Screw inspection = very bad day

Joined
Jun 13, 2015
Messages
217
Reaction score
66
Age
40
Well, I was going to head out to fly... But then I found some cracks during a preflight inspection. Then I call the seller expecting an exchange and they basically tell me that I have to contact DJI, because they have no spare parts. After asking for the manager, I finally worked out a way to exchange it... Assuming DJI approves it. Really??? Is this for real? There's not a scratch on it and it has never been involved in a rough landing, nothing... Does DJI honestly believe that they produce 100% defect free products??? I'm assuming that DJI will have no problem approving it and the seller was just giving me a lot of hassle.

Until I hear that DJI approved this for a DOA claim, I'm going to be pretty frustrated. I don't know what I'll do if they don't....

The cracks are in the recessed areas for the screws that hold the two shell halves together. Two have cracks on one arm, and the other arm has a crack on one of the recessed holes. I'm willing to bet it happened simply by the factory over tightening them during assembly.

FF4912E7-DCFC-452A-B180-636927DE2D57.jpg


D6BDFAA2-7FBA-41BC-9B9F-5A40A8BFBB24.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Mike Mauk
Definitely something that would have happened during or after assembly...
Can't see how a firm bump, or even a rough landing, would cause those.

I had to check mine after seeing yours, and am happy to report She is blemish free, & rather clean. But I gave it a darn good visual going over , before leaving the hobby shop with Her in hand. One advantage to shopping in person. You get to inspect the merchandise.

Hope you get it replaced soon, and in good order.

RedHotPoker
 
Based on all the warranty experience I have had with DJI, they wont do anything without the unit being sent to them. Then it's hard to say how long from the time they receive it until it makes it to a tech's bench. They had one of mine 4 weeks before looking at it and calling me to discuss the next step. I saw someone say they're at 5-6 weeks now.

I have also replaced the lower body half and everything has to be removed in order to do it. There is absolutely no short cuts either.
 
Definitely something that would have happened during or after assembly...
Can't see how a firm bump, or even a rough landing, would cause those.

I had to check mine after seeing yours, and am happy to report She is blemish free, & rather clean. But I gave it a darn good visual going over , before leaving the hobby shop with Her in hand. One advantage to shopping in person. You get to inspect the merchandise.

Hope you get it replaced soon, and in good order.

RedHotPoker

That's exactly how I felt when I saw them, there's no way that I could have done this. I should have inspected the screws when I first opened the box.

I also find it funny how the seller didn't hesitate to tell me that it would probably be just fine to fly and that there's nothing to worry about. Well, if you compare how securely mounted the motors are, the two with cracks move noticeably more in their mounts than the other two... Not very reassuring if you ask me.

The good news is that I bought it through Amazon and I have a feeling that has some influence on the matter. I have already completed the return process through my Amazon account and received an email saying that they will refund the money as soon as the seller receives the Phantom.
 
  • Like
Reactions: snerd
Well that's good news, that it can be returned, and you refunded. Get it back to them as fast as humanly possible, and move on. Hope you can get one from a different dealer, if they aren't simply replacing it for you.

They really are pretty awesome quad copters, when you can get a good one without complications or manufacturing flaws. Mine never suffered the update blues either, so I continue to feel pretty good about this model.

Hopefully your next one coming to you, will be awesome as well.

RedHotPoker
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mike Mauk
It'll be on its way tomorrow for sure. I'll probably buy my next one from either B&H or direct through Amazon. The seller is out of stock currently and I cannot wait. I happened to land a gig this week involving real estate photography so this couldn't have come at a worse time for me.

No need to convince me of its awesomeness, I wouldn't want anything else really.
 
Good that you already have got the ball rolling.
Wow, what's with the several guys who have faulty birds and contracts to use them? Seems like timing couldn't have been more off, for you guys.
Some places rent Phantom 3 and Inspire 1 models. Not that this, is an option for you at this time.
DJI has some serious considerations to make, now and in the near future. Quality control and customer service, needs attention. They already make such awesome products.

