I'm interested in purchasing a 20cc gas engine.Ive boiled it down to 3. OS,DLE or Evolution. which one is the most reliable? I'm not concerned about the cost, just reliability.service ,longevity and ease of starting etc,etc,etc..you know what I mean? What do you guys recommend and the ones you have experiences with. I own a G26 and a G38,, I want to get one of the smaller ones. Not sure yet what plane I'm going to put it yet. Whats the difference between the DLE RA and the DLE air?

Thanks a million-----TAZZZZ

No contest here. I'd go with the DLE 20 RA. It's rear exhaust configuration makes for a very compact install requiring the least amount of cowl hacking, they run great, they're the lightest of the bunch, and likely have the best support with very reasonably priced parts should you need them.

The Valley view 20 is outstanding also, affordable, light and mine has been about as reliable as possible. The other is DLE 20. Both are similar and the RA is a good feature if you require it. The Small OS's
are expensive and some I have seen are hard to tune! I don't think the extra cost is worth it.

I have 3 20s, two DLEs and a Zenoah.

The Zenoah is hands down the best for your listed reasons. It does not win on power vs weight. Simple reasons industrial grade, double supported crank and superior metallurgy.

Don't get me wrong, I love and will buy a DLE again if needed when power vs weight is a factor.

is the DLE EI that comes with the engine pretty reliable? I like to run NIMH batteries,,,,what's a good strong battery to have for this engine. I'm asking because my ZENOAHS are all magnetos,,,this will be my first EI engine

I have Life battery's as ignition power sources, 1100's work well for me......fast charge, plenty of power for any typical outing.

I've had the least issues with DLE and VVRC.

DLF....Me too!

Yes, reliable. Pretty much state of the art.

If weight is of any importance, many will run the ignition off the same battery they use for the flight pack. LiFe is the direction everyone is going there, and for good reasons.

If you don't want to make that move yet, your NiMh will work fine.