ORIGINAL: gaRCfield
Personally I am thankful I learned this season on a two stroke - it allowed me to spend less time tuning or learning how to tune and more time flying.
As I said in my earlier post, I do not understand this logic. I own both 2-strokes and 4-strokes. They both have a low speed and high speed needle and they adjust in exactly the same way. 4-strokes start easy and idle very well. In fact, my 4-strokes actually seem a little easier to tune correctly for some odd reason. That's probably more my perception than reality though.
My point is that there is no "voodoo" required to make a 4-stroke run right as some people seem to think. Other than the sound, torque curve and maybe checking the valve lash once a year, they are no different than a 2-stroke. Once you have actually owned and operated a 4-stroke you will see what I mean.
As for using a larger engine so it can be put into another, more advanced plane I do get that philosophy. I say, however, keep the small 4-stroke in the trainer and keep that plane around long after moving past it if you can. There may be days when you want a relaxing flyer or perhaps you want to introduce someone to the hobby. A flyable trainer-type plane is nice to have around. In fact, I was trying to think of a kit to build on the upcoming rainy, foggy days and I think a trainer with a nice little .56-FS might be a good idea. I doubt I will personally fly it much but if I can use it to get people into flying, it will be worth it.