Ugggh. Smashed into my house. Broke props. Landed on concrete. Advice?

[Matchlock]

Just one word of caution about the battery. Since it took quite a hard hit and fell on concrete, please keep a close eye on it while charging for the next few charges. Batteries that have had a hard hit could swell and or burst while charging so DO NOT leave that battery unattended when charging.

Just my two cents for what it's worth.

Good luck, and I'm happy that the damage wasn't too severe.

Bud

Thanks. I'm so glad it wasn't worse either. When it fell behind the car, I was expecting to find it smashed to bits.

And I will for sure listen to UAV forecast from now on. I got too comfortable with flying this thing.... in other words "cocky".

Yes. The Newegg P3.

Forecast is looking good for tomorrow. 58F and partly cloudy with 10 mph wind.

 

[macoman]

I know what you mean...

I want this thing for flying over water this summer but I want the red one for that reason... and they don't even know if or when they will be getting the red back in stock.

I want one of these but the price it's kind of high for an already old drone like the phantom 3.

 

[pomonabill220]

Just one word of caution about the battery. Since it took quite a hard hit and fell on concrete, please keep a close eye on it while charging for the next few charges. Batteries that have had a hard hit could swell and or burst while charging so DO NOT leave that battery unattended when charging.

Just my two cents for what it's worth.

Good luck, and I'm happy that the damage wasn't too severe.

Bud

Very good reminder!
I would also like to add to choose a location for charging that is NOT inside your home. Maybe in the backyard on concrete (if you have that), or make a non-flammable surface out of brick to place the battery incase it does decide to go POOF!
Once they start to burn... ya can't stop it and it is violent!

 

[jwmcgrath]

I want one of these but the price it's kind of high for an already old drone like the phantom 3.

Agreed.

That's also why I said I "want" it and not that I "have" it.

I'll see how panicked I feel the first time I'm flying over water and decide then.

I also got this:

But that's for recovery and if I ever use it, that means it was already under water... for $10 I'd at least like to "getterback" and try to "dry 'er out"!

 

[Dronut2]

I should have NEVER been flying yesterday. It was too windy out. Anyways.... I was between mine and my neighbors house. It was very windy out. I was coming towards myself, so I got the stick direction mixed up and smacked into my house about 15 feet up. The props on the right side broke and she fell so hard on the concrete driveway that the battery popped out and went under my wife's car.

Total known damage report: Just 2 props (but I replaced all 4 to be safe) and a couple of small small cracks in the shell, which I superglued with Loctite brand Super Glue Professional.

After putting the new props on, another battery in, cleaning the scuffs up and allowing the super glue to 100% dry.... it seems to be fine. I hovered it 2 feet off the floor in my computer room for a minute and it seemed OK. It is STILL too windy to go outside.

Here is/are my question(s):

I'm going to re- calibrate the compass for my next outdoor flight...... should I mess with the IMU calibration as well? Do these things kind of get "knocked silly" when you have a crash? I've never messed with it, so I'm not sure. Or is this a "If it ain't broke.... don't fix it situation?"

It can't hurt and takes 20 minutes.

 

[peter west nz]

The CF gimbal guards, securely tied on with cable ties at the centres and both ends,,make the whole of the undercarriage structure MUCH stiffer, as well as protecting the gimbal somewhat. I had one my p3As back into a huge tree when it suddenly lost gps lock & switched to atti. A steady wind was blowing towards the trees and since I was videoing a wedding facing into the wind, it backed in before I noticed and could respond. The result was a broken gimbal and a prop. It video'd most of the fall, trying to right itself at least 3 times. DJI replaced this one, since the log showed that it had been in and out of gps lock many times in it's [short] life. It was my spare, and had only been test flown for a few minutes in still air. I thought it was that my flying was a bit rusty! Both p3As now have securely tied protectors. They do make the undercart slightly wider, and thus a tight fit in the cases, but it is a small price to pay, I think, for the extra rigidity.

 

[DanMan32]

Agreed.

That's also why I said I "want" it and not that I "have" it.

I'll see how panicked I feel the first time I'm flying over water and decide then.

I also got this:

But that's for recovery and if I ever use it, that means it was already under water... for $10 I'd at least like to "getterback" and try to "dry 'er out"!

