a few of the ERTL kits, which i understand were reboxed otaki kits, they were decent beginner kits too as i recall

Mike, your $0.02 was noted and I also remember the older Monogram kits.

Bob

I wholeheartedly recommend any 1/72 Airfix kit based on your stipulations, they're a great way to introduce someone to modeling. The new Spitfires are a personal favorite of mine.

Huumm...Airfix? Indeed, even more their new 1/48 range, like the 109. Cost me around 16 euros and should satisfy more than just beginners. Nice fit of parts, cleaver assembly and a jolly good decal sheet.
Also Eduard "weekend" range offers one or two less complicated kits at a very affordable price, but advice about wich one to buy is mandatory to a beginner



Pedro

@ Jeremy and Pedro: I have been taking long looks at the Airfix offerings and decided on their 1/72 scale Hawker Hurricane Mkl, Supermarine Spitfire Mkl, and the Bf 109E to keep a theme going for my neihbors interest in The Battle of Britain. Thanks for your help, after looking at the above kits I noticed that they are not bad and I may need to try a 1/72 Airfix kit again ( my normal scale is 1/48 & 1/35 ).

Bob