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Logger

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All Drones = Mavic


Well yesterday my Mavic passed the 300 flight landmark. 420kms and & 40 trouble free flight hours.

If you are wondering what maintenance I have done to keep it all running, the short answer is zero. The long answer may be of interest to new or prospective Mavic users….

Compass:- calibrated a single time on day one. Since then I have carted it all over Australia and have never touched the compass calibration again. I have had numerous occasions when the system told me to recalibrate the compass. Like yesterday when trying to take off from the back of a pickup/ute. I simply moved it away from the metal and the message went away.

IMU/Gimbal/Joysticks: I have not recalibrated or touched any of these other systems. IMU, Gimbal and RC remain untouched.

Propellers: Still running the original set. I never unfold them by hand. I unfold them before flight using the motors :p I give them a wipe with a damp cloth occasionally. I will probably switch them out and keep as them as spares. YES, I have read the suggestion to replace at ~200 flights. But at 305 flights they still look solid to me.

Main camera - I have not touched or wiped once.

Batteries – No maintenance. I do try to use them down to ~ 15% and sometimes down to 10%. I have numbered them so I use them in order. I don't worry about storage and transport charge levels. KISS.

Storage – DJI shoulder bag that came with the Fly More combo. I wedge the RC in vertically with the 45 degree twist so joysticks are in a corner. They get rammed in, along with the Mavic with props and no special protection – absolutely no problems with this. The shoulder bag is so convenient. Pull Mavic and RC out and drop Gimbal guard, Gimbal lock and phone case back in. I have taken the whole kits on about 40 airline flights and never had any issue with security. I just throw the shoulder bag inside my wheelie bag where it takes up about the same space as a pair of shoes.


My Setup:

-Mavic Fly More Combo + DJI Care Refresh

-Samsung S7 edge <- 95% of flights

-iPad Air 2 GSM <- 5% of flights and great for building Litchi missions.

-Microsoft Surface 3 Pro with Premier Pro.


I don’t have any fancy landing pads, gimbal guards, Lipo bags, pelican cases, stickers lanyards or Cheesy Pet names for it. Only mods are a sticker with my name and number and another yellow tag on the gimbal lock. So it is obvious if I have forgotten to remove it. I just try to keep the props clean and pop the gimbal lock and camera cover back on as soon as I land. That’s about it.


Pre-purchase I thought that I would want to use the iPad all the time due to its large screen. As it turns out the S7 edge is what I use all the time as the screen is excellent and combined with the RC is much more portable. I really only use the iPad if somebody wants a demo or If I am flying from a spot where I can sit at a bench. Looked at iPad holders, but they are not my thing. I was surprised the physically much larger iPad Air2 screen was not as good as I expected it would be. The S7 edge is in fact higher res albeit much smaller. iPad is good for making Litchi mission, though & I am sure the newer models are higher res.


Use:

I use Litchi for WPT mission flying and taking 360 Panoramas.

I use DJIGo 4 for FPV flight as I prefer its interface. Course Lock is my favorite smart flight mode and really the only one I use frequently.

I read the manuals inside out (numerous times). I have hung out and learnt a lot at this forum and the DJI one. Some very helpful people around here. Thankyou all.


Past Issues:-


Early on I had one Toilet Bowl Event (TBE) & an ATTI event. Both occurred whilst learning to use Litchi WPT missions and had my Mavic drifting downwind out to sea. Fortunately I was able to recover from both. Since the recent Mavic firmware updates it looks to me like this issue has been addressed one way or another.


Crashed/Mowed my way into long grass at ~ 35kmh one evening with VPS off – No damage. Me being stupid flying in semi darkness and misjudged the height. Lucky.


S7 edge Phone – Has at times had app crash issues during flight. For example when DJIGo4 was first released. For the most part this can be fixed by killing all apps, which I do as part of my setup each time I fly.


Current Issues:-


Litchi Adroid – App frequently crashes after LOS on WPT missions (I hate this bug but not a show stopper).


