I'm starting construction on a GP Pete N' Poke. The specs call for a 40-52 size 4 stroke and I'm looking at different manufacturers. Can anyone give me a good recommendation. I've flown with planes with OS 46FX, 61FX and FS 91 engines but in looking at an engine for this plane I spotted a Magnum 52 four stroke for about $40 less than the comparable OS model. I'm not opposed to paying more for a quality engine but is the OS 52 worth the extra $$$ ? I'd sure appreciate any input from owners of both.

Thanks for the help!

Aggie84

I'm optimistic, but my optimisms on the other side of the teeter-totter - Dilbert

I can't speak for the magnum, but the OS 52 is a really outstanding engine

Hi,

Generally you get what you pay for! I have a number of OS 2 Strokes of varying ages from two years old to 25 years old and all work well. I have an almost new Saito 72 4 stroke and it performs flawlessly.

In my club, members generally have Saito or OS 4 strokes with a few Magnums now starting to appear and all seem to perform well. At least I havent heard anyone "bagging them out". The same doesn't apply to some of the other brands.

If I were you I would stick with the major manufacturers so you know that you can obtain after sales service and spare parts back up. One of our club members with a "flying duck brand" had the misfortune to damage the carby in a crash to be told that the agent only brings motors into the country not spares [&o]!!!

Ya pays yer money and yer takes yer pick.Good Luck,

Colin

As far as 4-strokes go, I'd have to say that YS is the cream of the crop, but the are also on the pricy side. I find Saito to be quite to my liking and a little more affordable than the YS. Like anything out there, there will be people that trash-talk a certain brand based on their bad experience with it. Case in point, I went to our clubs tailgate swap-n-shop at our airfield. I set up my stuff and then took a walk around to what was there. I found a fellow club member that was selling all his 4-stroke stuff because "they just weren't reliable, I'm switching all my planes over to 2-strokes". Anyway, I picked up 3 Saito 1.50's and 1 Saito 1.20 and a whole box of spare parts like valve springs, bearings, mufflers, etc. for the grand sum of $25.

I took them all home and strapped them to a test stand one by one and fired them up..... they all ran like crap!!! I began giving each one a tune-up and found that 3 of them had 1/16" or more slop in 1 or both of the rockers. One of the engines had a broken valve spring. Resetting the valve lash and replacing the broken spring (with on in the spare parts box) had all 4 of them running like a top. The 1.50's were spinning a 16x8 at 9800 rpm and the 1.20 was spinning a 15x8 at 9700 rpm.

So, even though this long time user of Saitos declared them junk, all they took was a little tune-up to be strong, reliable runners. I disassembled them, cleaned them up like brand new by boiling them in anti-freeze and reassembled. I took one of the brand new looking 1.50s back to the next swap-n-shop and sold it for $75. The guy was hesitant to buy it and kept asking me "what's wrong with it? why only $75". After cleaning one of the 1.50's, I noticed the cylinder is cracked right where the intake screws in so I had to relegate the rest of it for spare parts. Anyway, I'm ramblings now...... I like YS and Saito, in that order.

I own Saitos & Magnums, 3 of each. The Saitos are light, very light, and that's about the only difference I can see. Both will take a third of a gallon of castor blend fuel to break in properly, then you can switch to synthetic, if you like.

I recently broke in a Mag .52 for a buddy and I have its bigger brother, the Mag .61. Neither are powerhouses, but both run very reliably. Mags are just about exact copies of OSs. Their initial quality is not as good, necessitating a longer break-in, but afterwards, they seem to run the same. The Mag .91 is really a good engine.

The YS pattern fliers run a special fuel and special after engine run oil and mess with them a lot. Some people swear they don't touch theirs and those tend to run YS engines a lot and have done so for a good while. I tend to be a pour fuel in it and go fly type person, so I haven't bought one.

My last two 4-stroke purchases have been Magnums, the .91 and a .70. I haven't flown the .70, but it sure ran well on the bench.

I have all Saito 4 strokers. They have all been very good for me. Never had a lick of trouble with any of them. Have lots of different 2 strokers. Still lookin for the best 2 strokers. As for 4 bangers give me Saito.

Mark Shuman

I've had three Enya, four OS and a Saito 4 stroke ranging in size from 20 to 155. The Saito (a 65) is the only one I've sold.

I have several Magnum 4-strokes in all sizes and I love them.

I also have a Saito 65 and has always run flawlessly for me. Strong puller, but I don't think I'd buy another one. It's power output is only marginally better than the Saito 56, but the 65 is based off of the larger case size and is therefore heavier than the 56. I used the 65 on a "stick" type scratch built and the only way I could get it to balance (without using a bunch of lead) was to moved two of the servos way back into the fuselage (right in front of the empennage). I'm not convinced that the 65 flew the aircraft with any more authority than the 56 would have.

I have a Magnum 52 four stroke that came on a 4* that I bought. I've been very happy with it. It runs reliably, and pulls great vertical lines with an 11 X 5 prop.

I have had one problem with it. The small metal tab that keeps the high speed needle valve in position broke off (not from abuse, I rarely touch the needle once it's set), but all I had to do was slide a piece of fuel tubing over it and it's been fine.

I have an OS 70, and a YS 91 AC, they're both very good, very reliable engines, but for the price I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Magnum four stroke.
Dennis-