Gimbal guard interferes with gimbal

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So I bought this gimbal guard from Amazon Amazon.com: Hobbypower Camera Lens Cover Cap + Sun Hood + CF Gimbal Guard for DJI Phantom 3 PRO & Advanced: Toys & Games. If arrived today and although it seems well made and installs easily, it's positioning under the gimbal is definitely problematic. Specifically the gimbal contacts the guard while the gimbal is doing its start-up dance, and presumably could make contact during certain maneuvers in flight. For this reason, I'm probably not going to be using it (at least without modification).

I just don't get why it would be designed this way. The guard looks just like all the other guards for sale and they seem to be popular among Phantom owners. The concept seems like a good one. Do people just not care about the gimbal contacting the guard? Maybe they don't notice?
 
The designers will probably tell you that the placment needs to be directly under the camera to actually provide any protection. The polar pro protector does the same thing. They say it should be installed after startup.
 
maybe post a pic of your setup and how you have it installed?
I have one and it doesn't hit. came in a similar package with the lens cover and sun glare adapter.
 
I just don't get why it would be designed this way. The guard looks just like all the other guards for sale and they seem to be popular among Phantom owners. The concept seems like a good one. Do people just not care about the gimbal contacting the guard? Maybe they don't notice?

Oh and yes people care about the guard contacting the gimbal. That is no bueno.
 
Do you have it installed backwards? And yes the Polar Pro guard causes this same thing which is why it is trash.
 
Do you have it installed backwards? And yes the Polar Pro guard causes this same thing which is why it is trash.

Yes, some people install it backwards by accident, making it hit the camera. The carbon fiber cross-member should be positioned behind the camera slightly, not directly under it.

If you see the little slots on the side of this one below, if it's mounted upside down the cross member will be too far forward.
upload_2016-2-18_13-6-21.png
 
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I'll post a picture when I get home from work. 99% sure I didn't install backwards as it can really go on only one way with the way the legs are. Oh well, for $12 it's probably not worth sending back and the lens cap/gimbal lock seems to do its job at least.
 
I have the exact same guard. You must have it installed wrong, mine does not hit it at all. Double check the placement, maybe you need to flip it over? The guard does sit just a bit behind the gimbal when installed correctly.
 
I'll post a picture when I get home from work. 99% sure I didn't install backwards as it can really go on only one way with the way the legs are. Oh well, for $12 it's probably not worth sending back and the lens cap/gimbal lock seems to do its job at least.
Also you might want to check the weight of your sun shade, others have reported they really affect the balance of the camera and that will put undue stress on the gimbal motors without proper balancing. It is better to just use an ND filter instead. Here is how my gimbal guard is installed and it does not contact the camera during initialization.

Gimbal Guard.JPG
 
yeah, that's another thing. if you're using the sun shade with the gimbal protector on the lens, that hits. calibrate or startup without the sun shade first, then put it on
 
1. Does any one know if the guard has saved any gimbal after crash?

2. I heard gimbal guard creates other issues like holding the landing gear tightly to make it inflexible during landing. Landing with gimbal guard on is always a problem as even a little grass in the field might tip it over breaking the props.

I was never attracted by this kind of gimbal guard and never even thought of buying one.
 
Also you might want to check the weight of your sun shade, others have reported they really affect the balance of the camera and that will put undue stress on the gimbal motors without proper balancing. It is better to just use an ND filter instead. Here is how my gimbal guard is installed and it does not contact the camera during initialization.

View attachment 44205

Huh. I'm pretty sure that's the exact placement of mine. I'll double check everything this evening and post pics. Maybe I just imagined it hitting during startup.

And I never had plans to even use the sun shade due to those concerns.
 
1. Does any one know if the guard has saved any gimbal after crash?

2. I heard gimbal guard creates other issues like holding the landing gear tightly to make it inflexible during landing. Landing with gimbal guard on is always a problem as even a little grass in the field might tip it over breaking the props.

I was never attracted by this kind of gimbal guard and never even thought of buying one.
I bought mine because I like to hand catch on landing and it gives the landing gear the extra rigidity you spoke of which gives me confidence that I won't bend or break a leg while catching.
 
Speaking of gimbal guards, the aluminum gimbal protector is worth it's weight in gold if you crash. Killerrc.com has the best one I've found. What you DON'T want to buy is this one on Ebay that I thought was such a great deal. However the little arm that's is suppose to hold the gimbal together isn't machined right. It has too much space between the plastic nubber and the gimbal arm, about .225", when it's suppose to be about .020", which is how the KillerRC product is made.

