If you’ve been browsing (and the data generally agrees) RC hobby sites lately. Yet, great Planes kits, those iconic laser-cut wood model airplane kits that defined a generation of builders, seem to have vanished. Search any major retailer and you’ll see ‘out of stock’ or ‘discontinued’ next to nearly every listing.
Actually, let’s be more precise: a bunch of still show "indefinite backorder,". " What happened to Great Planes kits? I know – it's a bit much. The short answer: a combination of corporate collapse, supply chain turmoil, and a massive industry shift toward ready-to-fly models all but killed the traditional kit market. What does that mean for you? The story is more detailed than that. It’s worth noting that it’s also a cautionary tale about how fast a beloved brand can fade. When the economics turn against it.
Key Point–The brand effectively shut down kit production around 2020. What remains is mostly closeout stock and secondary-market listings.
- Scarcity has turned kits into collector items, with prices 2-3x higher than retail. This pushes the cost of a simple stick-built trainer into the range of a fully outfitted ARF.
- Balsa wood shortages, rising material costs, and the shift to ARFs all contributed to the collapse. Even if the demand were still strong, the supply chain can’t support large kit runs anymore.
- You can still build a Great Planes airplane, but it’s a hunt. You’ll likely need to find plans, cut your own balsa, or pay a premium for an unbuilt kit on eBay.
How Great Planes Became the Go-To for Builders
Back in the 1990s and early 2000s, building a model airplane from a box of balsa sticks. Laser-cut ribs was almost a rite of passage.
Great Planes Manufacturing, founded in the early 1980s, grew into one of the biggest names in RC airplane kits. At its peak, the company offered roughly 60 different designs.
From a 40-size trainer like the PT-40 to scale warbirds like the F4U Corsair. The data speaks for itself.
Many hobbyists stumbled into their first build via a Great Planes kit buys from Tower Hobbies, the massive mail-order giant that was, for years, the Amazon of the RC world.
Consider this practical perspective. The brand was almost never just about the box of wood.
It included detailed plans, quality hardware, and decent instructions. You didn’t just build a plane. You learned covering techniques, engine mounting, and control surface setup. That hands-on knowledge turned beginners into competent pilots.
And the kits weren’t cheap exactly. 40-size trainer.
Branching off from that, then, almost overnight, that pipeline dried up, and today you’d be tough-pressed to find a single kit in stock at Horizon Hobby or any major retailer. Not the easiest thing to wrap your head around. If you pull up the Great Planes page on Tower Hobbies now. What you see is a handful of accessories, maybe some ARF leftovers, but zero core kits.
The ‘New Releases’ section hasn’t budged in years. So what knocked the wheels off? The answer starts with a corporate implosion.
Hobbico’s Collapse Was the Tipping Point
For decades, Great Planes existed under the umbrella of Hobbico, a sprawling hobby conglomerate that owned Tower Hobbies, Futaba, AquaCraft, and many others. In 2018, Hobbico filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, weighed down by debt and shifting consumer habits; the restructuring overall failed. Assets were sold off piecemeal. Looking closer, horizon Hobby acquired the Tower Hobbies domain and some brands, while others simply ceased operations.
Great Planes got caught in the crossfire. Indeed, mainly because it was deeply tied to Hobbico’s distribution network, the collapse shattered its supply chain (as one might expect), warehouses emptied.
The follow-up question is obvious. Tooling for laser cutting sat idle. There was no buyer willing to resurrect the (and that implies quite a bit) kit line at full scale. A few parts and replacement items trickled out under new ownership, but the heart of the brand, the boxed kits themselves, NEVER returned to production.
” That sentiment echoes across hobby forums. Another commenter on Reddit’s RCPlanes community noted that trying to order a kit from Tower results in an “indefinite backorder” status.
Which has been the case for years now. 60-size Extra 300s, don’t, and the machinery and the business case are simply not coming back. Kind of surprising, right?
Period.
Why Balsa Wood Shortages Made Things Worse
Even if Hobbico had survived. The raw materials market would have dealt a severe blow.
Balsa wood, the lifeblood of traditional kits. Comes predominantly from Ecuador and Indonesia. Around 2021, supply constraints and skyrocketing freight costs sent balsa prices surging by 25–40% depending on the grade. For a kit manufacturer, that’s devastating.
A typical kit might contain 8–12 sheets of different thicknesses plus shaped leading edges. When material costs double overnight, the retail price has to jump so, and that’s, no, scratch that, a tough sell when an ARF competitor offers a pre-built, covered model for less.
Smaller kit makers have confirmed that balsa shortages forced them to suspend production entirely. Plus, great Planes, with its volume requirements, would've needed tons of consistent, high-quality wood. That sort of supply chain reliability evaporated. Forum builders recount stories of kits where the included balsa felt heavier or had more grain runout, signs of manufacturers scraping the bottom of the barrel.
Actually, the math stopped working. If you can’t source balsa at a predictable price, you can’t offer kits at a predictable price, and you’re out of the game. Hold onto this thought.
