Magnum 61 pros/cons

Somehow the words "cheap" and "good" don't ever quite seem to describe the same engine!

As with any engine, there are good ones, and there are bad ones. The saying holds true, you get what you pay for. As the price of an engine goes down, the likelihood of getting a bad one goes up.

That said, I have had very good luck with my Magnums. All but one has run well once a few tanks have been run through. If you get a bad one, Hobby People/Global Hobby Distributors is always willing to work with you to make sure you're happy. They will repair or replace your engine if you spend the $4 to send it in.

Good but inexpensive is relative. If the buyer is a beginner, the life expectancy of the engine may be dramatically different from that of an engine purchased by an expert. But, let's say for argument's sake the newbie gets 50 flights out of the engine before he sticks in the ground hard enough to damage the engine. Assuming the crash wasn't caused by engine failure, paying $150 for a "top quality" engine vs. paying $60 for MECOA or similar is probably not the best use of the money. And, interestingly enough, MECOA seems to sell a decent quality family of products.

If an expert flyer can avoid destroying the engine for say 200 flights, the probable quality of the higher priced engine may come in to play.

It might be interesting to find out how long some engines last. I'll start a thread to find out.