In need of replacement part that DJI refuses to sell me

[Rob Robertson]

I am trying to purchase a part I need to finish repairing my P3P.

I have had to replace the Body of the P3P due to cracks cause by a minor crash. I purchased DJI Phantom part #30 from a distributor and it arrived and I started the process of swapping over all the parts.

All was going fine until I noticed that the inner cage that holds the battery in place and the part that the main board screws down to does not come with the case. It so happens that the cage (I don't know the official name, so I will call it the cage) in my unit had one of it's screw posts snapped off and needs to be replaced.

I called all the authorized service centers listed in the support section on the DJI website and they all gave me the same story. This part is not listed, does not appear to have an official part number and DJI's own dealers have been asking for this part to do their customer repairs and DJI has ignored these requests and have refused to sent them out.

They reported to me that they have had to glue the broken pieces back on and hope that works. To me, that's ridiculous! We all know that is NOT a satisfactory fix, yet DJI will not supply their own distributors and repair centers with the part they need.

Every service center has told me that they can not get that part, and that I should contact DJI directly. I have done that by chat, by email (Which I have not yet gotten a response) and by phone at the US headquarters and have gotten the same response.

For some unknown reason, and so far, no one I talked to could tell me what that reason is, DJI flat out refuses to sell that particular part to anyone. If it's broken, your ONLY option is to ship everything back to DJI, wait the weeks or months for them to get around to it, and pay the extra fees for shipping both ways and their service fees so they can put in that little $6.00 plastic part instead of shipping one directly out.

I explained that I was aware that doing the work myself voided my warranty, and that I had ALREADY opened up the machine and have already swapped all the parts I could into the new body. No difference. Still flat out refusal, like this part is some kind of state secret.

So my question is:

Does anyone have one of these to sell. Perhaps from a crashed Phantom 3 being used for parts? Does anyone know of a third party that has 3D printed these because of the inability to get them from DJI? Is there a clever person out there with another idea?

Just for fun, I will post the log of my conversation with the person in the chat from DJI earlier today:

***************************************************************************************
DJI:
Hello,welcome to our website!How may I help you today?

ME:
I am looking for a part

I have had to replace the Body of the P3P due to cracks cause by a minor crash. I purchased DJI Phantom part 30 from a distributor and it arrived and I started the process of swapping over all the parts.

All was going fine until I noticed that the inner cage that holds the battery in place and the part that the main board screws down to does not come with the case. It so happens that the cage (I don't know the official name, so I will call it the cage) in my unit had one of it's screw posts snapped off and needs to be replaced.

I called several of your dealers listed in the support section on your website and they all gave me the same story. This part is not listed, does not appear to have an official part number and your own dealers have been asking for this part to do their customer repairs and DJI has ignored these requests and have not sent them out.

They reported to me that they have had to glue the broken pieces back on and hope that works. To me, that's ridiculous! We all know that is NOT a satisfactory fix, yet DJI will not supply their own distributors and repair centers with the part they need.

Every center has told me that they can not get that part, and that I should contact DJI directly. I find it hard to believe that DJI would sell that part directly to a customer when they refuse to supply them to their own authorized repair center, but that's what I was told by both Drone Nerds in Florida and the New York service center.

What options are available to me?

Waiting now for response
10:39:57

DJI:
Well as I see it you don't have any other option than to send it in. We mostly advise against self repairs because it will most likely void warranty. And unfortunately, cases like this show up from time to time. These are such specific parts that are almost never needed. Therefore we do not needlessly supply them to a lot of people and take of it ourselves.
10:41:13

Me:
I am only one person and this is not needless. I will not send it in as it is already disassembled and partially put back together in a new case. I will not spend all the money and waste extra weeks or months for the transaction just because you refuse to sell me a simple needed part.

What are my real options. It is crazy to have me send it in and it is a waste of my time and money. What I want here is actualy CUSTOMER SERVICE
10:42:33

DJI:
First of all we never ship separate parts unless asked by a dealer.

Me:
MY GOD!!! I just got off the phone with two of your dealers who have told me thay have been asking for these parts since they came out and DJI will not even supply them.


DJI:
Second, you demand a part so specific to the craft that even dealers do not have it.

Me:
These parts must exist. Mine is broken. I will pay for it. It is a simple transaction

DJI:
I am very sorry that you decided to open it up, but we do not have these parts available for shipping
10:44:47

Me:
I opened it up because I AM a technician. Not some yahoo on the street. My job is fixing complex lab equipment at a research facility. Why should I waste my time and money to send this in to someone else when I can do it myself in an afternoon. Are you going to provide me with a satisfactory real solution or not?
10:46:17

Me:
Why doesn't DJI ship these parts to their own authorized repair and service centers? It forces them to make makeshift inferior repairs to your product. It's insane.

