Rubber-band Powered Butterfly

Step 7 Winding and flying

To wind up the butterfly, hold the rear frame in one hand, and spin the front wings round with the index finger of the other hand until the rubber band is as tight as you like.

Hold the butterfly flat between the palms of both hands, and toss it into the air as if releasing a dove.

Both sets of wings will spin in opposite directions (if one set is larger, it will spin more slowly than the other pair), and the flat wings will bend, forming a pair of crude propellers - they work together, even though they're spinning in opposite directions.

The loop you made at the top of the frame is like a section of a helix; the front wings might catch on it, so you might find that the butterfly works better if you wind it one way and not the other.

Comments

[R and R]

Well I have tried this three times now and it just isn't working for me. Do y'all have different elastic bands down there? It would be really cool to get this going for my kids, but as of yet, I am still at the crash and burn stage. Any suggestions or tweaks? Thanks for this awesome sight. I'm like a kid in a candy store here, not sure where to begin!

[Kiteman]

Er, thin paper makes it lighter, make sure it spins freely, and really crank it up - it doesn't take off from your hand, you have to throw it.