Originally Posted by
hairy46
Seems like most you guys like them, the biggest problems is the aluminum screws and that they do not come with mufflers, really don't understand that because they are needed to use them, on the other side great people to deal with and have work done if needed, all my planes are 30cc or less, is the DA 35 a good engine for the money? I know most of you like the bigger stuff but has many of you tried the 35? And what is your opinion of them?
With DA, it has been about competition, first and foremost. Aluminum in place of steel to save weight. No mufflers provided, as DA has no idea in what application the engine will be used? Canisters? Tuned pipe? Stock or Pits style muffler? Many, many flights with all my DAs and never had a cylinder bolt failure on any of them. Wound up tight with cans and pipes; hot summer, cold winter. Never a mechanical failure of any kind.
My biggest gripe with DA engines is that they seem to exhibit excessive (to my way preference) over-center rod, pin, crank "play." This is after many gallons of fuel.
By contrast, after more than 20 gallons of gas through my 3W157CSs, they both felt as though they had just come out of the factory. Tight as drums, massive compression, solid as Panzer tanks. Also heavier than comparable DAs. Obviously, sacrifices for weight bring other potential issues.
We are lucky to have so many great engine choices that things like government, politics, human rights, economics, and other intangibles can be part of the decision-making process, yet we can still end up with a high quality product pulling our planes through the sky