Memory Card Door (Said battery door - brain fade sorry) one of the two tabs broken – No real issue until the second tab breaks. Possibly in time this will be the first wear & tear part to break on other Mavic’s too. Unfortunately, it is attached by tape to the inside of the case so not readily user replaceable. I wonder if a copy can be made with a 3d printer without the tape? DJI have said to send it in for a repair but this seems an overkill.



Overall:-

I have really had a trouble free & reliable run with my Mavic.. After 2.5 months of solid use it, is still in excellent condition and looks new. I have been thrilled with what I can do with this thing. I see it as great value and it has given me loads of enjoyment and satisfaction. I trust this shows how reliable this little marvel can be. This is what I do. It is not necessarily the right way but it works.
 
Last edited:
Congrats, if only I had that much time on my hands to fly. :)

Battery Door - one of the two tabs broken – No real issue until the second tab breaks. Possibly in time this will be the first wear & tear part to break on other Mavic’s too. Unfortunately, it is attached by tape to the inside of the case so not readily user replaceable. I wonder if a copy can be made with a 3d printer without the tape? DJI have said to send it in for a repair but this seems an overkill.

Do you have a pic showing what you are referring to? I have a 3D printer and could possibly design something but I am not sure what you are referring to when you say "battery door".
 
Logger you are an inspiration to those of us who believe in keeping it simple. No long distance record setting flights, no attempts at height records and no messing around with things better left to those more qualified or certainly more curious...and the result is trouble free flying and total worry free enjoyment. Wow! Who knew?
 
Do you make videos of most or of all your flights?
Do you find yourself just taking small clips and saving them off somewhere?
Do you upload them online regularly or are you just keeping them somewhere?
 
Is that the best logger system to use or are there others ? I need figure which one i should use & do it from the start.
This is really cool, thanks for sharing!
 
...keeping it simple. No long distance record setting flights, no attempts at height records and no messing around with things better left to those more qualified or certainly more curious...and the result is trouble free flying and total worry free enjoyment...
Yep that's is. No BS, just go fly it, doing so sensibly and cautiously.
 
Last edited:
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Congrats @Logger Great to hear some positive things every now & then!
 
Do you have a pic showing what you are referring to? I have a 3D printer and could possibly design something but I am not sure what you are referring to when you say "battery door".
Sorry brain fade. I meant the Memory card door, which I open every day. Have corrected my post.

Mavic Door-001.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: RallySoob
Do you make videos of most or of all your flights?
Do you find yourself just taking small clips and saving them off somewhere?
Do you upload them online regularly or are you just keeping them somewhere?
Mostly. When I use Litchi routes I set it to record from takeoff to LDG. Use 2.7k and a 64GB SD card. End of the day if I only need a tiny bit of a movie clip I just use Windows 10 photo app to do lossless snips and discard the rest after a quick peek to see if I got anything unexpected. Also use it to take stills. Anything more than that I pass through Premier Pro. As soon I can, I move the video clips on to a 2TB USB Hdd as my Surface pro fills up. Ext Hdd currenlty has ~400GB of video on it, all from Mavic.

Early days the takeoff and departure/arrivals intrigued me so I felt compelled to record them all. Not so much now.
 
Is that the best logger system to use or are there others ? I need figure which one i should use & do it from the start.
I am not aware of others apart from the inbuilt DJI Flight Logs. I have found the DJI system to to be a bit of a mess as it shows 4 different aircraft for my single mavic AND it only captures DJIGo flights. Whereas HealthyDrones is easy to use and captures both my DJIGo and Litchi flights. It also captures other controller software that I dont use.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pete and jimp
View attachment 4322
All Drones = Mavic


Well yesterday my Mavic passed the 300 flight landmark. 420kms and & 40 trouble free flight hours.

If you are wondering what maintenance I have done to keep it all running, the short answer is zero. The long answer may be of interest to new or prospective Mavic users….

Compass:- calibrated a single time on day one. Since then I have carted it all over Australia and have never touched the compass calibration again. I have had numerous occasions when the system told me to recalibrate the compass. Like yesterday when trying to take off from the back of a pickup/ute. I simply moved it away from the metal and the message went away.