The carbon fiber gimbal guard in this kit above was OK, but the aluminum gimbal protector WAS NOT. I'll likely throw it away since it's not worth shipping back for a refund.

You get what you pay for.
 
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Speaking of gimbal guards, the aluminum gimbal protector is worth it's weight in gold if you crash. Killerrc.com has the best one I've found. What you DON'T want to buy is this one on Ebay that I thought was such a great deal. However the little arm that's is suppose to hold the gimbal together isn't machined right. It has too much space between the plastic nubber and the gimbal arm, about .225", when it's suppose to be about .020", which is how the KillerRC product is made.

The carbon fiber gimbal guard in this kit above was OK, but the aluminum gimbal protector WAS NOT. I'll likely throw it away since it's not worth shipping back for a refund.

You get what you pay for.
thanks for that tip, your ebay link is not working though.
 
I'm really not counting on the gimbal guard in a more extreme crash scenario. I'm just using it to guard against reasonable contact with grass, twigs, small rocks, etc. on an uneven landing surface, and for that it works well. I generally try to find or clear myself a decent landing surface when I fly, or use a landing pad like this: Amazon.com: 20" Quadcopter Helipad: Toys & Games . Yeah, it looks a little goofy carrying it out to the middle of a park, but it's better than landing on the grass. :)

I haven't found the gimbal guard to be a problem in normal landings. I've never had it make the bird tip over in grass. I also recently added these landing rail extensions ( http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZNYVBWO ) which make the landing platform wider and more stable and raise it up just a little more to get it out of grass. Just a caveat, they can appear in video/photos in some situations.

You'll probably never really know until you try one and see how it works for you and the way you fly.


1. Does any one know if the guard has saved any gimbal after crash?

2. I heard gimbal guard creates other issues like holding the landing gear tightly to make it inflexible during landing. Landing with gimbal guard on is always a problem as even a little grass in the field might tip it over breaking the props.

I was never attracted by this kind of gimbal guard and never even thought of buying one.
 
I'm really not counting on the gimbal guard in a more extreme crash scenario. I'm just using it to guard against reasonable contact with grass, twigs, small rocks, etc. on an uneven landing surface, and for that it works well. I generally try to find or clear myself a decent landing surface when I fly, or use a landing pad like this: Amazon.com: 20" Quadcopter Helipad: Toys & Games . Yeah, it looks a little goofy carrying it out to the middle of a park, but it's better than landing on the grass. :)

I haven't found the gimbal guard to be a problem in normal landings. I've never had it make the bird tip over in grass. I also recently added these landing rail extensions ( Amazon.com: Carbon Fiber Camera Guard for Phantom 3: Camera & Photo ) which make the landing platform wider and more stable and raise it up just a little more to get it out of grass. Just a caveat, they can appear in video/photos in some situations.

You'll probably never really know until you try one and see how it works for you and the way you fly.
I use some round car window covers, the kind that fold up to a small circle and can unfold to a large circle to put up against the windshield when you park so the car doesn't get hot. It is compact, lightweight, easy to carry, and blocks the grass from hitting my camera or causing a gimbal overload on takeoff.
 
2. I heard gimbal guard creates other issues like holding the landing gear tightly to make it inflexible during landing. Landing with gimbal guard on is always a problem as even a little grass in the field might tip it over breaking the props.


Very good point "alok" -- I was contemplating one of those gimbal guards, then one day I grabbed the Phantom by the legs on landing to avoid a messy area and noticed vibration at the legs but not anywhere else. So after seeing these guards online I thought, and only IMO they will add some stiffening at the landing legs and as such any vibration that is being dissipated via the legs would now be absorbed at the Phantom.

The legs again IMO act as/like vibration dynamic absorbers that may be tuned into the frequencies present via the motors/props at various rpm's and as such would vibrate (intentionally excited) at those frequencies and reduce vibration elsewhere on the Phantom. I do think stiffening at the legs would allow for that same vibration (regardless of how minimal) to be displaced elsewhere.

Only my own opinion guys - I'm not trying to sway anyone from purchasing them or removing them. I am in the vibration analysis business and perhaps have a more critical or different outlook towards messing with any piece of an equipment's natural frequency. I haven't tested any of this out - but may one of these days - just to see!
 
Thanks for the replies everyone. It's definitely installed the only way it can be. And the gimbal definitely can make contact with the guard. Whether it actually does so during start-up, I'm not entirely sure because I don't want to do it again. I really had thought that it did earlier. It's kind of hard to see in the attached pictures but it's the back right part of the gimbal that makes contact.
 

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