DJI:
When dealers receive drones that need reparations like this they mostly send it in.
We simply do not ship separate parts to regular customers, no matter their occupation we are very sorry. We can't make exceptions.
10:49:07

Me:
That is piss poor customer service. It is the kind of thing I read about all over the forums that causes me to question if I made the right decision buying a DJI product. This exchange will be posted on all the forums as another example of that customer service. I am truly sorry that the concept of customer service has been lost on you.

DJI:
You demand something we cannot do as per decree of our own company. You cannot expect me to make exceptions because you keep demanding something. I am very sorry, if it were up to me I would have noted your data and be done with it as I have the feeling you CAN do it yourself. But please understand, I CAN not send you a separate part

It is not a matter of willing, but a matter of what I am able to do
10:52:40

Me:
When I said you, I was referring to DJI, not you personally. Is there another level within the company that I can appeal to. I mean, I want to give them more money to buy a part which they make. The transaction can't possibly be that difficult. Who is the next level up the chain? The question of why DJI does not even supply their own authorized repair centers with the needed parts they ask for has also not been answered.
*************************************************************************************************

To be honest, this is not the fault of the individual that I was chatting with. His hands are tied. It is the fault of DJI and another example of poor customer service.

The person in the chat gave me the link to start a support ticket, which I have done, and I am awaiting an answer from them, but I doubt I will get anywhere. They say this part is so rare that they don't bother to ship it out to customers because they make so few of them, they can't be sending them to everyone.

I understand why it doesn't come in the basic kit, but if someone NEEDS one and is willing to PAY for it, why not sell one?? If damage to this part is really that rare, then it won't happen very often, and there will be no problem. Every Tom, ****, and Harry won't be flooding DJI with requests for this part if they don't need it. And not giving it to their own service centers is crazy.

 

[msinger]

You can get a 3D printed battery compartment on eBay here.

 

[Rob Robertson]

Thank you! I had posted a similar request on the DJI forum. I posted this one before I got a response to the other one, which both led me to the same place. I believe it was the same person who posted the answer in both places.

I think this link may help others as well, so I am glad it has gotten in both forums.

DJI wins a prize for most horrendous customer service, or a complete misunderstanding of what that means.

I am glad there are people out there who step up and help the people who can't get any satisfaction from the company they are a customer of.

Three cheers for this eBay seller who saw the need and filled it, and for PhantomHelp who pointed it out to me.

 

[msinger]

Yep, that was me

 

[Rob Robertson]

I wrote my review of this part on the DJI forum and will re-post it here for your information, just in case anyone is on the fence about buying one of these parts.

I said I would report back on the 3D printed part that I purchased because of DJI's refusal to sell this part, or to even talk about it. They still have not stated a reason for holding this particular part back.

In any case, I just got my bird back together using the new part from Dji Phantom 3 Battery Box Main Board Support Tray

The part arrived within the shipping window indicated, and a few days before the last day for estimated delivery. It was well packaged and arrived in perfect condition.

A side by side comparison of the two parts show some minor differences in the way they are made, but they are identical in every place that makes a difference. The 3D printed version was made in two pieces with interlocking tabs that were glued together. The original appears to have been made as one piece. At least I can't find a seam where two parts were fused together.

The 3D printed model does not have as smooth a finish as the original, but that doesn't interfere with it's use in any way. It is an exact fit, and the battery slides in and out the same as with the original.

You need to save the foam piece that sits on top of the original unit and reuse it on the new unit. That is what the main board rests on. You also need to save the mounting screws and the 4 rubber dampeners that go over the mounting tabs for the main board and act as addition vibration reduction.

The material used does appear to be high quality plastic as advertised and it does seem slightly less brittle and more flexible than the original. After comparing the two, I am confident that the same crash would not have broken the mounting clip off this new replacement as it did off the original because of the replacement's more flexible nature.

All the holes and posts lined up perfectly.

In my opinion, this part appears to be made by someone who knows what they are doing, and I recommend it to anyone who has a similar problem.

I haven't found another vendor for these, and since DJI will not sell you one, it is good that this vendor seems to be selling a quality replacement.

This part will save you weeks or months waiting for DJI to do the repair as well as shipping costs to and from DJI, and whatever fees they charge you for the part, and do the work.

Save yourself all the time, hassle, and expense if you are comfortable doing the work yourself and buy this part. It will set you back a total of $31.54 including shipping (Inside US) and for me, it was worth every penny.

That is my impression of this replacement from this particular vendor.

 

[bobmyers]

I wrote my review of this part on the DJI forum and will re-post it here for your information, just in case anyone is on the fence about buying one of these parts.

I said I would report back on the 3D printed part that I purchased because of DJI's refusal to sell this part, or to even talk about it. They still have not stated a reason for holding this particular part back.

In any case, I just got my bird back together using the new part from Dji Phantom 3 Battery Box Main Board Support Tray

The part arrived within the shipping window indicated, and a few days before the last day for estimated delivery. It was well packaged and arrived in perfect condition.

