The std wing will work well for you but it is just soooo stable....

take this with a grain of salt...

If I was building it for me....#1 you need to get foam cores..the Ribbed wing will be harder to build and get straight especially for a new guy....Nothing against your building skills...but I have been building and flying pattern planes for 15yrs and have had trouble doing accurate ribbed wings. Granted I'm not the best builder in the world...but I can make them look decent and they are straight!

Ok going to foam cores is a critical issue...make the wing more of a no brainer to get right.

That being said....I have some mods I recommend to you on the 200 specifically. We tested them and they work......

#1 the rudder has a big counter balance on it...This makes the rudder very effective...but also makes it act funny in rolls. Kill it.....Make the rudder have a straight hinge line and no counter balance just run it straight up

#2 Wing...I would change the wing slightly...less span is a good...maybe total in the 75" range.....and then move the tip rib template forward about 1.5"...this makes the wing a double tapered wing and will help the snaps....The less span will kill some sqs and help increase the wing loading.....Some of the foam wing cutters like Cajun and the Dunphys' at PAC can probably help you with the cores....I would keep the same ribs for the root and the tip just move the tip rib in closer to the root this would give less area.....another good option is stick a Hydeout wing on it...PAC now sells the hydeout kits you could get a wing from them...The Hydeout , Prophecy, Focus, Temptation, Sequel all have the same wing on them....its a proven wing...some guys will blow smoke in your butt that the ailerons are cut different so its really a xxxx wing....But thats a bunch of crap...same airfoils same plan form same wing! The Piedmont guys will tell you the same its the same stuff basically....just minor changes.

#3 one of the problems with the Typhoon's was a "nervous" tail. to plane would not lock on as well as it should have or could have...so a very good pattern guy Tony Frakowiak put a larger stab on the plane just blew up the dimensions by 110%.....this made the plane lock on better...but I think the result was with bigger tail feathers it made it even more stable.....I would keep the same stab if I had to do it again.....

Be very careful in your choices of wood...pick only the lightest stuff you can find. Order from a lonestar Balsa of similar and get the 4-6lb contest grade balsa...weigh it all and pick the lightest ones for your wings......These planes can easily(ty 2000's) hit or bust the 11lb limit especially when you built it all of wood from plans....Be careful not to get the weight too high. We made templates and cut foam turtle decks and belly's....this save a little time and makes a nicer product...Also Use covering Ultracote or Monokote. don't glass it and paint it...this make a weight gain of 4-8ozs even with the best of them doing the glassing work.....

With the change in the wing you are going to be a little tail heavy.....so don't stick the elevator servo or rudder servo in the tail end. Stick them up in the radio compartment under the Canopy....CG will be a little of an experiment since the wing will be changed a little...but calculate the 33% MAC and go from there....trimming will tell you what you need to do....

I really think these mods will make the Typhoon 2000 a really good flying bird....and modernize it. The wings on that plane were really the same all the way back into the mid 90's..I think it was too big then and really too big now....too stable...I know many will argue with me...but I have a ton of experience with the Typhoons and have flown many many many of them....Even took one to 4th place at the NATS in 99' The design is good...but like all things it has its quirks....If you make these mods you will no longer really have a Typhoon its really a different plane based on the Typhoon....There are several out there....The original Patriot looks a little Typhoon in its lines and roots...similar wing


This all being said...the stock Typhoons fly well. These mods will make them better. Depends on how comfortable you are with make changes.

I'm not knocking the designer of the Typhoons or even Gator for selling it that way...Its the way it was designed and works well. I think these changes will make it better. This comes from the experience I have gained in the past 4-5 yrs with the ZN and PL kits and also flying and playing with lots of different planes.

Advice is worth what you paid for it! Regardless of if you do the mods or not.....Use FOAM Cores for your wings and stabs....also try for the fin being foam...but if not you can build it up pretty easy.....Wings are easier to identical when they are cut from foam.....I know Cajun cut the wings, stabs and fins we used.....If you go with the PAC stuff just get Hydeout foam for the wings and stabs....and build you own fin or cut it from foam yourself....the fin is an easy one to do.



Troy Newman