Novice Phantom Crash Woes

[audioscience]

Whelp, I had my Phantom 2 a whole week and managed to crash it. It was totally my fault as I ran into a tree while doing a right to left tracking shot as practice. I guess I got a little cocky as I was looking at my FPV monitor and didn't notice how close I was to an overhanging tree branch and mis-judged my distance. It hit the branch just as I noticed it and I didn't have a move. The quad dropped about 10-12 feet to the ground.

Anyhow, the known damage:

Bent airframe/shell - it seems when the Phantom hit the ground it hit right on one of the arm ends and bent the airframe on the inside of where the motor is.
Bent gimbal brace - the part that mounts under the shock mount. Bent back into place rather easily
Broken gimbal ribbon cable connector
Broken rotor blade -negligible and the least of my worries.

I have not yet powered it back on to try and diagnose any further damage. It's unknown if the gimbal motors were damaged or if any of the rotor motors or internals were damaged.

I do know I will be replacing the airframe. It looks near impossible to put it back into position as there's as kind of bend in the plastic. If anyone with a similar crash or repairs has words of wisdom and things I should test and be looking for, I am open to your knowledge and suggestions. Cheers.

 

[Buckaye]

Are you sure you bent the airframe? The reason I ask is because I cracked mine on a crash but it was all cosmetic. If you set the Phantom down does it look level? Or is one arm really out of alignment?

Take it slow... Repair everything you can easily... Re calibrate the IMU.

I would take the gimbal off and see how the quad flies without it.

Then re-attach the gimbal and see if it's working ok.

If you suddenly develop a shimmy it's possible the gimbal is a bit damaged (I had one that was a little out of whack and causes a slight shake as it struggled to keep aligned... Then I finished it off with another wreck lol

 

[audioscience]

Yeah, the airframe is definitely bent, I'll post photos later when I'm home. If I rotate the prop it will actually hit the arm of the airframe. :/ The shell was partially popped out on one side so I pulled screws holding it together to see if realigning it would put everything right, but it's still bent. I'm glad to see that the body/airframe replacements are only ~$60. I thought they'd be a lot more.

Good point on flying without the gimbal first. I think I will do that.

I've not done a calibration with the IMU so I'm looking that up now. Thanks for the head up.

 

[audioscience]

Good news is everything fired up and seemed normal, i.e. all blinking lights were normal and switched to green when GPS locked. I was also able to put the gimbal back together. The cable was salvageable; the connector broke a tiny bit but still functions properly. Upon power on, the gimbal evens out and works normally. Thank God! I was hoping I wouldn't have to buy a new one.

All motors fire up as well and seem normal (without props). Unfortunately the airframe/shell is too bent to be recoverable. Not looking forward to transferring the innards to a new airframe but lesson learned. It will give me a strong working knowledge of all the internal parts and connections.

All things considered, I'm a little relieved. Now the wait for the new shell/airframe begins...

 

[Buckaye]

Sounds good bro... Better an airframe than a gimbal believe me

 

[backcountrymedic]

I've had the misfortune of replacing the gimbal TWICE now! Once was out of pocket, the other was on DJI. It feels like crashes are inevitable as you push the limits of your skills. Personally, I'm overly cautious when I fly now.

 

[noiseboy72]

The simple response is to remove the gimbal while learning to fly, or learning more advanced techniques.

Crashes are not inevitable, just slow the learning curve up a little, limit heights and speeds and always keep a visual on the quad.

I have not crashed my P2 in over 100 flights - other than 1 gentle touch on the ground thanks to some VRS. My little FP helicopter - which is pretty much bombproof and also pennies to fix has hit the deck more than an Italian striker, but this is a much cheaper way to learn if you are a little impatient!