IMU/Gimbal/Joysticks: I have not recalibrated or touched any of these other systems. IMU, Gimbal and RC remain untouched.

Propellers: Still running the original set. I never unfold them by hand. I unfold them before flight using the motors :p I give them a wipe with a damp cloth occasionally. I will probably switch them out and keep as them as spares. YES, I have read the suggestion to replace at ~200 flights. But at 305 flights they still look solid to me.

Main camera - I have not touched or wiped once.

Batteries – No maintenance. I do try to use them down to ~ 15% and sometimes down to 10%. I have numbered them so I use them in order. I don't worry about storage and transport charge levels. KISS.

Storage – DJI shoulder bag that came with the Fly More combo. I wedge the RC in vertically with the 45 degree twist so joysticks are in a corner. They get rammed in, along with the Mavic with props and no special protection – absolutely no problems with this. The shoulder bag is so convenient. Pull Mavic and RC out and drop Gimbal guard, Gimbal lock and phone case back in. I have taken the whole kits on about 40 airline flights and never had any issue with security. I just throw the shoulder bag inside my wheelie bag where it takes up about the same space as a pair of shoes.


My Setup:

-Mavic Fly More Combo + DJI Care Refresh

-Samsung S7 edge <- 95% of flights

-iPad Air 2 GSM <- 5% of flights and great for building Litchi missions.

-Microsoft Surface 3 Pro with Premier Pro.


I don’t have any fancy landing pads, gimbal guards, Lipo bags, pelican cases, stickers lanyards or Cheesy Pet names for it. Only mods are a sticker with my name and number and another yellow tag on the gimbal lock. So it is obvious if I have forgotten to remove it. I just try to keep the props clean and pop the gimbal lock and camera cover back on as soon as I land. That’s about it.


Pre-purchase I thought that I would want to use the iPad all the time due to its large screen. As it turns out the S7 edge is what I use all the time as the screen is excellent and combined with the RC is much more portable. I really only use the iPad if somebody wants a demo or If I am flying from a spot where I can sit at a bench. Looked at iPad holders, but they are not my thing. I was surprised the physically much larger iPad Air2 screen was not as good as I expected it would be. The S7 edge is in fact higher res albeit much smaller. iPad is good for making Litchi mission, though & I am sure the newer models are higher res.


Use:

I use Litchi for WPT mission flying and taking 360 Panoramas.

I use DJIGo 4 for FPV flight as I prefer its interface. Course Lock is my favorite smart flight mode and really the only one I use frequently.

I read the manuals inside out (numerous times). I have hung out and learnt a lot at this forum and the DJI one. Some very helpful people around here. Thankyou all.


Past Issues:-


Early on I had one Toilet Bowl Event (TBE) & an ATTI event. Both occurred whilst learning to use Litchi WPT missions and had my Mavic drifting downwind out to sea. Fortunately I was able to recover from both. Since the recent Mavic firmware updates it looks to me like this issue has been addressed one way or another.


Crashed/Mowed my way into long grass at ~ 35kmh one evening with VPS off – No damage. Me being stupid flying in semi darkness and misjudged the height. Lucky.


S7 edge Phone – Has at times had app crash issues during flight. For example when DJIGo4 was first released. For the most part this can be fixed by killing all apps, which I do as part of my setup each time I fly.


Current Issues:-


Litchi Adroid – App frequently crashes after LOS on WPT missions (I hate this bug but not a show stopper).


Memory Card Door (Said battery door - brain fade sorry) one of the two tabs broken – No real issue until the second tab breaks. Possibly in time this will be the first wear & tear part to break on other Mavic’s too. Unfortunately, it is attached by tape to the inside of the case so not readily user replaceable. I wonder if a copy can be made with a 3d printer without the tape? DJI have said to send it in for a repair but this seems an overkill.



Overall:-

I have really had a trouble free & reliable run with my Mavic.. After 2.5 months of solid use it, is still in excellent condition and looks new. I have been thrilled with what I can do with this thing. I see it as great value and it has given me loads of enjoyment and satisfaction. I trust this shows how reliable this little marvel can be. This is what I do. It is not necessarily the right way but it works.

