Amusing post.

1. How many people have ever contacted a manufacturer when they've been disappointed with their engine? If so, how did you treat them? How did they treat you? It seems amazing that we are quick to type up complaints, and not always so quick to call a manufacturer to give them a chance to resolve the problem. Most every company has been responsive and helpful, with the exception of my Enya experience. Enya stood out negatively from ALL the rest as having unusually slow service response, as well as inadequate service support. The engine was beautifully made, but I won't buy another Altech supported product.

2. I've had most of the glow engine brands mentioned above (except no MDS or Moki), plus a large number of others not mentioned. There has been the occassional problem child with Saito, OS, Magnum, HP, Enya, Thunder Tiger, YS, Fox, K&B, etc, but I can honestly say that I didn't experience any trend where most from one brand were big problems. Most run quite well and reliably, when given a chance to be broken in and given some patience.

3. IMHO, biggest problem that I've witnessed has been touched on by a couple of others...few people bother to properly break in an engine. Every one of my engines spends time on my test stand before it proves worthy to go into a plane. Who needs surprises in the air?? Even fewer modelers spend time to try to determine what fuel, glow plug, and range of props make that engine run at its best. Great thing about having a test stand is you can try a lot of those things out. Not all engines run great right out of the box, although some are easier than others. I've had Magnums (2 & 4 stroke) that ran awesome immediately, others after 2-4 tanks on my break in stand (2 minutes at a time), and another that took 2 gallons. Same with Saito, etc. I had one 80 that never broke in properly and I swear was evil. I'm sure it wasn't but I never quite got it figured out. The rest of my Saitos were really good.

4. Despite the bashing in this thread, I've found Magnum to offer terrific engines, with only the same occasional clunker as any other brand, and perhaps the best customer support.

5. At this point, my glow fleet is consolidated to 4 stroke YS or Magnum, and 2 stroke Magnum (around 20 glow engines). At least for the most part. Just makes life simpler. A Jett and a couple of others keep things interesting.