I cannot advocate using any of them. Personally I like 3dsmax but that's because I started using old do 3dstudio (mex is successor of that). I know blender is powerfull but I cannot grasp it's UI. Also there is script for 3ds max that directly exports to orbiter's msh format. With proper arangement (3dsmax using orbiter texture paths) you can import / export meshes pretty efficently. Max however is not trivial to use (UVW mapping is major PITA) and you have to adjust materials manually in msh file after export.
I rarely use .obj format as my workflow is just max file for modelling and direct export to orbiter. .3ds files have some limitations (65k polys per meshgroup) but they're pretty consistent. You may loose any UVW mapping info if your object does not have texture applied.
Before grabbing models from the internet and putting them into orbiter I'd recomend creating some simple objects (cubes, spheres etc) and learn how materials are rendered in both your modeller and orbiter. That will give you basics for your material workflow.
And since Max is free for students (you have to have .edu e-mail), I might do basic tutorial for Max/GMAX and how to export it properly to orbiter. I'd need like 2 days for it (so no expect it soon).
thanks for the tip! i will try to use that shading tip first which you gave me when i get home from work.
