I generally use the finger snap on the spinner for my K&B .61 all others its a chicken stick and starter as a last resort. I Believe there is more wear and tear on the engine with a starter, because you are forcing the prop back plate into the case causing wear. Yes it is minimal, however anything I can do to get them to last longer. Hand starting is only unsafe if you use poor techinques or get too complacent. I've safely hand propped everything from a Cox .049 to a Lycoming O360 and still have all my orignal bits and pieces.