ORIGINAL: OzMo
I thing a stick is the best second plane choice also. It is also a great first scratch build if you want to scratch or just scratch building to keep the budget in line. FREE PLANS ARE EVERYWHERE
My first trainer ended up with a destroyed fuselage, but good wings and tail feathers. I built a stick fuselage for it and went to a tail dragger at the same time. It was a much better flying plane. Eventually, I crunched the wing so I upgraded it from the flat bottom to the airfoil of the 4*60, but scaled to size. Less dihedral and wow, was it fun. I ended up killing that one and built a clone of it and flew it for a while before killing it. I've still got the damage fuselage in the hanger and I"m tempted to bring it back to life.
Build a second wing for your trainer. More symmetry on the airfoil and less dihedral. Try a clipped wing for better performance.
Don