Brief:
In preparation for a line o' monocopter kits, matey, Art Applewhite published t' plans for a monocopter made from Popsicle sticks. Begad! Aye aye! I didn't have enough Popsicle sticks, shiver me timbers, but I did have a few paint stirrers. Blimey! They advertised Behr paints, arrr, ya bilge rat, hence t' name. T' Grizzly Behr flies on 18mm motors.

Construction:
T' parts list:

• 3 wooden paint stirrers
• 4 Popsicle sticks
• 18mm motor tube
• String
• Carpenter's glue
• Cardstock
• 1/8" Estes launch lug

One o' t' stirrers is used as t' wing, one as t' balance beam, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, and one is cut up for t' motor standoff. I started by gluin' t' Popsicle sticks onto one o' t' stirrers. They are separated by t' width o' t' stirrer, matey, me bucko, arrr, are centered on t' stirrer, arrr, ya bilge rat, and are attached on opposin' sides. Ya scallywag! Blimey! This forms t' balance beam and central hub o' the monocopter.

T' motor mount is conceptually borrowed from Art's design. Ya scallywag! Begad! It consists o' a 1.5" piece cut from t' third stirrer. Blimey! Aye aye! I notched t' hub-end and glued t' other t' t' BT-20. I then wrapped t' mount over t' tube with a generous amount o' string. Well, matey, blow me down! T' strin' be soaked with carpenter's glue and, where t' strin' raised at t' tube/standoff joint, I filled it with more glue. Arrr! In retrospect, I'd recommend t' twine Art specified. Aye aye! Begad! But, as usual, arrr, I substituted with what I had on hand.

T' provide lift, shiver me timbers, me bucko, t' win' needs t' be tilted in one direction and t' motor mount in t' other. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I planned to mount t' motor assembly and t' win' betwixt t' opposin' Popsicle sticks with one edge under one stick and over the other. Aye aye! Blimey! However, me bucko, I found this wouldn't work with t' 4 sticks protrudin' from each side o' t' balance beam. Ahoy! Blimey! This was easily fixed-–I merely lopped off two from each side. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' give t' center more support, me hearties, I notched t' win' so part of it overlapped t' center section. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I then glued t' win' and motor mount t' t' hub, shiver me timbers, added thick fillets, wrapped each with more string, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and t' covered t' strin' with more glue. Blimey! Blimey! This wrappin' be likely overkill. Avast! Blimey! T' finishing touch on t' win' is an overlappin' piece o' cardstock that provides a semi-airfoiled shape. Aye aye! Blimey!

I drilled a 1/8” hole in t' center o' t' hub and inserted a section o' an Estes launch lug. Aye aye! Well, me hearties, me hearties, a monocopter should balance at t' center o' t' hub and I hadn't accounted for t' paper wrap so it was a bit off with a C6 loaded. Well, blow me down! Cuttin' about an inch off o' t' win' tip did t' trick. Aye aye! I'm nay sure this be required.

Flight and Recovery:
I added a 1/2" tape thrust rin' t' a C6-3 motor and friction fit it in t' mount.

T' Grizzly Behr flew off o' me standard home-made pad usin' an old 1/8" drill bit as t' "rod". T' cuttin' end was clamped in t' pad and I added a tape rin' t' leave a 1" section o' t' shank exposed.

T' monocopter flew nicely. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! Most small monocopters merely flutter t' t' ground after burn out, but this one continued t' rotate until it landed. Blimey! Its spin profile made one observer state that it looked like a boomerang in flight (except it didn't return on its own). Begad! It did look pretty cool if I do say so myself.

Summary:
T' design is nay optimized and I'm nay sure I'd recommend that anyone build this exact design. Ahoy! It does, however, show that small monocopters can be built from all kinds o' leftover stuff. Ya scallywag!