heres a dumb question

, i am planning on building a vq zero, the arf calls for a .40 -.46 2 stroke or a .70 4 .

a lot of people have been moving the servo tray forward in these, so they dont have to add so much weight to the nose,

so why cant i just use a bigger engine? why not a .60 2stroke?

also, what is better for this type of plane for more maneuverability? 2strokes or four?

Best engines for this plane: YS 63, OS 70, Saito 72 or Saito 82a.

which has more power? the ys63 or the saito82?

also, i have not used a 4-stroke engine before, are they a real pain to maintain and tune?

YS63 has more speed. Saito82 has more torque and can swing a bigger prop.

4-stroke engines are easy to maintain and tune. If you are a 2-stroke guy, then a .46 or .61 would be plenty for this plane.

with the saito 82, what kind of prop is reccomended ?

I swung a 13x7 with mine on a pattern ship. Will probablly pull up to a shallow 14 but you're gonna run into ground clearance issues going that big. I flew a VQ Macchi which is about the same weight and wingspan with an AX .46 and it was more than enough power. .61 will get you into flutter speeds quickly, as will an .82 with the wrong prop.

Andy

I have a Magnum .61 two-stroke in my VQ Zero with an APC 12x7 prop. Goes like a guided missile! Has to be going over 100 mph. I strengthened the stab by epoxying two strips of thin plywood to the bottom. And I also fiberglassed the center of the wing. I have flown it 25 or 30 times and the only problem is that the plastic parts are starting to crack. But I think that would happen with time no matter what engine you used.

I would be flying it now except I dorked it on a take-off roll, of all things! Didn't watch my rudder and it rolled into the grass and flipped. Not too bad, just knocked the stab loose and crunched one wingtip. Just haven't gotten around to fixing it yet.

As for manueverability, I don't think the engine choice (2 or 4 stroke) would have much effect on it. It's a great flying plane!

so what have you guys do for scale-ish mufflers?
the pitts dual tips are everywhere, but can you get ww2 specific mufflers?

i may end up using something like an evolution .61 , 4strokes are just imtimidating to me, too many parts, too much to tune.

I use the Slimline sport scale muffler on mine:

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXFH00&P=0

It doesn't 'muffle' as well as the stock muffler, but it does have a nice sound and it fits well inside the cowel. I used silicon tubing for the last couple inches of the output tubes, so that I can get the cowel on over it.

Will a 61 2 stroke work with the stock motor mount?