Piece meal or the whole enchalada?
I tried piece mealing my tools as the build progressed. I found that I quickly needed just about all the tools that you find in the basic tool kits (plus a few more). Thats just for the tail feathers.
My thoughts for what it's worth:
1. It is really frustrating to get on a roll and then suspend operations while you put together another order for tools that you need. Not too many options for substitutions (a bigger hammer only goes so far, not so good results).
2. Plus, shipping cost's will start to pile up as you continually place order after order (it will cost you alot more in the end). I tried chasing the specials when they came around - made you feel good to get a good deal but in the end I probably broke even.
3. The big vendors put together pretty good tool kits, folks will have their preferences but in general they will get the job done without much fuss.
4. Don't buy junk (cheap) tools, for the most part you will not be happy with the results. A cheap tool can ruin a great piece of craftsmanship. It's hard enough to keep from making a mistake that requires calling Van's for a replacement part. Just alot more aggravating when a bad tools is causing the problem. There will be enough of those replacement part moments as it is.
5. Back to the piece mealing thing - yes there will be some specialty items that you can wait for until farther along in the project.
Just my thoughts (been there done that). Still having a blast when I get a chance to work on the bird.