t2k progress
 

Cowl cheek attachment. Used epoxy and taped in place.

t2k progress
 

Making a little more headway.

Here's one of the wing tips roughed out.

t2k progress
 

Here's the upper cowl brace epoxied in.

Fitting the lower one is giving me problems. I need to figure out how to shape and place the bulkhead in the rear of the lower cowl half so it meets the firewall properly.

RE: t2k progress
 

Here's one of the ailerons cut out and ready to be hinged and have the horn mounted.

t2k progress
 

Wingtips sanded to shape.

t2k progress
 

Aileron linkage done on both wings. Wings are now ready for final sanding and covering. Weights with servo and linkage, without covering: 12.9 and 13 oz. I don't know how this compares to others; if these weights are light, average or heavy...

Also completed mounting the wheelpants. "All that's left" (it always takes longer than you think, no matter how little is left to do!) is to mount the bottom half of the cowl and the nosering and it's ready for final sanding and finishing.

Progress?
 

Bokuda - how you making out on that Typhoon? You get a final weight before covering yet?

On a different note - I'm still waiting for my plans, cowl and canopy from Gator RC. It's been 3 months and they don't return my e-mails. I wonder what's happening over there! Likely waiting for a supplier to send something, but it'd be nice to get feedback. Tried phoning a few times to no avail...

2 meter plans
 

Daryl
Sorry to hear of the problems with Gator RC. I have tried several times to email and phone them as well, with no return mail or answered calls.
Its for this reason I will not be supplying any more formers .
Its too bad too, as the T2K is a great balsa built model.

I "may" , in the future ,try to make some cowl and canopy molds "similar" to the T2K . and make them available to the public. It would be a fall/winter project for me at best.

Hope you get the parts and plans eventually.

2 meter plans
 

Told me the dude who makes the fiberglass cowls disappeared and they can't get the molds back. I think it's gonna be a long wait. We should get our money back. Been waiting since the end of Jan.

2 meter plans
 

Hi Daryl: I did complete covering the wings, but don't have their weight yet. I'll get it soon; a friend and I share a digital postal scale and he has it right now.

My Typhoon is dragging its butt. Its builder is working mornings and staying late at the flying field as well as pulling maintainence on the planes being flown. Not much left to do: attach cowl and nose ring, cover fuse and paint cowl and wheel pants. "Should" be complete in a week or two.

Next is a Quest which I'm anxious to get to...

Sorry to hear of your problems with Gator. Hope all is resolved soon. Have you considered building a wood cowl for it?

Gator Situ
 

Re the Gator RC situation, interesting to hear others are experiencing the same problem. I'm sure they're a very decent small business just recently faced with a difficult problem. I think though that in this kind of situation customers should be given an explanation. I should emphasize they haven't charged my VISA, but they have my number... As I bought a wingset and tailfeathers from Kevin Duncan (Thanks Kev!), I'd really like to be able to build a fuselage and get these parts flying. Anyone able to copy and mail me the Typhoon 2000 plans? I'd of course be willing to re-imburse - and then I'd cancel my Gator order. A canopy I'm sure I could match up and a cowl could be built up. I'm a fairly decent scratch builder and not afraid of tackling the project.

I should mention that I'm away from home for a week - for all I know I may have an e-mail from them (Gator RC) waiting for me when I get back tomorrow... Cheers

2 meter plans
 

Guys

I have spoke to Gator Myself about 10 Days a go and they confirmed the mould problem.

Has anyone tried to contact them and see if they will send palns out anyway?? If not How can I get a plan!!!

I am desperate to start building as soon as poss as I want to get this plane in the air this year and trimmed ready for next year!!

Has anyone out there got the plan that they would mind parting with? I will gladley make sure that you are not out of pocket.

Many thanks for you help guys

Richard

2 meter plans
 

There seems to be a lot a nice building going on in this thread, just one word of advice before it becomes to late...that DB engines mount... it'll cause you unlimited headaches, trust me and change it. It's one hundred year old technology, we understand things better now.

2 meter plans
 

DB mount? Which one is that? The Gator Mount? If so i would agree. Its not that great a mount, and is heavy to boot.

2 meter plans
 

I also have talked to Diana at Gator and she said that they have not been able to get in touch with the supplier. They sent the plans and have the canopies and foam cores in stock. I would be interested in getting a cowl from GW if he were to make a mold. This is my winter project too and I would not need the cowl for a few months anyway. The fuselage is going together nicely thanks to GW's laser cut formers and I will be ordering the foam cores and canopy next week. The built up wing is way to much work for me. I work for a composite company that makes F1 car bodies so if someone had a cowl I could have a mold made. Probably make a few nice carbon cowls too.

t2k progress: final wing weights
 

Here are the weights of the completed wings including servos and hardware: 15.5 oz and 15.4 oz. Added exactly 2.4 oz. to each. Covered with Monocote.

t2k progress: cowl attach
 

I finally got the cowl, top and bottom, attached. I lost patience trying to attach the bottom using a bulkhead against the firewall and a Dzus fastener up front. I could not get everything fitted and aligned.

