Before this discussion tumbles into the sewer I'm gonna add my .02c.

The question is: are ARF's really safe?
The answer is absolutely yes.
JimRoss's accident is clearly not entirely the fault of the ARF. I spent about an hour going through the whole thread. I truly feel bad for JimRoss, and I absolutely appreciate the fact he shared his mistake with everyone here so that someone else will not have to go through what he did - what a GREAT guy.
Several key points to ponder:
1. A G38 was clearly outside the manufacturers reccomended engine range. The excuse was it doesnt put out as much power as a glow 1.8. Well, a glow 1.8 doesnt have the mass and vibration of a G38, therefore the firewall absolutely needed more support than was given. I would never <ever> put a gas engine on an unpinned firewall - EVER! Even JimRoss admitted as much.
2. Jim says he flew about 10 times on the combo before the incident. Was there ever a postflight integrity check of the firewall? Looking at the pictures, it would seem to me there would have been some evidence of the firewall loosening before there was a catastophic failure. Admittedly SIG has some responsibilty to ensure the firewall was better mounted, but so does the "assembler". Good on SIG for standing behind thier product and now over engineering the firewall.
3. Why would anyone ever tach an engine - especially one of this size - from the front? Thanks Jim for graphically showing why this is a very bad idea.

When you "assemble" an ARF, you share the responsibilty of its airworthiness with the manufacturer - just like you would when "building" a kit - if there is substandard material in a kit, do you complain that kits arent safe?. They are not sold as RTF, they are ALMOST ready to fly. Sure, there is no grace in "assembling" them, but the buyer still as to put them together. I too like so eloquently stated ny JohnVH would rather fly than glue my fingers together. But when I put an ARF together, I take the time to ensure that the critical areas are properly supported, and constructed. I dont trust them to be assembled correctly, I verify they they were - that is my responsibilty. If I deviate from the manufacturers recommendation, I assume the risk.

Bottom line: Not everyone enjoys the tedium of constructing a model. I appreciate the fact that you do, there are kits available for you to purchase and build. For those of us who dont, there are ARF's. So lets go fly, build or whatever brings us to the hobby, share it with those around us, and most of all, have FUN!

Roger