Phantom 3 Standard Checklist

msinger · Aug 14, 2016

Caesimoes said:
Is it bad to keep the battery in the drone?

DJI ships the Phantom with the battery installed, so it must be technically okay to do. The only potential problem I see is that the smart battery pins will continue to be depressed while your Phantom is in storage. Only time will tell if that would cause them to wear out.

Thomas Gilmore · Aug 24, 2016

This is taken directly from the DJI website:

Discharge the battery to 40%-65% if it will not be used for 10 days or more. This can greatly extend the battery life.
The battery automatically discharges to below 65% when it is idle for more than 10 days to prevent it from swelling. It takes approximately 3 days to discharge the battery to 65%. It is normal that you may feel moderate heat emitting from the battery during the discharge process. Set the discharging thresholds in the DJI GO app.
The battery will enter hibernation mode if depleted and stored for a long period. When in hibernation mode, if you try to power on the battery, the battery power LED will show a solid red light and the battery level LEDs will all be off. You cannot manually turn off the battery power LED in this state. Leave the battery unattended for 5 minutes, and the light will turn off. Recharge the battery to bring it out of hibernation.
Remove batteries from the aircraft when stored for an extended period

20. How do I store a battery?

Caesimoes said:
Is it bad to keep the battery in the drone?

Afterburner · Aug 25, 2016

LuvMyTJ said:
Several years of CSC and not once have I had an issue. Can't even find it here by searching "csc broken props'.

I've heard of a number of issues where CSC causes the quad to flip over due to instabilities that arise with the quad throttling up momentarily before shutting down the motors ( At least this is what I recall hearing - don't quote this as gospel ) and the recommended procedure is to just throttle down which shuts down all motors at the same time and eliminates the possibility of an unintended flip with damage to the propellers. I believe there are some good videos on Youtube that cover this.

msinger · Aug 25, 2016

Afterburner said:
I believe there are some good videos on Youtube that cover this.

The following video shows how to execute both shutdown procedures properly. Like anything when flying a Phantom, trouble is right around the corner when you do not follow the directions.

Richard Byers · Aug 25, 2016

Just wondering why you move the Controls to the bottom corners when you land ? All you need to do is pull the left stick all the way to the bottom and keep it there it will kill the motors. You only move the sticks to the bottom corners to start the motors. As you said need to read the instructions[emoji848]

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

msinger · Aug 25, 2016

Richard Byers said:
Just wondering why you move the Controls to the bottom corners when you land ?

See the video I linked above. It's one of the ways to stop the motors after landing.

Afterburner · Aug 25, 2016

Took me a bit to remember the link on Youtube where I had seen the discussion on CSC and tipovers - Interesting video with a nice discussion and talk about unintended control inputs while executing CSC on landing...

msinger · Aug 26, 2016

The "overun" that Simon speaks of is not an issue if the procedure is done per the manual (as shown in the video I posted above). If you're worried about a tip over though, then the left stick down method is the way to go.

Snarfleblaster · Sep 2, 2016

MTR-Aerial said:
I just picked up tested "field notes". (Adam from mythbusters) it has everything you need in it. Check lists for each flight. Before, during and after. Labeled spots for frequncies, mission, location, batteries, etc etc etc. It's an awesome little book! I beleive they put the files online so you can print them out instead of buying!

Where can we download this list? I can't seem to find it.

Thanks!

flyinghost · Sep 2, 2016

This is the one i use.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using PhantomPilots mobile app

Janus · Sep 2, 2016

Thanks for the checklists! I was surprised that DJI didn't include them on a laminated card or in the pilot operation handbook. In my first few P3S flights I found I forgot simple steps like removing the gimble lock. I reverted to my private pilot training and was creating my own checklist. You guys have saved me hours of research and typing.

Feten · Sep 3, 2016

Thanks for this great list.

Feten

flyinghost · Sep 3, 2016

Lol dont forget to add put antenna the right way lol my big issue for some reason

Matt sent from note 3.

Scooter Post 127 · Sep 22, 2016

kptw_pilot said:
The CSC simply turns off the motors. Emergency or not, it does the job. You can keep the throttle down as well, that's why you can do either operation in the checklist based on preference.

Will CSC shut down the motors while it's in the air? I know that holding the 'throttle' down will not - when bringing mine down from high altitude I almost always lock the 'throttle' down. And once I catch it (or land it) I lock it down again and the motors shut off after a second or two.

msinger · Sep 22, 2016

Scooter Post 127 said:
Will CSC shut down the motors while it's in the air?

Yes.

Scooter Post 127 · Sep 22, 2016

msinger said:
Yes.

Wow. Seems like kind of a dumb idea to be able to do that. But thanks for the info.

flyinghost · Sep 23, 2016

Not really.It more for emergency.Better break your drone then cutting someone face or doing some damage on people proprety.

Matt sent from note 3.

Jimmy1952 · Sep 25, 2016

ShoRotten said:
Yes but here is also a thing called "muscle memory".
Throttle down seems way more innocent.

It is the better way to go , but at times we have problems where this is handy....like the day I got tangled in a tree limb. Used it to shut the motors off.

daddios · Oct 3, 2016

kptw_pilot said:
I created a solid checklist for pre-flight and post-flight for the P3S.
I see some online, but they are not exactly print-able, so mine is formatted and set up to be a tangible checklist to bring with you when you fly your Phantom.

If anybody has any other ideas on modifications I should make to it, I would be glad to consider them. Of course, feel free to print the checklist if you'd like!

great idea for us noooob's .... doing this check list 3-4 x's has created a natural routine 4 me

thnx

Scooter Post 127 · Oct 9, 2016

flyinghost said:
Not really.It more for emergency.Better break your drone then cutting someone face or doing some damage on people proprety.

Matt sent from note 3.

I respectfully disagree - not with your thoughts but with the reality of using CSC to shut down an aircraft. I just don't see a pilot recognizing "OMG I'm about to damage someone/something" and using CSC to shut the bird down in time to prevent that damage. When I had my fight with a tree the flight went from "weeee this is fun" to "Oh cra<wham>" in under a second.