I epoxied plywood tabs on the bottom of the ply brace in the upper cowl and used socket head servo screws to hold the bottom part of the cowl. The tabs were mounted flush with edge of the upper cowl which keeps the edges of both halves aligned almost perfectly. Simple, quick and I think it will be effective. Plus, it saved a little of my sanity. Someday I'll find someone with experience to show me how to do this properly. Some will not like the exposed screws, but I think it looks kind of cool. (I keep telling myself that, anyway!)

Now, the nose ring...

2 meter plans
 

Compared to my sheeted foam patriot wings, you came in on the light side. I started at 13.5oz per panel. After 3/4 oz fiberglass, 5 color paint and clear, I was up to 17.2oz (1.3 oz heavier than your Monokote)

With hardware, some bug splats and a little oil, the weight of one wing panel is now 20.4 oz.

Looks like all your extra effort for built up wings paid a significant 10 oz weight saving!

2 meter plans
 

Scott: Did you honeycomb your wings?

2 meter plans
 

With the exception of the soup can hole for the aileron servo, the cores are solid. I just weighed my second set and they also came out at 13.4 oz each (unfinished, no hardware).

2 meter plans
 

Guys

Another Pleee'!!!

Would anyone mind parting with there plans please...pretty please with a cherry on top!!!

Other wise I think it'll be 2005 before I can have a decent crack at pattern!!

Looking forward to your reply's

Richard

Carbon Fiber Cowl!!
 

Kenny_G - anyone take you up on supplying you with a cowl to copy? If I had one I'd do it. I've got a real thing for CF. Here's a picture to prove it.

2 meter plans
 

Alright Bokuda, its time for another update. You have been quiet long enough. Hows the T2K?

2 meter plans
 

Yeah, I've been goofing off flying and maintaining my fleet.

The T2K is nearly done. I've covered the wings and horizontal stab. Nosering, remote glow, receiver, batteries and switches are installed etc. (I decided to go with two batteries and two heavy duty switches after a friend lost his 2 meter ship due to a bad switch.) The fuse is basically done and just needs to be finished. Prime and paint the cowl and wheel pants and reassemble. Break in the engine and I'm in business.

I got a lot of inspiration at the Glen, NY pattern meet last week where there were several Typhoons as well as many other really nice planes.

This project is dragging much longer than I expected. I'll post photo's of the completed plane soon.

t2k progress
 

This is how I decided to mount the receiver. The plane is coming out quite nose heavy so I mounted the receiver and batteries as far back as I could. This is under/behind the rear of the canopy.

I made a stand-off platform of 1/8" light ply with 1/4" balsa rails on the back which are glued to the bulkhead. This leaves room to loop Velcro around the back of the platform mount. There is foam behind the receiver. The batteries are mounted similarly under the receiver, one on each side of the fuse. The two switches, one on each side can be seen here too.

Another Typhoon pilot I met at the Glen, NY contest said that the wing tube through the fuse should be moved about 1" forward. This will help avoid the nose heavy condition. In fact, he claimed the position shown on the plan is an error! I have not seen this information elsewhere. If this is true, there should be some kind of supplement to the plans to warn builders of this. I'm using a Webra 1.45, a relatively light engine, and it looks like I will have to add weight to the tail. After all my efforts to build light!!

If you have not started building yours yet, check this out. Or, consider mounting the elevator servos in the stab as on the plans.

I saw a really "stupid" simple way to run an overflow tube from a two line tank system at the Glen contest last week. Several pilots remarked, "that is so simple and elegant I should have thought of it." As simple as this is, I have never seen it anywhere else. The vent tube is simply run to the REAR of the tank, rather than forward and out the firewall as I see on most planes, including mine... This was on Ken Velez's Vivant, although I don't know if it is his idea or not. He ran the vent hose to a brass tube that ran out the bottom of the fuse near the back of the pipe. Very simple! Think about it: when you pick up the plane either nose down or nose up, fuel cannot leak out the vent! I should have taken a photo...

I got the Velcro receiver/battery mount idea from Ken Velez too. I had been making platforms with "cup hook screws" and used rubber bands. Using Velcro is so much simpler and neater.

By the way, Ken built a Typhoon 2000 for Ron Lawrence in THREE WEEKS!