Easy Popsicle Stick Biplane

by Coolrobot in Workshop > Woodworking

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Easy Popsicle Stick Biplane

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This Instructables will teach you how to make your very own wooden biplane with simple materials that can be found around the house. I had a lot of fun making these biplanes, and I hope you will too. Decorate them however you'd like, and let your imagination run wild!

Supplies

Materials:

  • Popsicle Sticks (1 inch and 3/4 inch width)
  • Small Bead
  • Clothespin
  • Hot Glue Sticks


Tools:

  • Hot Glue Gun
  • Scissors

Cutting the Popsicle Sticks

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Cut the popsicle sticks to the correct length as shown above. The only piece where you will need to adjust the width of the popsicle stick is the smallest piece that will be used as the propeller. Make sure the width of the propeller is exactly 3/8 of an inch. In the end, your popsicle sticks should look exactly the same as the ones above. Make sure to double check your measurements to make sure they are precise.

Glueing the Wings

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For this step, glue the two longest popsicle sticks above and below the clothespin. They should be directly overtop and underneath the metal spring. Make sure to use a generous amount of glue to make sure they don't fall off. An issue that I knew I had to solve was hiding the spring on the clothespin. I eventually came to the conclusion that covering it with the wings would be one of the best ways to make sure that it wouldn't be as noticeable.

Glueing the Vertical and Horizontal Stabilizers

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Next, glue the horizontal stabilizer to the rear of the plane. After that, glue the vertical stabilizer vertically in the middle of the horizontal stabilizer. Your miniature plane should know look like the one in the image above. I had a little trouble making sure the vertical stabilizer stayed on end, but in the end the most successful strategy for me was to just hold it upright until the hot glue eventually cooled down. I then added a little extra glue on either side of the vertical stabilizer to make sure that it wouldn't come off due to lack of hot glue.

The Propeller

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To complete your awesome model plane, glue the small bead directly in the middle of the smallest popsicle stick. then glue the small popsicle stick onto the nose of the airplane at a slight angle. Make sure that the side with the bead is facing away from the biplane.

Repeat!

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Don't stop at just one, make an entire fleet of these miniature models! Want to paint the biplane your favorite color? Go for it! I hope that you enjoyed this Instructables, and maybe even tried building one for yourself!