I see your point, but a nice brushless engine with an esc and big lipo to power my plane would cost a lot more than a nitro, and I wont be flying a ton, so nitro fuel should not become a huge problem. Also nitro has a pretty cool factor.

I do electric on my cars though

Just a 2 cent comment. Been flying for a bit now, and have flown with several different makes of engines, and sizes. 2 stroke and 4 stroke. I have to say, all of my engines start easy, idle well, transition from idle to wide open well, and run until I shut them off. A little attention to screws, rubber o-rings, fuel tanks, and engine mounts keep them that way.
If the airplane manufacturer calls for a .61 on that one, that would be the smallest I would go with. I think a .65 would be the largest. ASP is the best value you can buy, O.S. is great if you have the bucks for one. If you have really deep pockets, a Saito 4 stroke properly sized for the airplane would be great.
2-strokes will give you a bit more speed, 4-strokes will give you more thrust.
All of the above are simply my opinion, so, make your own choice. If it were mine, I'd use this K&b .65 I have on it.
A lot of engines can be bought second-hand in the classified section on RCU, and other discussion forums. They won't break your bank. Oh, by the way, don't forget about Evolution engines. Mine run great!!!
Just remember to have fun!!!:cool:

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/atta...mentid=1936914My son and I started trying to learn with that foam cub they push as a learner plane and almost gave up till we stopped by the local feild and learned of the buddy box system.That made such a difference! My son did his solo flight on his 12th birthday. Don't be afraid of asking for help at the feild if your willing to listen The trainer we started with had the old OS40, it was enough to fly the plane but we found that we were looking for more power once we learned to fly. The 61 Magnum will fly the plane well, think of looking into the next size up for later unless your thinking of the next type of plane,once my son did his solo he was ready for the next level of plane and hasn't flown the trainer since. Have Fun!! The sky's the limit!

Tim

electric plane
 

It's true that you could probably get into the air with a 60-sized glow motor for less money than 60-sized electric power. However, there's nothing like smooth, clean, quiet, reliable electric power. I converted all of my 60-sized glow planes to electric and I'm glad I did. To fly electric planes you would need:

- a charger
- a power supply
- ESC
- Lipo(s)
- electric motor (such as AXI 4120/14, 4120/18, Rimfire .60)
- Lipo power switch on plane such as an MPI #6970
- amp/volt/watt meter
- soldering iron and the ability to solder

But with electric you pay for your fuel up front. You buy the Lipo battery and as long as it continues to function....you have fuel.

That list is a lot of money. Just the cost of batteries will get you an engine, and it takes more than a basic 50 watt charger to do a 1C charge on them. I'll agree that electric is nice and convenient, but I have yet to find the break even point where the savings in fuel offset the greater startup cost. You gotta remember that the batteries don't last forever, so they are a consumable too.

Yes - the list is a lot of money. But some of the things in the list were bought just once such as the charger, power supply, soldering iron, power switch. My Lipo's last me 2 - 3 years. The motors are still functional. But I've been toasting my ESC's lately because of the aggressive props I've been using.

Doing glow then doing it at a minimum in quality I would go for this engine:

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXKF99&P=7

and you will not be sorry later. Also note this TT uses the rearward slant needle just like the AX's and that's a great thing as someone already pointed out.
In addition the best advice also was that to find a club first before making any purchases. The most important person that will be involved with your success is after all your mentor/instructor and these individuals are almost always left out on providing any help on your purchases and if you think about that is just plain backwards.

Another thought just occurred to me and that is that the majority of folks I have mentored into airplanes that were also into cars found that airplane soon became their primary interest and perhaps you should spend not so much on that Rustler VLX to provide yourself with better choices for your airplane(s). Especially the radios and engines.

I added that (s) on engines as you soon find this can become a lifetime passion with never enough aircraft.

John

What a guy!!!!

The hobby needspeople like you gesmale

Cheap? You can't buy the lipo battery for an airplane this size for the price of an ASP.Ou

Yep. Electric is easier, not cheaper.

Price of 6 cell Lipo
 

A Gens Ace 30c 5300 maH 6 cell Lipo from HobbyPartz.com costs $109.95. http://www.hobbypartz.com/98p-30c-5300-6s1p.html You might could get away with using 5 cells but I prefer to have 6 cells - lotsa power, 7 - 8 minute flight times. GensAce is an excellent battery, it has never swollen up, unlike my Blue lipo's or my very first battery which was a Thunderpower Pro-Lite 6-cell 5000 maH 25C. A 6-cell 30C Lipo (Turnigy or Zippy) from Hobby King runs $65 - $70.

A brand new ASP 61 2-stroke from HobbyPartz.com sells for $99.00. Holy crap.....how do they do that? http://www.hobbypartz.com/fm01-10-s6...troengine.html

The guitar,

Considering the suggestion made by Galloping Ghostler and the offer from George, IMO this should be a done deal.

