Wayne,

W8eye is right, of course. Unusual for him, tho, his terse comment isn't a lot of help.

I, for one, would like to know how you have the engine mounted for initial running. ...And incidentally which engine it is. I don't fly RC, so don't know if the Protege.40 Trainer is a very-ready-to-fly/almost-ready-to-fly type with the engine either mounted, or ready to drop in per instructions. In the about 60 years I've been messing with model engines, I've come to a personal preference to "break-in" ALL engines on a test stand. More control if anything starts to go wrong; the stand takes care of holding the engine (in a model - YOU have to do that as well as all the engine-running things...) Not everybody agrees, so...

Well, let me guess that you want to "run-in" the engine before first flight, with it mounted in the model. The engine instructions almost certainly say something about not lettng the fuel level be much above the spraybar (the tube or fuel jet in the carb body where the fuel comes out.) If it IS above that with the plane sitting on its wheels or on a flight box cradle, well, all liquids pour downhill, don't they?

That could be how too much raw fuel got into the engine's innards... Solution is simple: Don't fill the tank as much, only enough that there's fuel UP TO but NOT ABOVE that spraybar level.

To clear a "flood" - the condition you describe - the best way is to rotate the model to where the cylinder head points down, below horizontal with the shaft, and rock the propeller a few times. The turn the prop until you feel resistance from the piston closing the exhaust port. Hold it at that resistance and rotate the model so the head is up at least a bit above horizontal with the prop shaft, and the muffler or exhaust stack is pointed some down. Ease the prop back to where the exhaust port opens. The excess you pushed up to the upper part of the engine, just before this step, is freed to pour out the exhaust into the muffler, or simply out of the engine if there is no muffler.

Repeat this a few times to be more sure. Then, set the model back in its engine-start position. Remove the glow plug. I presume you'll use an electric starter? Give it a few spins with that, to blow out the last of the excess raw fuel. Replace the glow plug. Many recommend this, simply. ...NOT bothering to rotate the engine, or model, as above. Bothe work, but I trust the earlier-described way...

Check to make sure the fuel level in the tank is not too high. Connect the battery to the plug, and pull the prop through (counter-clockwise IS the right direction!) a few times. HOLD the prop firmly, you may feel a "bump." If it "bumps" there's enough fuel in the cylinder to fire. That's why you are holding it firmly - it might kick forward and try to start, or kick backward and give you a nasty rap on the fingers.

You are also checking that there is not so much fuel in the engine that trying to start it will cause "hydraulic lock." Liquids are incompressible, for all practical purposes. If you hit the prop with a starter, or flip it through sharply enough to hope for a start, you might pump too much fuel into the combustion chamber. When the ports close, it has nowhere to go.

If there's more liquid up there than allows the piston to go through Top Dead Center, you are trying to compress incompressible liquid. Metal things will break! Pulling it through assures you that this won't (shouldn't, anyway) happen. If all is good, either touch the prop with that starter, or flip the prop sharply through Top Dead Center. Several flips without hearing any pops suggests you could "prime" the engine.

Assuming a muffler is mounted, and has a line to tap pressure from the muffler to pressurize fuel in the tank, putting a fingertip over the muffler outlet hole and flipping the prop can be enough prime. You should see the fuel driven by the muffler pressure, going to the carb nipple... Battery back on, try pulling through a few times, then flipping sharply.

If the carb needle settings are per the instructions, this should do it.

Oh, and by all means!, find somebody nearby who is succesfully flying models like your Protege Trainer. He should welcome another flying buddy to the fold, and be glad to share his learning experiences with you - saving you a lot of probable heartbreak, time, money and frustration.

Oh, and yes, all modern engines gain from at least a few brief runs before first flight. The engine's machined pieces get a chance to "polish-in" with each other, without the loads of flying. And - perhaps even more important - YOU get to be familiar and (more?) comfortable with getting the engine going.