How ARFs Replaced Traditional Great Planes Kits
Consider this practical perspective. The rise of Almost Ready to Fly (ARF) models is the biggest cultural shift. Here's the other side of it. In the early 2000s, Chinese factories began churning out ARFs that looked fantastic.
And needed only a few hours of assembly. For the most part, or $200 for a fully — hmm, let me put it differently, covered ARF from a brand like Phoenix or Hangar 9. Most newcomers chose the path of least resistance.
Which at the root drives the core point.
| Decade | Great Planes .40 Trainer Kit | Comparable ARF |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $110 | $180 |
| 2010 | $150 | $200 |
| 2020 | $180 (if ever found) | $260 |
But does that hold up? The price gap kept shrinking, and the main benefit tilted heavily toward ARFs. Why spend weeks building and covering when you can be in the air by Saturday?
This isn’t just an airplane phenomenon, and the ground, no, scratch that, vehicle side of the hobby went all-in on ready-to-run (RTR). Instead of assembling a drivetrain and painting a body. You can buy a ready-to-run basher that handles 4S LiPo packs out of the box, as highlighted in best RC cars for bashing. Even off-road vehicles, once a niche for kit builders, are now dominated by RTR models that can take a beating; the best RC cars for off road reviews make it clear how far the convenience has come.
Meanwhile, traditional helicopter kits collapsed in the same way. Only a few diehards still debate the merits of a mechanical flybar versus an electronic one. A topic covered in what is a flybar on an rc helicopter.
The mass market prefers to buy a heli that hovers itself out (which aligns with standard practices) of the box. Great Planes, like the kit builders in other segments, couldn’t pivot. They tried ARFs too, but those rarely ever grabbed the same market share. And without a steady flow of new builders who’d graduate to kits, the customer base aged out.
Where to Find Great Planes Kits Today (If at All)
Across the board, if you’re set on building a vintage Great Planes design. Your options are limited but not zero. The central hunting grounds are eBay and Facebook Marketplace. There, unopened kits regularly pop up, regularly priced at a premium. 40-size Trainer 40 that retailed for $100 in 2010 now lists for $250–$300.
That jumped out at me too. From a practical standpoint, something rarer, like a giant-scale Cap 232, can exceed $500, sellers know the demand is there, and they price so.
Some hobby shops still have dusty NOS (new old stock) sitting on a shelf. It’s worth calling around. Occasionally, estate sales in areas with active RC clubs yield stashes of unbuilt kits. Forums like RCGroups and RCUniverse have classified sections where members occasionally sell off their collections, and the key is patience and a willingness to overpay.
There’s a indeed. Because Great Planes published detailed plans for quite a few of their models, you can sometimes download the PDF and cut your own ribs. If you’re handy with a scroll saw or have access to a laser cutter.
You can replicate the kit at a fraction of the secondary market cost. More importantly, some small cottage-industry companies even offer short kits that include the formed windshield. And cowl but leave the wood to you.
That route takes skill, but it keeps the tradition alive. Though practical limits do exist.
FAQs
What happened to Great Planes kits?
Great Planes kits disappeared due to the parent company Hobbico’s bankruptcy, supply chain failures, and the mass market shift toward ARFs. Production ceased around 2020. And remaining kits are only available via resellers or closeout stock.
Store this one. It ties everything together later.
Are any Great Planes kits still in production?
No. Current product pages on sites like Tower Hobbies list only a few ARFs and accessories, but core boxed kits are not being manufactured. Supply is limited to whatever established inventory surfaces.
Where can I buy replacement parts for Great Planes models?
Some small parts, like cowls and canopies, still appear on eBay. Or from hobby shops that bought out established stock. Websites like ParkFlyer Plastics also offer reproductions, for mechanical hardware like control horns and pushrods, Du-Bro still sells compatible items.
The Legacy Lives On, but Prices Won’t Wait
Here's something to consider. The story of Great Planes kits isn’t unique. It mirrors a broader extinction of traditional building in RC; which is why the loss stings seeing as those kits taught patience, craftsmanship, and aeroactives in a way no ARF can. But the hobby evolves, and for now.
That matters. The focus is on instant airtime.
Zooming out a bit, if you’ve ever wanted a particular Great Planes kit, your window is closing, so prices on the secondary market keep climbing. But there's a catch. The kits aren’t coming back in a meaningful way.
So treat the remaining ones as collector pieces, but also build them. Build them seeing as the smell of freshly cut balsa and the satisfaction of a straight wing panel are things no factory pre-built model can replicate.
Looking ahead, the only realistic path for someone chasing that old-school building fix is to download plans. Source wood from specialty suppliers, and cut your own parts.
It’s a slower process, but it keeps the heritage alive. Who knows? Maybe a niche manufacturer will step into the void. Offer new laser-cut kits at a scale that works.
Until then, the hunt is on.
🔍 Research Sources
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