Here is my 2 cents worth. The MOST IMPORTANT thing you need to learn how to fly RC is an instructor. Step 1 identify your mentor. Step 2 let him / her advise you all the way to solo flights. Let them decide with you the right engine etc.

if you read the description in the ad you will see it has a remote needle assembly. Ive own a couple os 61FXs and own two Magnum 61 XLs and the magnums are just as reliable as the os plus slightly more powerful. Actually if you compare an OS55AX versus OS 61FX the 55 will swing the same props faster.

Stopped in at my local hobby store today, they have some cool engines and a guy that comes in every week or so that knows everything about nitro planes, but the normal staff knows a lot too. They also told me about an awesome field to fly in with a paved airstrip and everything. I'm pretty excited to see my bird in the air. I really want to thank all of you guys for helping me out with all of your posts
and advice. I'll probably be back with another question sooner than later, but thanks everyone!

Sorry but I need to add one more comment. Anyone who claims to know "Everything" about anything is quite simply lying. I would be a little bit careful about two things here, one about taking advice from professionals in a hobby shop who have a vested interest in what to sell you and two about anyone who knows everything there is to know - be very careful of such people. My point was that you should visit the local flying field and find somebody who will take the time out to actually teach you. Then follow that person's advice about everything.

You can usually count on hobby shop people to know more than the average guy about the products they themselves sell. Contrary to some of the threads you'll find on RCU, there really isn't a bad brand on the market today. MDS was a bad one, and the very first run of Evolutions had problems, but I'm not aware of anything currently made that has a bad reputation for reliability. 2 stroke glow engines have been made essentially the same way for a good 40 years now, so any design idea that won't work has already been eliminated. So then you're left with quality of manufacturing, parts support, and warranty. There is most definitely a difference between the $150 .40 size glow engine and the $79 one in all of those areas. But in the hands of a knowledgeable user, they will both power a trainer reliably.

The earlier MDS engines may have had some problems, but I purchased an NOS .46 Pro BB that so far seems to run fine, turns an 11x7 with authority. With today's engines, there's nothing wrong with the sport plain bearing ones, even though they produce a tad less power than the more expensive ball bearing ones. Most get into problems when they run the engines in a too lean of a condition, so lubrication is reduced and engine runs hot, or runs with excessive load from an oversized or overpitched prop. Older cross scavenge baffle piston engines more or less have a power band that peaks at a lower rpm, require larger diameter or larger pitched props over the Schneurles. Over time, a person learns what or what not to do with particular engines. Even that $79 engine can be very satifying, provided that it is the right size for a particular aircraft, is properly broke in and properly propped. :D

The MDS engines are junk, avoid them at all costs!

I would get an OS Max 46AX. It about $150 from Tower Hobbies and you can usually get a coupon to save you another $15 or so. I fly the same size plane with this engine and it's plenty of power. You don't need a 0.60 in this trainer, as it will be way over powered. The OS is easy to break in and once that is done, you won't have to touch the needle valve ever. It takes about a tank of fuel to break in and then just run it all little rich for a while and you're good to go. They are also extremely reliable power-plants. I have yet to have a dead stick landing with the 46AX and that is well worth the extra cost especially while training.

One man's junk is another's treasure. I knew what I was doing when I bought, and for me it runs fine. So, to each his own. :D

I know what I'm doing as well. My ran fine too until it the day it lost compression. I don't think you'll find many on RCU speaking kindly of the ol' MDS. There's a reason they aren't around anymore. The other reason I said to stay away from them is that he's a beginner and an MDS is not a good engine to start out on.

Sir, you already made your point. Good bye ....

MDS just had bad quality control from what I've seen. There are some Wednesday engines out there that run as well as anything else, and then there are some that never have and never will run reliably. I'd caution newbies to stay away from them too. An experienced hand can make a goofball engine run right most of the time, but a new pilot doesn't need the frustration and certainly doesn't need the deadsticks. An OS or Thunder Tiger engine is a good investment to get started right in the hobby without any problems.

Perhaps the greatest point has been missed. Number one, I initially stated:

The focus immediately became the MDS and not the rest of what I stated. A beginner could even have problems even with the so called premium engines, because 1) it could be slightly tighter IAW manufacturing tolerances, requiring a greater run in duration to wear in to optimal fit. 2) Ruined due to an overlean run. 3) Improper or less optimal tank placement, making fuel flow more critical. 4) Inadequate isolation causing tank vibration and foaming for fuel feed. 5) Length of fuel lines and routing. 6) Mixture settings. 7) and etc.

The best thing a beginning engine flier could do is to hook with a local RC club and get a mentor to help. Let that mentor help with engine selection, helping with the build, and even flying if lacking experience. The OP was familiar with cars but not with planes. This would be the best overall thing in having a successful RC experience to build on future flight experiences.;)

Does everyone believe that I would be able to get away with a .40-.50 size engine like the ones shown here?

http://www.nitroplanes.com/4050.html