Here's a supplementary article for the Make Magazine drone issue about the Noodle Copter. I made it for a Crashcast contest, inspired by Glenn Anderson's post here. I hadn't planned on keeping it intact after testing it, but it flies surprisingly well (thanks to Jason Short for tuning help!). It's got a pretty short flight time because of the fat arms, but it's nice for letting other people try out. It's highly visible, and survives drops well.
It's also been nice for demoing to non-technical groups... somehow a bunch of electronics taped onto pool noodles don't seem to be as intimidating as slick hi-tech units.
http://makezine.com/projects/behold-the-noodle-copter
Comments
A bit of advice...Don't use the new "H" frame orientation for this frame. The twist will create adverse yaw. The standard motor directions are correct since the frame twists around the side-to-side axis not front-to-back. Also a fillet of glue like "quick grip" under the edges of the motor mounting plates helps lock them down better than tape alone.
Yeah Noodle Copter! I love these things. I swear, when I actually have the funds to make a copter for myself instead of for my lab, the first one I'm making is a noodle copter.