ORIGINAL: Sport_Pilot
Ed, they run good when you get a good one. On my ASP .91 the carb barrel cracked from the clinch bolt. I do not think I over tightened. The metal seems very soft. Repaired it by straighting it and putting glue in the crack. Had a similar proble when tightening the trottle arm on the carb barrel of a Magnum .30 four stroke. The metal seems very brittle. The only engines I have this kind of issue are Magnum and ASP. It could be coincidence, but that is what I form my opinion on. No such problems with Fox, TT, OS (long ago), and others.
And you are naming the things that you get when you pay half as much, or less, than you would when you buy an OS, Enya, Saito or YS, just to name a few examples.
I'm not saying that Sanye engines are the same quality as the more expensive engines. I am saying that they are of sufficient quality, these days, to provide one with an excellent performing engine that is reliable and powerful enough to do the job.
The Japanese are known for gilding the lily. If your engines must look like jewels, then you will prefer Japanese made engines, but the gilding just isn't necessary for sport flying.
Ed Cregger