I am new to rc planes and have a question. Ihave a 1.20 sizse Edge 540 and it recomends a 1.20 to 1.50 size two stroke engine. What cc gas engine would be right for this plane? Also what is the advantage with digital servos over analog? and finially what purpose does a gyro serve in the aircraft? Thanks in advance..

if you havnt flown a rc plane before put that edge aside and buy a trainer or a big stick, find a club and get an instructor. then when you know how to fly take the edge out and have at it. i know this isnt want you want to hear but i want you learn to fly and have fun not crash a plane that has no chance in a beginners hands. if you still feel that you want to fly the edge at least go to a club and fly the club's trainer plane to understand what a deep hole you are in
i recommend this plane http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXCXF4**&P=0 with the help of an instructor you will be flying in no time.

I have to agree with Jimmy, an Edge is deffinatly not a beginner plane. A trainer is the way to go to learn to fly first, trust me you will save alot of time, money, and frustration if you start with a trainer. My 2 cents worth for a trainer is the Hangar 9 Alpha 40. For $299 you can't beat the price for the quality and a ready to fly plane. It comes with the motor and a 5 channel spektrum radio.

www.hangar-9.com/Products/Default.aspx

Yes, a trainer will pay for itself and save you money in the long run when you figure how much new wings and cowlings cost for the edge.

To answer your questions, digital servos respond to your controls faster, move faster, hold their positions better, and are more accurate. You need them on a serious aerobatics bird, otherwise you will be constantly chasing it.

A 25-30cc 2 stroke gas engine would be appropriate for the plane.

A gyro senses movement that you don't want (like yaw) and automatically corrects for it. In short, it makes your plane go straighter and does it better than you can.

Good luck with your training and enjoy the Edge when you become a skilled pilot.

If you are a beginner begin by getting a flight simulator.. FMS is a free download.. You can buy controllers on line that come with the FMS software for less than $20.00.. With a simulator every time you crash, and you will crash often, you'll get a brand new airplane for free! That's a better deal than you'll ever get from Tower, et al. Also join a club, get an instructor, and practice with a buddy-box. Most clubs have great instructors, buddy boxes, and even club trainer aircraft for beginners. Save the "hot-rod" 'till you're a pilot. Good luck!

Jim Gallagher

Any of the smaller gassers would be OK with the plane in about 26cc, I like the little CRRC gassers or the DLE 30cc. In my hanger I have a 1.40 22cc gasser from RC Showcase that would fit very well. Do a search here on RCU, try digital or servos for the search and find some servo information, it's been covered a number of times.

Digital servos in that plane are appropriate especially if you're going to be doing aerobatics but make sure you do some research. There's really good analog servos and crappy digital ones.

As for the gyro, don't bother.

Thanks to all who replied,

   Guess I should have explained better.   I have been flying my .40 edge for a couple months now and really like it.  I have not really been attempting aerobatics with my actual plane, just on my fs1.  My .40 edge has hi-tec analog servos and I get along with it fine, but on my new .120 I was planning on digital servos or may just go with some 625mg hi tecs.  I am going to wait for the new evolution 26gx to be available again before I buy a engine for it.  I was just curious about the gyro, I assumed that is what it did, but wanted to make sure. 

              Joe

Gyro on most planes isn't worth the trouble, they can even bite you in the hinder. If you go to a site like servo city you can look up the different servos and get a good idea of what you may like. Digitals hold throughout there moving range at any point you hold them. That's pretty basic but you should read up on the differences between the two. If you pull a search here on RCU there has been a lot of talk about the two types. I do a lot of mixing depending on the plane, analog and digital servos in the same plane. Do the search then decide.

Here's a white paper on digital servos
http://www.futabarc.com/servos/digitalservos.pdf