Ok guys I am wanting to buy a new engine (120). I can not make up my mind on which one to buy. I am looking at the DA and the DLE. What do y'all think.

Originally Posted by rlamonte214

Ok guys I am wanting to buy a new engine (120). I can not make up my mind on which one to buy. I am looking at the DA and the DLE. What do y'all think.

Longevity + Quality + Power + $$$ = DA

DA considering quality, its very reliably

I've owned a couple of DLE 55's, they were fine. I have friends with all manor of DLE sizes, and they're happy with them. That said, I've owned probably close to a dozen DA's and loved every one. Currently I have 2 DA-120's, a 70 and a 60 and they're flawless. When you consider the backup you'll get, the quality, friendly folks and a company that will answer the phone when you call, Desert Aircraft is head and shoulders above the rest.

Originally Posted by rlamonte214

Ok guys I am wanting to buy a new engine (120). I can not make up my mind on which one to buy. I am looking at the DA and the DLE. What do y'all think.

Take the money you would spend on the DA and the mufflers....call Valley View.... buy yourself two DLE 120s.

And be ready to tear both of them down as soon as you get them to replace reeds and rings!

I have a da 120 that has been perfect for over 3 years and about 250 flights. If I got another 120 it would be da. I have bought dle and got sick of con rod bearings going in the middle of the summer. No thanks. DA is worth it.

if your main concern is price get the DLE they run very well for the money, but other than that get DA

Originally Posted by stingray528i

if your main concern is price get the DLE they run very well for the money, but other than that get DA

What he said....

Originally Posted by funboy

And be ready to tear both of them down as soon as you get them to replace reeds and rings!

Why would you do that? Plenty of them around here running perfectly right from the box.

I had two 55's that were just fine without the mods. I know lots of folks enjoy doing the mods though.

You get what you pay for.

Originally Posted by Robotech

Longevity + Quality + Power + $$$ = DA

Agreed and........Quality + Power + Mufflers + < $$$$/2 = DLE

Originally Posted by funboy

And be ready to tear both of them down as soon as you get them to replace reeds and rings!

I respect you so please don't take offense, but have to disagree with you here. The new generation of DLE's (120 and 111 for certain) does not need the rings replaced out of the box like the crap ones they used to use 2-4 years ago. Both my DLE120's and two DLE111's V3's started showing significant signs of breaking in at only a dozen flights. Reeds are just fine and DA 70 and some 120's (including one of mine) have also had failures and noted factory fixes so that's not a fair comparison between brands either.

Originally Posted by JoeAirPort

You get what you pay for.

100% correct.


OK, not that anyone has to take my word for it but I have two DA120's and two DLE120's and here is the facts.

- DA's, simply can't be beat if you can justify it and if your plane can handle it. The engines are absolute crazy powerful. Along with that comes some vibration, some planes can handle it, some can't. I've had one plane vibrate to pieces with the DA120 but now have them in planes that take the shake just fine. With the correct plane and setup there simply is not a more powerful engine in this size, and even a somewhat heavy ARF will almost certainly have crack yak power.

- DLE's, smoother power and swings the same props with nearly identical high top end performance. The low end, down in the grass grunt on the low end is not the same but still very much adequate on a typical 35% plane. The factory mufflers are a crap shoot. Some are good and some leak, best advice is to check them as soon as you get them and if the welds are not solid get them replaced. I recommend Valley View RC as they have been very helpful in getting mine corrected.

Originally Posted by JoeAirPort

I have a da 120 that has been perfect for over 3 years and about 250 flights. If I got another 120 it would be da. I have bought dle and got sick of con rod bearings going in the middle of the summer. No thanks. DA is worth it.

250 flights is not a measure of longevity. I have a Mintor 33 with over a 1000 flights....


DLE vs DA.

Interesting question.

Never owned a DA mostly because of the cost and lack of back up where I live. DLE is the most common engines around here and everyone who flies them is super stoked with their performance and longevity. None of the DA's I've seen run all that well and the owners are people we call "The Reverends" - They're always at the field with screwdrivers in hand and reving their engines.

I think the price to performance to time spent flying ratio is definitely in DLE's favour.