Hi - I just bought a used alpha 60 by hangar 9 - I know that the factory installed engine is an Evolution .61 - but what do you guys think if I put an SK .80 engine on it?

is it too much power?

I would just leave the Evolution 60 in it. A trainer gains absolutely nothing from being overpowered. In fact, it can actually have a negative impact. When a plane has less power the pilot needs to learn to fly the wing of the plane instead of relying on power to get out of trouble. If you learn to fly a plane with less power you'll wind up being a better pilot in the long run.

Ken

i would have never removed the evo61 - but I got this alpha 60 without an engine, and I have an SK .80 - i already have it installed, but I just don't know how if I should leave it.

I am ....uhmmm... an advanced trainer....I say this because I have been flying for three months already

a trainer with a 61 will fly like a trainer...a trainer with an 80 will fly like a trainer..in other words go fly it see what happens.....

You should have no problems. That is a minor upgrade. Go for it.
Now if you were strapping and OS160AX on there I would be concerned.

Double check the balance with the engine.

Why do you want to do that? What's wrong with the .61? Just asking.

File IFR
Nothing is wrong with the EVO 61...jsut that I don't have it. I bought this plane without a motor and I have two engines: an OS46FX and a SK80 so those are my choises because that is what I have.

I just wanted to know if someone had this engine and if .80 would be too much

Ahhh, I gotcha now. I thought you wanted a bigger engine. Sorry, I missed the part of the 'No engine in it'.[:@]

It might be much having an .80 in it, but can be done. Throttle management will be more sensitive than 'normal' since the plane is "small" compared to the powerplant.
After take-off, you'll pull the power to be cruising around at 3/8 or less throttle position.

If I were in your shoes, I'd buy an appropriate sized engine for it and save the .80 for something bigger... You'll want something bigger later on down the road..

Hey Mike - I think this plane is kind of big, so maybe the .20 difference won't be sooo huge that it will brake the plane apart.
It's an alpha60

You'll be ok, it's all just throttle managenent. All my stuff is scale, so I've flown "scale-like" for a long time so that's my approach to it.

When I see a trainer flying at 50 to 70 MPH at full power constantly I just wonder WHY.[:'(]... I'm not implying that you'd do that, but I see it alot.

ahaha - so is that what people were thinking when I flew my Nexstar at 4 feet from the runway going what I think was about 40 or 50 MPH ? LOL

why? it feels good! :-)

It'll fly fine with an 80, but it won't want to land. I had a 4-stroker .91 in my 60, and I could never get the throttle down enough, to get it to stop sailing.

Trainers have a large wing area, and dehidral, which means it'll glide for a long time. When you put a larger engine on it, than it's called for, you have to increase the recommended propeller, which leads to more thrust. In short - if you are going to go large with engine, get a prop with less bite. 12x4 or something.

A .46 FX or AX would be plenty of power for the Alpha .60 trainer. A plain bearing .46 like the .46 LA probably wouldn't be enough power. Which model do you have? Also, I'm describing "plenty of power" as smooth easy take-offs, basic loop and roll aerobatics, and flying on the wing.

Also, engines with tuned pipes tend to be an all-or-nothing kind of power source. By definition, tuned pipes are tuned to provide improved performance at wide-open throttle (WOT). If you're not flying at WOT, then an engine with a tuned pipe will tend to run sporadically at partial throttle.

If you have an O.S. Max .61 FX, or can get one with the Alpha .60, then I still say it's the best fit for the Alpha .60. If you have a .46 FX or .46 AX and you're looking for gentle trainer-like flying with mild aerobatics, then this would be a good combination with a standard sport muffler.

If you don't mind some extra nose weight and you really want to wring out the maximum performance of the Alpha .60 airframe, then the Super Tigre .61 or SK .80 would be good choices. You will probably want to try a 13x6 or larger prop on the SK .80 for it to run in it's ideal power band, and if the Alpha .60 doesn't have the ground clearance for such a long prop diameter, you can either buy larger diameter wheels for the airframe, try a 12x6 or 12x8 3 bladed prop (similar in load to a 13x6 or 13x7 2 blade), or both.

If you're going to buy a new engine to put on an Alpha .60 trainer and you want a good combination of power and economy, I'd look at a plain bearing .61 like the O.S. Max .65 LA, the Thunder Tiger GP-61, or the K&B Sportster .65 available from http://www.mecoa.com . These powerful, inexpensive engines will provide very good power and light weight. If you decide to put your Alpha .60 on floats later on and fly it from water (a common fate for many trainer airframes), these engines have no ball bearings to rust if they accidently get dipped in the lake.

The O.S. Max .65 LA actually outturns the .61 FX on a number of props, yet it weighs about the same as the .46 FX or .46 AX. Light weight translates into light wingloading and better glide ratio, which is a good thing on a trainer like the Alpha .60 ARF. The only downside to plain bearing engines like the .65 LA, the GP-61, or the Sportster .65 is that they run best on fuel with plenty of castor oil as part of the lubrication package. If your local hobby store only sells fuel with 100% synthetic oil, you're going to get weak performance and premature wear. Ball bearing engines are generally heavier, but they're less picky about the kind of lubrication with which you run them.

Hopefully, if I haven't gotten any other idea across to you, at least by now you should have a pretty good idea that the Alpha .60 ARF will fly quite well on a wide variety of engines and that which engine in particular that you choose isn't critically important. Rather, each engine represents a trade-off in terms of weight, wing loading, fuel consumption, and price. If you go with an engine at the top end of the size and power scale like the SK .80, you may need to upgrade your wheels and props to assure it runs the best that it can.

Good shopping and good luck!