Propeller Balancing

[TontoFAC]

Any tutorials on prop balancing?

 

[JeffreyS]

Plenty of discussion here if you search, but the general consensus is that if you have a somewhat modern drone, there is no need.

 

[wa5tef]

They need to be balanced!! I used a simple pencil point horizontally that worked great then I had to get fancy and order a balancing device that worked also, but I keep going back to the pencil. If one side of prop is heavy, apply a bit of clear tape to the other side until it is perfect. Unbalanced props vibrate and strain the motors.

FYI, I've never had to adjust balance on any DJI prop but not so with others. Most of them are out of balance so I only use DJI props now.

Good luck,
Jim
WA5TEF

 

[Safety71]

There are plenty of youtube tutorials. Additionally, you should check and balance all props monthly if they're new and if you are flying much. Absolute necessity. Also, there are some great kits for sale and at low prices. A small investment.

 

[BillCaf]

If the props are balanced, you should still check the leading and trailing edges for smoothness. Tiny nicks and burs can cause rpm and strain problems on the motor shaft. Using 600-800 paper gently should do the trick. Then check the balance again.

 

[dkeberhardt]

They need to be balanced!! I used a simple pencil point horizontally that worked great then I had to get fancy and order a balancing device that worked also, but I keep going back to the pencil. If one side of prop is heavy, apply a bit of clear tape to the other side until it is perfect. Unbalanced props vibrate and strain the motors.

FYI, I've never had to adjust balance on any DJI prop but not so with others. Most of them are out of balance so I only use DJI props now.

Good luck,
Jim
WA5TEF

I agree that using only dji props is the way to go.

 

[cheddarman]

One of my threads on the subject which might help........

YES, props should be balanced and checked for hairline cracking at the root of the blades.
Go DJI, never had a problem!

 

[jlrsn]

I've found new DJI Props for everything that I own and fly from the original P3P, P4P, P4PV2.0, to my I1V2 out of balance and I always rebalance them before using them. To date I've never balanced my original Mavic Pro nor my Mavic 2 Pro Props. After being Certified in the Repair and Flight ends of Aviation in the 1950s I had to always be concerned with Vibration in Airplanes and Helicopters. Later in my Aviation Career Flying and being Type Rated in Turbine Powered (Jet) Airplanes I left the balancing up to Aviation Repair Facilities but until I retired I did all the balancing of my Helicopter Main and Tail Rotor Blades using my Chadwick Balancer.

 

[cheddarman]

Hi jlrsn, am I right in thinking we're talking full sized, people carrying planes and helicopters here in the last part of your post?
Helicopter main rotor blades need to be moment-weighed/balanced, not something that can be done in the back garden!
As a retired GE Rotating Equipment engineer I have spent thousands of hours moment-weighing a set of blades before assembling them into the discs, the whole of which is then dynamically balanced.
Oh, by the way (very quietly) a turbine engine is not a jet engine?

 

[TontoFAC]

Hi jlrsn, am I right in thinking we're talking full sized, people carrying planes and helicopters here in the last part of your post?
Helicopter main rotor blades need to be moment-weighed/balanced, not something that can be done in the back garden!
As a retired GE Rotating Equipment engineer I have spent thousands of hours moment-weighing a set of blades before assembling them into the discs, the whole of which is then dynamically balanced.
Oh, by the way (very quietly) a turbine engine is not a jet engine?

No, my question was for UAS prop balancing.

 

[cheddarman]

I don't know where I got this idea you were into full sized planes/propellers?????

This is quite a good tutorial. Get yourself a good quality balancer and it's pretty easy........