POLL: Have you powered on your Phantom with the gimbal lock attached?

Ever power on your Phantom with the gimbal lock attached?

  • No. I always remember to remove the gimbal lock.

    Votes: 11 11.8%
  • Yes, and it did not cause any damage.

    Votes: 82 88.2%
  • Yes, and it damaged the gimbal and I had to repair my Phantom.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    93

msinger

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A lot of people worry about damaging the gimbal after accidentally powering on the Phantom with the gimbal lock attached. Have you ever done this?

Please vote above.
 
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To my understanding, the gimbal motors know when they are stuck and stop trying to prevent damaging themselves.
 
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Since I always power my RC on first I simply put a sticker saying "Gimbal Lock" on my RC which always reminds me.
 
I rarely use my Gimbal lock now
 
red-arrow2-right.gif GUILTY ( Only takes one time )
 
A poll, really? I see no value whatsoever in knowing the number of people that have done this. There might be value in discussing what happens if you do.

However, this simple reminder will prevent that.
110238
 
A poll, really? I see no value whatsoever in knowing the number of people that have done this.
Take a closer look at the poll options. The point is to find out if this is a common cause of gimbal damage.
 
Never will I ever forget to remove the gimbal guard. Had a buddy do that once. I chuckle to myself to this day over it.
 
It would be nice knowing if gimbal motors have a routine to securely shut down when an obstruction is detected or they continue struggling the obstruction until they burnt out.
What can DJI say about it?
I must admit that I never put on the protector and I never have any issues. I think that the gimbal while in the original case has very little space to excessively move around as the phantom is pretty well fixed in the case. For even better protection you can put some soft material under the gimbal.
If you transport phantom without the case then securing the gimbal is necessary of course.
 
How do you move your drone and prevent the gimbal from shaking all over the place?

99% of the time it goes from my hobby room outside to fly ... no need for gimbal lock as it is not subjected to anything.

When I do take it a flight site - the P3 is in its hard case and laid out in the van ... I don't hike / backpack it all.

IF I was to think about hiking or backpacking it ... then that's a different scenario and I would probably use the lock then.
 
Apologies if this post is in the wrong place. I forget how to post to the general Forum.

I have not flown for a while and was hoping that you experienced flyers could post a general checklist prior to my next flight.

For example, things to do such as calibrate compass and the like.

Thank you in advance to anyone who responds.

Cheers,
EyeDrone, (but obviously not frequently enough!)
 
Apologies if this post is in the wrong place. I forget how to post to the general Forum.

I have not flown for a while and was hoping that you experienced flyers could post a general checklist prior to my next flight.

This is MY personal view on it which can or may differ from others

For example, things to do such as calibrate compass and the like.

Thank you in advance to anyone who responds.

BEFORE leaving hobby room or where the gear is stored.

1. Give the whole lot a good Eyeball all over.
2. Remove props if not already - check for nicks, scratches, dings that may indicate stress or liability - replace if any shows signs.
3. Soft cloth - wipe off all and closely inspect for arm cracks etc.
4. Make sure motor shaft prop threads clean
5. CHARGE EVERYTHING up fully - RC, AC and tablet ... (I switch on Flight batterys BEFORE connecting charger - this allows the cut-off on the battery board that shuts off charge to reach 100% regardless of battery level).

At flight line ...

1. Attach props making sure you give that last bit of twist to be sure BUT DON"T GRAUNCH them on !!
2. Do not calibrate compass ... if you get an error warning ... Power ALL down ... move a few metres and power up again. Probable local anomaly. It is not normally required to recalibrate unless repairs / physical modification to the AC.
3. Take off into stable hover and observe ... hang on for a minute or so to make sure all is good.

First flight - take care and gain confidence that all is well before another battery and venturing off ...
4. Land with about 30% or more so storage level is good.

Overall :

As long as the gear has been stored reasonably and batterys in storage level range ... there should be no reason for errors or faults.
If you were happy with flights before - then there's no reason you should worry about updating anything.

Go Enjoy !!
 
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