The first balsa airplane I tried to build taught me two things fast: balsa cuts like butter, and butter can still look terrible if the knife is dull. I had plans, enthusiasm, and the kind of confidence that usually appears right before a crooked fuselage. What I didn’t have was a sensible beginner toolbox. I thought model building required a miniature machine shop, a laser cutter, and maybe a tiny wizard who aligned wing ribs while I slept. Good news: it doesn’t. For simple b