ORIGINAL: Mediaman
Yes the Saito 65 is good and reliable.... It's also a dog,,,, a tired one. I had a new one on a 50 inch PT19, performance was horrendous, to the point that I installed an old OS48 four stroke and I started liking the plane.
The Saito 65 is good for a trainer. For approx $30.00 more you can get a way better Saito engine.
If it's a dog, I wouldn't mind some puppies from it. Mine is a great engine, turns a 14 inch prop with no trouble to 9800 rpm. I would agree, however with the post that recommended the .72 for the reasons of size and only slightly greater cost. Saito lists the .65 as a medium case engine, the .72 as a small case engine and the .72 is actually shorter and the case narrower than the .65, has a better power-to weight ratio than the .65. The .65 is at least a 10 year old design, whereas the .72 is newer engineering. Not to say the .65 isn't any good, I'd buy another one today. Mine is an "A" series (the series # is stamped on the mounting flange) which is the oldest one. I bought it NIB for $150, best money I've spent in R/C so far.