Texan,

There is an old saying that success is 90% pilot and 10% plane ( you nay adjust your choice of percentages...) The point is that nothing will succeed like practice, practice, practice. That being said, there are many suitable designs out there - just pick one that suits your taste and flying style. Also, consider that you don't need to go do an OS 91 4-stroke as many do. In the Novice and Sportsman patterns there are no maneuvers for which vertical performance is heavily weighted. A good 2-stroke can do well. My Cutlass with an OS 55AX was very satisfactory in Sportsman. So, you can keep the cost down and put the savings towards more fuel! Also, the 55AX is about the same size and power as the engines that were in use for those planes designed in the late 60s and early 70s so it fits well, balances well, and performs well in these designs. I have one in my Kwik Fli III, as well, and it is a perfect match.

Jeff