A friendly reminder about non OEM props.

[Forgotten_Fox]

Was flying and after a particularly windy flight, I brought my P4S in for a landing and I heard a grinding noise. Turns out it was a prop striking the body. Upon closer inspection 3/4 of my props had a 6mm vertical wobble, and the undersides were covered in fine plastic dust. I had actually forgotten I got those props on amazon, and they even had the same dji part number on them, but they were missing the dji logo (see below),

and crucially, they were made out of a more brittle plastic that is quite susceptible to wear. The props didn’t even have 6 hours on them, but had I not found the problem sooner, they may have led to a prop coming loose in flight.

Just a reminder to shy away from non OEM props, as some clearly aren’t tested/up to the standards of dji in terms of safety and reliability.

 

[wa5tef]

Fox, you were lucky at the least! Glad you figured out the problem. I tried some carbon fiber props and found half of the eight to be out of balance. I'll stick to the official DJI props for sure.

Good luck,
Jim
WA5TEF

 

[With The Birds]

There is a DJI logo on the prop you posted.

 

[Ansia]

There is a DJI logo on the prop you posted.

I think he posted that to show as an example what to look for.

 

[GrammatonxXXxCleric]

(P3) I bought some props from Amazon and noticed they were "Different"... Won't use them unless the world grinds to a halt. Noticeably more flexible too. Would have a smoother flight, but would it be the last one?... Only but them from DJI.

 

[With The Birds]

I think he posted that to show as an example what to look for.

Perhaps. Most people would know what a good prop looks like. You get two sets with every P4.

 

[awasos21]

I bought my P3 4k used, and the guy included 3 sets of propellers. Thanks to this forum, I found out that 2 of the 3 were actually for the P2 (metal hub). Happy to replace them with the composite hub so I don't have to worry about a preventable crash.

 

[JeffreyS]

Buyers be knowledgeable, but I do use DJI as well as other low noise props on my P4P and all is fine. Close inspection shows the unbranded packaged props to be identical to the original. Even the little directional arrows are the same. I think they came from the same molds. I do check for fit and retention, as well.

 

[Ansia]

Perhaps. Most people would know what a good prop looks like. You get two sets with every P4.

You give most people to much credit. From what I have seen, most people will go for the cheap parts, then whine when birdy go bye bye.

 

[With The Birds]

You give most people to much credit. From what I have seen, most people will go for the cheap parts, then whine when birdy go bye bye.

My point was posting an image of the substandard prop might have proved more useful. Everyone with a P4 should know what the OEM props that come in the box look like.

 

[dewens]

Your drone is an investment. Please get DJI propellers for it or the Carbon fiber series. I changed to the Carbon fiber and they are nice.

 

[With The Birds]

Your drone is an investment. Please get DJI propellers for it or the Carbon fiber series. I changed to the Carbon fiber and they are nice.

You can get OEM CF props for P4?

 

[dewens]

I know with DJI propellers that are tested and they work from the manufacturer.

 

[Forgotten_Fox]

You can get OEM CF props for P4?

No, you can’t. Only thing close are p4p obsidian props, still for sale at $11 USD a pair.

 

[With The Birds]

No, you can’t. Only thing close are p4p obsidian props, still for sale at $11 USD a pair.

What was the prop in the image you posted? Genuine DJI? If so how about some images of the one your trying to warn us about so we can see the issues.

 

[Forgotten_Fox]

What was the prop in the image you posted? Genuine DJI? If so how about some images of the one your trying to warn us about so we can see the issues.

here is an old prop and a new prop

 

[With The Birds]

The ones without the DJI marking actually look nicer. It’s hard to tell though, you have really increased the level of complexity in making a comparison with those images. Any chance you could get an in focus image of the back of the hubs and the actual rubbing damage?

 

[Forgotten_Fox]

here is a pic as best as my phone would allow. You can see the white dust along the housing sides.

 

[With The Birds]

From what can be made out that hub looks pretty normal.

What interesting is the ones without the DJI logo actually look nicer as far as the mould finish goes.

Maybe you didn’t have them installed properly?

 

[Forgotten_Fox]

The plastic quality is cheaper. There is fine dust all over the prop and prop mounts (so bad the black dots turned white, but I’ve since removed that dust). The props make a loud plastic clicking sound when tapped on a table, while dji props are made of a stronger more reinforced plastic that doesn’t make as loud a sound when bumped.