P3S Crash please help

[Kenneth Marsola]

I crashed my P3 Standard yesterday, it was my first crash in over 50 flights.
The Phantom was returning from a successful Litchi mission, when it clipped a branch and fell about 50 feet to the ground. The camera still works, but the gimbal is not responsive. and the camera just hangs & dangles.
If I manually hold the camera, it takes good video, and stills, but it dangles.
Any insight or suggestions?

 

[peri]

Check the black tape cable entering the gimbal first. Start eliminating from our site to inside

 

[Yarome]

Ouch! Sorry to hear that. If everything else is checking out, the gimbal is certainly repairable. (Hopefully it's just a mechanical issue) You can go the route of a simple gimbal replacement (costly) or "part" it. First off though you need to do a full disassembly and determine what the actual problem is. My guess... the gimbal motor shaft has sheared, but you won't really know until you get it apart. Hopefully.. it's just a mechanical issue.

If you are unsure, once you have it apart post detailed photos. There are plenty of very knowledgeable folks around here that could help diagnose the problem.

Of course... a straight out replacement is going to be the simplest... but probably run you in the neighborhood of $200-$250. A simple roll arm and motor assembly would be more in the $50 range. I also know of some folks that have done a "JB weld" job on theirs (cheapest), but personally, I wouldn't trust it to hold for long.

Good luck!

 

[Kenneth Marsola]

The part of the gimbal that stabilizes the yaw still works fine, but the pitch control is not responsive

 

[Techcop50]

The weak link in that scenario is probably the ribbon cable. It's fairly cheap, I'd try that first:
Amazon.com: Flexible Gimbal Flat Ribbon Flex Cable Part 49 for DJI Phantom 3 Pro & Advance/4K: Computers & Accessories

 

[Yarome]

The weak link in that scenario is probably the ribbon cable. It's fairly cheap

Very true. But if he's getting "some" gimbal control and video, it's likely not ruined.. although.. it's possible part of the ribbon cable may have just dislodged from the lower motor connection on impact. He would be living a charmed life if all he has to do is re-insert the lower connection, but it happens. Some folks are just born lucky.

Along those same lines.. if you end up having to do a full disassembly it's the perfect time to closely inspect your ribbon cable for any wear and replace it as a "safe-guard". For under 10 bones it's worthwhile. I think the last cable I purchased was something like $7. Cheap insurance.. for sure.

~Cheers