A side by side comparison of the two parts show some minor differences in the way they are made, but they are identical in every place that makes a difference. The 3D printed version was made in two pieces with interlocking tabs that were glued together. The original appears to have been made as one piece. At least I can't find a seam where two parts were fused together.

The 3D printed model does not have as smooth a finish as the original, but that doesn't interfere with it's use in any way. It is an exact fit, and the battery slides in and out the same as with the original.

You need to save the foam piece that sits on top of the original unit and reuse it on the new unit. That is what the main board rests on. You also need to save the mounting screws and the 4 rubber dampeners that go over the mounting tabs for the main board and act as addition vibration reduction.

The material used does appear to be high quality plastic as advertised and it does seem slightly less brittle and more flexible than the original. After comparing the two, I am confident that the same crash would not have broken the mounting clip off this new replacement as it did off the original because of the replacement's more flexible nature.

All the holes and posts lined up perfectly.

In my opinion, this part appears to be made by someone who knows what they are doing, and I recommend it to anyone who has a similar problem.

I haven't found another vendor for these, and since DJI will not sell you one, it is good that this vendor seems to be selling a quality replacement.

This part will save you weeks or months waiting for DJI to do the repair as well as shipping costs to and from DJI, and whatever fees they charge you for the part, and do the work.

Save yourself all the time, hassle, and expense if you are comfortable doing the work yourself and buy this part. It will set you back a total of $31.54 including shipping (Inside US) and for me, it was worth every penny.

That is my impression of this replacement from this particular vendor.

Thank you for the review and sharing

 

[Mark_DeKruyter]

" Therefore we do not needlessly supply them to a lot of people and take of it ourselves"............................gotta love this

 

[Rob Robertson]

Yes, I'm guessing that English was not his first language.

 

[msinger]

FYI, DJI is now selling this part for $3. You can get it here.

 

[Rob Robertson]

Thank you for finding that!

Better late than never, I guess. DJI Never did respond to my request for the part. You would think that after I opened a support ticket about this, and went several rounds with them, never getting an answer or an explanation, they would have updated that support ticket with the fact that they now, do indeed, sell that part. They closed my support ticket, marking it as resolved yesterday. Unfortunately, the considered it resolved without answering my question, without offering an explanation, and without giving me the information that they were now selling this part.

Of course, this was far too late for me. I already purchased the replacement part from eBay and have installed and used it. It is working perfectly, by the way.

So, although I am happy to see that DJI has finally seen the illogic of their ways and have decided to provide their customers with the parts they need to make repairs, I would have liked to have been notified since I did have an active support ticket in the system requesting information on exactly that product. It seems odd that they would just shut the ticket down, and say nothing about the fact that they are now selling them, and call it resolved, instead of actually answering the questions in the support ticket and letting me know where to find it.

All that aside, they are now selling the part and for a very reasonable price of just $3.00. They are charging $10.00 for shipping, at least to my location here in the US. All in all, a good deal, as the 3D printed version cost me just over $33.00 once shipping was added in. I was happy to pay that since at the time it was the only option.

I was worried about what DJI would charge for shipping because of a set of Phantom 3 Pro stickers I bought direct from DJI.

They charged $6.00 for this set of stickers:
Buy Phantom 3 - Sticker Set (Pro/Adv) | DJI Store

At the time I purchased them, (about 3 weeks ago) they charged me over $27.00 for shipping!!! My bill was over $33.00! I tried to contact them to cancel the order because of the unbelievable amount of shipping. They were so slow to respond, that the order was shipped and I was charged, but they did end up taking them back. I had to call FedEx and tell them to return the package and call my credit card and tell them to start a dispute if the charge was not removed. Over the course of a week, it was resolved and I was credited. There was no justification for charging $27.00 to ship 3 pieces of paper weighing a couple of grams that could have gone standard USPS mail in an envelope for a 48 cent stamp.

It seems they have now revised their shipping fees for these stickers. They are now only charging $10.00 for shipping. Still overcharging by about $9.50 but almost 3 times less than what they were charging. I put up a big fuss over that shipping charge, and again, never got an explanation for why it was so unreasonable. Maybe I at least brought their attention to it, and now it's only excessive at $10.00, not unimaginably, wildly excessive like it was at $27.00.

Still, I am glad to see that DJI is beginning to see the light, bit by bit.

 

[msinger]

At the time I purchased them, (about 3 weeks ago) they charged me over $27.00 for shipping!

Right -- because they send most packages via 3-day shipping from China. I'm sure they could greatly cut down on their shipping costs for packages coming from China if they changed to the slowest shipping method. But, you'd probably then complain that you're package took 3 weeks to arrive

They are now only charging $10.00 for shipping.

I noticed DJI has been shipping ~50% of my packages to me from CA. Perhaps that's why the shipping is reduced for some items.