Brief:
In preparation for a line o' monocopter kits, ya bilge rat, Art Applewhite published t' plans for a monocopter made from Popsicle sticks. Avast! Arrr! I didn't have enough Popsicle sticks, but I did have a few paint stirrers. Blimey! Begad! They advertised Behr paints, me bucko, hence t' name. Begad! Ahoy! 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, me bucko, and one is cut up for t' motor standoff. Begad! I started by gluin' t' Popsicle sticks onto one o' t' stirrers. Avast, me proud beauty! They are separated by t' width o' t' stirrer, are centered on t' stirrer, ya bilge rat, and are attached on opposin' sides. Aye aye! This forms t' balance beam and central hub o' the monocopter.

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

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

I drilled a 1/8” hole in t' center o' t' hub and inserted a section o' an Estes launch lug. Avast! Well, me hearties, matey, arrr, 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. Begad! Blimey! Cuttin' about an inch off o' t' win' tip did t' trick. Well, me hearties, blow me down! I'm nay sure this was required.

Flight and Recovery:
I added a 1/2" tape thrust rin' t' a C6-3 motor and friction fit it in t' mount. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag!

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. Blimey! Most small monocopters merely flutter t' t' ground after burn out, matey, me bucko, shiver me timbers, but this one continued t' rotate until it landed. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Its spin profile made one observer state that it looked like a boomerang in flight (except it didn't return on its own). 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. Avast! Aye aye! It does, however, show that small monocopters can be built from all kinds o' leftover stuff. Arrr! Ahoy!