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

T' motor mount is conceptually borrowed from Art's design. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It consists o' a 1.5" piece cut from t' third stirrer. Aye aye! Blimey! 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. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' strin' was soaked with carpenter's glue and, ya bilge rat, matey, where t' strin' raised at t' tube/standoff joint, I filled it with more glue. Begad! Blimey! In retrospect, me hearties, I'd recommend t' twine Art specified. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! But, as usual, ya bilge rat, I substituted with what I had on hand.

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

I drilled a 1/8” hole in t' center o' t' hub and inserted a section o' an Estes launch lug. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Well, 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! Cuttin' about an inch off o' t' win' tip did t' trick. 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. Well, blow me down! Blimey!

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