RedHotPoker
 
Sorry to hear about your problems. Hope it gets sorted out quickly.
I've just checked my Phantom 3 Pro, and no sign of any problems. Phew!
 
I had a couple of hair line cracks. I called DJI and was told that the shell/body is not a part of the warranty(wtf) but I çan still get an RMA or whatever they call it.

I was under the impression that if I sent it out, l would be charged and it would take forever to get back to me.

I decided the hair line cracks were not major. So I purchased Crazy glue and dabbed it on cracks. I will wait til the shell is for sale and make the change when its available.These shells are shitty and if the torq screws are tighten to much the end result is cracks.

Now, after ever flight I make sure to check the shell. I had this happened to my P2V+ and switched out the frame with no issues.

Good luck!
 
I had a couple of hair line cracks. I called DJI and was told that the shell/body is not a part of the warranty(wtf) but I çan still get an RMA or whatever they call it.

I was under the impression that if I sent it out, l would be charged and it would take forever to get back to me.

I decided the hair line cracks were not major. So I purchased Crazy glue and dabbed it on cracks. I will wait til the shell is for sale and make the change when its available.These shells are shitty and if the torq screws are tighten to much the end result is cracks.

Now, after ever flight I make sure to check the shell. I had this happened to my P2V+ and switched out the frame with no issues.

Good luck!

That's good to hear that they said you could still RMA it. If it weren't for Amazon's return process, I would not feel very reassured that it would qualify for a refund. I plan on calling them back this morning to get a prepaid shipping label to return it, and I I'll ask what their next step will be now that Amazon has told me that I will be refunded once the seller receives it. I want to be sure that I get what I expect before I seperate with this thing.

I just can't fathom dealing with this myself and using glue to bandaid a brand new $1300 rig. It is so frustrating how DJI and the seller won't stand behind their product. Rather than give you the benefit of the doubt, they would rather give you all the bad news and see how you react before offering an RMA. That is completely ridiculous! My lesson learned is to never buy a drone from a less popular seller. If I had bought it direct through Amazon or B&H, I believe this would have been resolved much more smoothly and all of this stress and frustration could have been avoided.

Good that you already have got the ball rolling.
Wow, what's with the several guys who have faulty birds and contracts to use them? Seems like timing couldn't have been more off, for you guys.
Some places rent Phantom 3 and Inspire 1 models. Not that this, is an option for you at this time.
DJI has some serious considerations to make, now and in the near future. Quality control and customer service, needs attention. They already make such awesome products.

RedHotPoker

With the real estate market being so hot right now, I can understand why you would run into more people using it for that and running into problems. The timing definitely could not be any worse... One thing that DJI and the seller need to understand is that customers who use this product professionally will expect much more than someone using this for their personal enjoyment only. I could lose an opportunity to establish my very first client, the owner of a real estate company in downtown Seattle, because the seller and DJI made this process so difficult. I'm a little more relaxed after getting an email from Amazon saying that they will refund me once the seller receives it, but I'll still be completely stressed out until that day comes... All because the seller and DJI cannot give me the benefit of the doubt.
 
That's good to hear that they said you could still RMA it. If it weren't for Amazon's return process, I would not feel very reassured that it would qualify for a refund. I plan on calling them back this morning to get a prepaid shipping label to return it, and I I'll ask what their next step will be now that Amazon has told me that I will be refunded once the seller receives it. I want to be sure that I get what I expect before I seperate with this thing.

I just can't fathom dealing with this myself and using glue to bandaid a brand new $1300 rig. It is so frustrating how DJI and the seller won't stand behind their product. Rather than give you the benefit of the doubt, they would rather give you all the bad news and see how you react before offering an RMA. That is completely ridiculous! My lesson learned is to never buy a drone from a less popular seller. If I had bought it direct through Amazon or B&H, I believe this would have been resolved much more smoothly and all of this stress and frustration could have been avoided.



