I’ve not flown the duroplane but have seen it at the field. It is pretty crash resistant but that comes at the cost of weight. The added weight does effect handling and performance. If you have a good instructor and are willing to spend some extra time on the buddy box, it may be a good trainer for your ultimate goal. I have flown the Sig Cadet Senior and it is a real pleasure. It is slow enough to allow a beginner to respond, and its size provides great visibility. In my opinion, it’s certainly one of the best trainers out there. The Kadet LT 40 is also a good trainer. It is a little more compact and a little faster than the Senior but is quite satisfactory.

Don’t even consider using an engine larger than the recommended range. A lot of experienced fliers overpower their aircraft to gain aerobatic performance such as hovering and unlimited vertical, and they have the skill necessary to deal with it. Both the installation and the resulting flight characteristics unnecessarily complicate things for a beginner. You will be a better pilot if you learn to fly the wing and not just jerk an airplane around the sky with power. Don’t worry about future use of the engine. You will likely wear out the first one on your trainer and a second intermediate one (at least) before you are ready for the Corsair.

Try to link up with a club and discuss the matter with a prospective instructor. A lot of them have favorite trainers that they like to fly. With your ultimate goal in mind, and your concern about damage, you might seriously consider building from a kit rather than ARF. It will take you a little longer to get in the air, but if you build it you can fix it.