The propeller is made from fly swatters from the dollar store with the handles cut off. I made a red square hub out of wood and hot glued in the fly swatters.
I used leftover wire from a fly swatter handle, an eye bolt, and a piece of straight 1/8" steel rod to make the action mechanism. I cut these with large wire cutters and bent them into shape with pliers. This takes a little fiddling to get it to work smoothly.
I cut out the wooden parts, then drilled all of the holes prior to painting and assembly. I think outdoor whirligig projects look best with a mix of bright colors. I was really happy with the table cloth pattern I got by masking off stripes and spraying light coats. I attached a small wooden name badge on the whirligig.
Plus, the swinging hand keeps the flies away! If you've never tried to make a whirligig before, you should definitely try it. They are fun to make with a big payoff when the wind starts blowing. These are great projects for getting kids of all ages involved in woodworking. Have fun!