With the real estate market being so hot right now, I can understand why you would run into more people using it for that and running into problems. The timing definitely could not be any worse... One thing that DJI and the seller need to understand is that customers who use this product professionally will expect much more than someone using this for their personal enjoyment only. I could lose an opportunity to establish my very first client, the owner of a real estate company in downtown Seattle, because the seller and DJI made this process so difficult. I'm a little more relaxed after getting an email from Amazon saying that they will refund me once the seller receives it, but I'll still be completely stressed out until that day comes... All because the seller and DJI cannot give me the benefit of the doubt.

I purchased mine from expertdrones they never returned my emails or calls...so they lost my business for sure. I would never buy anything from them, again.

I feel your pain, but believe me when I tell you Crazy glue will seal the crack. I wasn't a believer until I did it on my p2v+ and flew in more then 100 flights and none of the cracks increased in size.

Bandaid...yes! But it will stop the bleeding!!
 
I've had cracks on every single phantom I've owned and I have never had a crash or rough landing. I always hand catch. And my two week old P3A is no different. I've got them already. Does it piss me off? Big time. It amazes me that very few here complain about this. DJI goes and designs an updated shell with every opportunity to address a problem they KNEW was there because they even added clips to the shells but still paper thin plastic on the most highly stressed part. I don't ever n stare at the motor mounting area for too long because that can start cracks. Joking aside I'm getting **** tired of fixing stress cracks. And now with the new shells it is a much more difficult process opening them. Maybe that's what the clips are for now. They know its going to crack so the clips keep it together for lack of paint to do the job. I love DJI's products but the shells are pieces of dog poop. They were dog crap on the P2 and are still dog poop on the 3. Just a hair thicker would have done wonders to keep $1300 product from cracking within a week but nah. I would be willing to pay 30 or 40% more for better structural integrity. Anyway, the p2 cracked from usually one of outer motor screw holes outwards to the meeting point to the upper shell. The P3 likes to crack inside one of the two upper lower shell retaining screw holes. Send it in? First DJI isn't going to offer warranty on what they know will happen to at least 40% of phantoms. Again, I had 2 visions, two vision pluses. They all cracked without one crash or rough landing. So forget warranty. If I paid for them to replace the shell I would literally have one at their repair center every month of the year. Not right. And while I became an expert at repairing phantom cracks, like silverstoned, I'm at a loss at how to repair complete missing plastic at the screening hole. Plastic, it seems, barely thicker in that area than a piece of paper. ******** for lack of a better word. I own two P3s now so I like their stuff. But this cracking is unacceptable. Check yours out folks and do chime in when you see the cracks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bigdz
Here are my cracks. To hell with it, I'm gluing the fuselage together. Why? He cause this now is worse than the P2. The P2 cracks didn't affect the structural integrity that much because they were on a different location. These cracks do. You can physically see a lot more twisting movement from the arm ends once the cracks are there. And again folks, chances are you probably have them.
20150624_164612.jpg
20150624_164555.jpg
 

Attachments

  • 20150624_164538.jpg
    20150624_164538.jpg
    825.1 KB · Views: 430
A dab of super glue should fix you up and last for the life of the quad. Not worth the hassle if it was mine :)

I agree with hairline cracks but look at the picture...You can't superglue a hole.
 
Last edited:
Here are my cracks. To hell with it, I'm gluing the fuselage together. Why? He cause this now is worse than the P2. The P2 cracks didn't affect the structural integrity that much because they were on a different location. These cracks do. You can physically see a lot more twisting movement from the arm ends once the cracks are there. And again folks, chances are you probably have them.View attachment 22829 View attachment 22831

Sorry to hear that you're suffering from the same issue. The pic with the chunk of plastic missing looks identical to mine. Looks like the cracks on the other arm are where the motor mount screws are, correct? If this issue really is so widespread, then DJI needs to make sure their dealers know what to do when they encounter it. I can't believe that this is how they do business when the issue is clearly not the customer's fault.
 
I also find it funny how the seller didn't hesitate to tell me that it would probably be just fine to fly and that there's nothing to worry about.

The good news is that I bought it through Amazon and I have a feeling that has some influence on the matter.
Name and shame, please. Help others who are looking to buy one via Amazon, so we know who to avoid!
 

Recent Posts

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
143,066
Messages
1,467,357
Members
104,935
Latest member
Pauos31