William O

Who makes a good, reliable .40-46 sized engine for a trainer plane?

jeffie8696

You are going to get a lot of opinion here. Price will make it much easier to narrow it down.

rye

My Feedback: (10)

OS 46 ax or see if you can find a 46 fx i think they have more power then the new ax

jeffie8696

New, used, brand , price? Brucercengies.com has a lot of new and used and each has a rating based on testing the individual engine.

1QwkSport2.5r

OS engines are a ripoff. Get a Thunder Tiger Pro .40 OR .46. Fine running engines, and the liners don't peel like OS.

The TT pro engines are essentially copies of the OS SF line.

maxtenet

Who makes a good reliable .40-.46 engine? Just about everybody who manufactures engines. Depends on parts, prices, and availability.

Max

William O

Okay, from what I've read, for better reliability the engines with bearings are worth the extra price, so I'd like to stay right around $100 if possible. I forgot to add that I'd like to go with a 2 cycle glow engine but I am told that the price of fuel is pretty steep and to look at gas engines equivalent to what a .40 or .46 sized glow engine would put out (thrust?). Are these running on gasoline like you'd just get at the pump? That would mean that they would need an electrical system to fire a spark plug? What are the pros & cons of each be?

I should add that the last R/C plane I flew was a little 1/2A 2 channel powered by a Cox .049 engine, and things have changed in the last 30 plus years. All help and advice is greatly appreciated!

Charlie P.

Another vote for the Thunder Tiger Pro-46. Great engine. I have one on the fifth airframe. Had to replace the carb with a Perry after one too many dirt nap and now it is even peppier!


For $100 check out the Super Tigre GS-45 or G-51. I have one of the latter and it is a solid engine that fits in the footprint of a .46 size.

1QwkSport2.5r

The Super Tigre is a good engine, but requires a long break-in to be on top of its game. A Thunder Tiger pro will break-in much quicker and is more user friendly IMHO. The .40 will be closer to the $100 price point than the .46 will. The Pro series are ball raced, the GP series are bushed. The gasoline .40 from Norvel is a little more $$$ than the 100$ price point.

jeffie8696

I find bushing engines to be very reliable. Depending on the .40 size trainer, not all .40 size trainers are created equal, you may be able to use an OS 40LA (out of production and has a reputation for very low power) if its a very light one or the current 46LA which while not a powerhouse is reliable. I am also a fan of Thunder Tiger engines but I stay away from Magnum engines in general. I see Bruce has several engines available for under the $100 price point. Starting at the top, Irvine 40, OS 40 FP/FX(although I stay away from the FX series due to liner issues)/LA/SF, Thunder Tiger GP/Pro 40/42/46,

1QwkSport2.5r

The AX series engines have peeled also. Usually due to fuels not having any castor oil in it.

aspeed

If you are worried about the price of fuel, get a .25 or .15. I found anything smaller is usually more trouble for idling, and flying in the wind. I use more fuel driving to the field than actually flying. I keep under a .46 though. An ASP or Magnum is a good value, and they work fine as do most other motors built in the last 5 years.

Edwin

My Feedback: (2)

Another for the Thunder Tiger .46. I have one of mine in a club trainer we use for demo flights. Removed a OS .40FP that just wasnt up to the task. 10% nitro with around 18% oil (sythetic/castor mix) is a pretty decent fuel. I use power master and have been happy with that for a long time. It runs about $14 a gallon here.
Edwin

Almost forgot, I like Super Tigers, but I've noticed lately that parts are just about non-existent. I'm concerned about the future of ST.

jeffie8696

Try checking with Great Planes service department, they have some Super Tigre parts available.

Edwin

My Feedback: (2)

Isnt GP Tower? The tower web site shows 'order pending' for most of the parts. I know the .61 carb cross bar bolt has been on order for a couple of years.
Edwin

jeffie8696

Yes and no, the service department is a separate entity. I got a connecting rod for my GS40 from them recently.

hsukaria

Jeez, where to start? Whatever brand you get, I would get the 46 size over the 40 simply because you have more future application options with the larger 46.

William O

Such great information, I'm so glad I found this place. Another question I have is this;
The trainer I am looking at states that either a .40 or .46 2-cycle is required, and I have read that bigger is not necessarily better when it comes to trainers. Is that true, or will I be limited in some way by getting the smaller engine?

Edwin

My Feedback: (2)

I am one of a few instructors in the club. I havent found a big difference between using a .40 or .46. True, you have more performance with the .46, but its not so over powered that you have to be concerned with torque. And a .40 will work just fine, even the bushed .40 work. You can always throttle back. My students usually fly at about half throttle with the .40 or .46 bearinged engines, and about 3/4 throttle on a bushed engine.
Edwin

William O

That is what I needed to know, and maybe I don't need to only look at bearinged engines only either. Which club do you belong to?

jeffie8696

I may be in the minority but I do not advocate overpowering a trainer. I feel it just makes the plane crash faster, just my humble opinion. Depending on the trainer, wing loading, weight , drag, I like a good bushing 40, on a trainer. Cheap, reliable, rugged. Less tears if it goes down in the corn.

aspeed

I have a Supertiger .45 on an Eagle 2 trainer that works well at half throttle. Full throttle and it climbs like crazy and is just no fun because of the lifting airfoil. Another more performance oriented plane (Twist) with an AX .46 is doing most stunts that I am capable of doing at less than half throttle. I don't think a BB .40 would be sacrificing anything in either one of these planes. A plain bearing .40 motor might even be ok with these if the desired plane is not built too heavy. Two strokes like to run on the fast side anyway, and the carb settings wouldn't be as fussy if they are run at close to full throttle most of the time. Racing planes are a different story.

Edwin

My Feedback: (2)

I fly at ARCA out of Austin, Texas. The only reason I would tell you to consider a .46 is to think about the future. You will at some point move on to the next plane which should be a low wing trainer, tail dragger. You would probably want the .46 in that plane, and in future planes as your skill develops. .40s are good trainer engines, but somewhat lacking when it comes to advancing to the next level. I have a student now flying the H9 PTS mustang with a evo .40. He wants more power, but when we looked at what the work would be to do that, he finally realized it flys fine like it is. He is currently working on a H9 P-47 and putting an OS.91fs in that plane. He's ready for it.

Practice your rudder.
Edwin

William O

Alright, here is another question now that I've looked over various glow engines. Most recommend the use of at least 18% oil and 10-15% Nitro, and there are several brands to choose from. Oils are both Castor and synthetic in different percentages and I'm sold on synthetics as far as my vehicles go. Are all the brands of fuel about the same? What ratio of synthetic to Castor oil is best. minimum, etc.?

Also, I'm looking hard at the Super Tigre GS-45 Dual BB ABC w/Muffler from Tower Hobbies as being the top of my list, both for price and because of price. It has 2 crankshaft bearings. Next is the .46LA engine from O.S. Max, which has one year less of warranty and is a bushing engine, but comparable price. Then the only other engine I could find is the Magnum XLS-46 Ball Bearing ABC FSR.

hsukaria

Don't forget the Evolution engines from Horizon Hobby. They are designed to be easy to use. I mentioned earlier that a 46 is more useful in the long run because you might want to move it to a low-winger later. If you notice the weights of these engines, if they are ball-bearings, the 40, and 46 are the same weight. For example, the Super Tigre 40, 45, and 51 all weigh the same. Only by going to a plain-bearing engine will be lighter. There are other brands that are ball-bearing but lighter, like the NV engines 40.