Has this been tested to work on a 2 pound quad? I know they tested something like this designed for keys and such using a rock as equivalent weight. It did not work. Two didn't even work.

 

[jwmcgrath]

Has this been tested to work on a 2 pound quad? I know they tested something like this designed for keys and such using a rock as equivalent weight. It did not work. Two didn't even work.

The guy that I first learned of them from (a member here) recovered his Phantom with one, and it was fully functional after he dried it out.

I've seen a YouTube video where they used three pounds worth of steel pipes in an 8' swimming pool. It's 10lb line.

In an absolute worst case scenario, hopefully it will at least tell me where it is and hope it's shallow enough for recovery one way or the other.

Moderate comfort for $10.

 

[k9time]

Yes. I put Alfas on it like a week after owning it. It did 3.2 miles, right out of the box. This was in an area with ZERO interference though. Where the Alfas helped was at my house. Wifi Wifi Wifi, everywhere. I could only get about 4,000 feet in front of my house. With the Alfas, I get 5,500 to 6,000 feet, no problem. I might have been able to push it even further, but didn't want to cross the interstate.

RP-SMA Female with Shaft to MMCX for DJI "No Drill" Clean install | eBay

USED Alfa APA-M25 2.4/5 GHz dual band directional 10 dBi panel antenna 802.11ac | eBay

Got the no drill coming tomorrow. Alfa's come in the other day. Got 17000 ft on wind surfers.. Think the Alfa's will beat that? It came home because of battery.. got to mount the Venom 2300's.. Thanks Matt for all the ideas..

 

[DanMan32]

The guy that I first learned of them from (a member here) recovered his Phantom with one, and it was fully functional after he dried it out.

I've seen a YouTube video where they used three pounds worth of steel pipes in an 8' swimming pool. It's 10lb line.

In an absolute worst case scenario, hopefully it will at least tell me where it is and hope it's shallow enough for recovery one way or the other.

Moderate comfort for $10.

You'll see it only if it doesn't sink or water is shallow enough.

 

[jwmcgrath]

You'll see it only if it doesn't sink or water is shallow enough.

I'm not sure what you mean...

The cartridge separates upon immersion and floats to the top on a 100' line.

In theory, that 10lb line should be strong enough to pull it up.

So I should be able to see the bright yellow cartridge even of the drone sinks 100'. How do you mean I'll only see it in shallow water?

 

[DanMan32]

You seem to be focused on the line test weight saying it won't snap.
I'm saying the float won't have enough buoyancy to raise the Phantom. But if you have a 100ft line, your intent isn't to raise the AC to the surface but simply to know where it is deep under the water. Remember, phantoms do not float and are rather heavy.

 

[jwmcgrath]

You seem to be focused on the line test weight saying it won't snap.
I'm saying the float won't have enough buoyancy to raise the Phantom. But if you have a 100ft line, your intent isn't to raise the AC to the surface but simply to know where it is deep under the water. Remember, phantoms do not float and are rather heavy.

Ah... I see what you mean.

No, I have less than zero expectation that the float will raise the Phantom. In fact it's designed for fishing rods and not even expected to raise those.

No, it's just a marker. The float will raise to the surface, up to 100', and IF I'M LUCKY will allow me to pull it up without snapping the line.

Like I said, just a $10 investment in a last resort.

 

[DanMan32]

Hmm might get me one of those.
I often fly over water and if currently something goes wrong I've lost it for good as it would be anywhere underwater. But if it has a marker bouy, then I can possibly rent a boat and get it.

 

[Tallyrver]

Amazon.com : Gimbal Saver for DJI Phantom 3 Ribbon Cable Protection Fix by RC Killer : Camera & Photo

A friend of mine had his gimbal pop apart ,luckily it did no damage. He has this now.

 

[Matts175]

Got the no drill coming tomorrow. Alfa's come in the other day. Got 17000 ft on wind surfers.. Think the Alfa's will beat that? It came home because of battery.. got to mount the Venom 2300's.. Thanks Matt for all the ideas..

They should. With wind surfers, you are still only seeing 5dbi of gain. With the Alfas, you'll get 8dbi.