Elad:
The real reason I want the 4 stroke is because being close to a 2 stroke engine while tuning it makes me a little nervous, even when it has a muffler. The 4 strokes have a much more realistic and soothing sound.
And that
statement makes me nervous. If the soothing sound of the 4c engines calms you down, avoid them. Get nice and calm, you get nice and complacent. Then careless. And then we call you "Nine-finger Jack."
And thinking ahead, if I get a large enough 4 stroke engine, without overpowering the Eagle, I'll have more options of planes to use the 4 stroke in later on.
In the sizes up to an 0.80 or 0.90 the four strokes are rather specialized, they are a lot heavier than the same size two stroke, and they don't have the power either. Even from 0.80 up to about 1.20 the 4c engines have a weight penalty, but in that range they're a lot easier to use.
Being relatively new I would strongly suggest you stay with the 2c engines until you go over the 1.0 size engines.
And get a few low wing sport planes under your belt before you go into scale transport aircraft. They will be adding too many new things at once, multi engines and high wing loading just for two. Your probability of success wouldn't be too high.
If you just want to jump right into twins that's another matter. But do get at least one sport plane mastered first.
Then get a Twin-Air 45 for your first twin. Aerobatic twin, and it's still a nice easy plane to fly with an engine out.
And there is why you should have more experience before even the simplest twin. Until you are truly familiar with the care and feeding of the engines, and keeping them running, you can turn an expensive plane into a pile of match sticks a lot faster with even the easiest flying twin than with a single.
And the final reason I'll give for staying with a 2c engine while learning: when you make a major error, either with the engine adjustments or the operation of the airplane, the destruction of an $80 two stroke engine hurts a lot less than ruining a $300 four stroke.
Bill.