When you fly your Mavic do you have Wi-fi on or the phone in airplane mode?


Sent from my iPhone using MavicPilots
 
Sorry brain fade. I meant the Memory card door, which I open every day. Have corrected my post.

View attachment 4333

Ya that piece could be replicated using silicone cast method used to make the little non stick containers for dabs or all sorts stuff these days. You can actually make it yourself by buying the 2 part food grade silicone epoxy and make a mold using the original. You may or may not need a vacuum purge tank depending on epoxy used but its very feasible for someone equipped to do it. I got a 2gal shattervac myself but have not dove into making containers yet. Somebody out there may produce replacements in the near future, i wonder about the connecting tab design but that could be worked around (doesnt need to be food grade epoxy at all i just love its uniform non stick texture and look myself)
 
Mostly. When I use Litchi routes I set it to record from takeoff to LDG. Use 2.7k and a 64GB SD card. End of the day if I only need a tiny bit of a movie clip I just use Windows 10 photo app to do lossless snips and discard the rest after a quick peek to see if I got anything unexpected. Also use it to take stills. Anything more than that I pass through Premier Pro. As soon I can, I move the video clips on to a 2TB USB Hdd as my Surface pro fills up. Ext Hdd currenlty has ~400GB of video on it, all from Mavic.

Early days the takeoff and departure/arrivals intrigued me so I felt compelled to record them all. Not so much now.


what method are you using to do that lossless snips?
 
View attachment 4322
All Drones = Mavic


Well yesterday my Mavic passed the 300 flight landmark. 420kms and & 40 trouble free flight hours.

If you are wondering what maintenance I have done to keep it all running, the short answer is zero. The long answer may be of interest to new or prospective Mavic users….

Compass:- calibrated a single time on day one. Since then I have carted it all over Australia and have never touched the compass calibration again. I have had numerous occasions when the system told me to recalibrate the compass. Like yesterday when trying to take off from the back of a pickup/ute. I simply moved it away from the metal and the message went away.

IMU/Gimbal/Joysticks: I have not recalibrated or touched any of these other systems. IMU, Gimbal and RC remain untouched.

Propellers: Still running the original set. I never unfold them by hand. I unfold them before flight using the motors :p I give them a wipe with a damp cloth occasionally. I will probably switch them out and keep as them as spares. YES, I have read the suggestion to replace at ~200 flights. But at 305 flights they still look solid to me.

Main camera - I have not touched or wiped once.

Batteries – No maintenance. I do try to use them down to ~ 15% and sometimes down to 10%. I have numbered them so I use them in order. I don't worry about storage and transport charge levels. KISS.

Storage – DJI shoulder bag that came with the Fly More combo. I wedge the RC in vertically with the 45 degree twist so joysticks are in a corner. They get rammed in, along with the Mavic with props and no special protection – absolutely no problems with this. The shoulder bag is so convenient. Pull Mavic and RC out and drop Gimbal guard, Gimbal lock and phone case back in. I have taken the whole kits on about 40 airline flights and never had any issue with security. I just throw the shoulder bag inside my wheelie bag where it takes up about the same space as a pair of shoes.


My Setup:

-Mavic Fly More Combo + DJI Care Refresh

-Samsung S7 edge <- 95% of flights

-iPad Air 2 GSM <- 5% of flights and great for building Litchi missions.

-Microsoft Surface 3 Pro with Premier Pro.


I don’t have any fancy landing pads, gimbal guards, Lipo bags, pelican cases, stickers lanyards or Cheesy Pet names for it. Only mods are a sticker with my name and number and another yellow tag on the gimbal lock. So it is obvious if I have forgotten to remove it. I just try to keep the props clean and pop the gimbal lock and camera cover back on as soon as I land. That’s about it.


Pre-purchase I thought that I would want to use the iPad all the time due to its large screen. As it turns out the S7 edge is what I use all the time as the screen is excellent and combined with the RC is much more portable. I really only use the iPad if somebody wants a demo or If I am flying from a spot where I can sit at a bench. Looked at iPad holders, but they are not my thing. I was surprised the physically much larger iPad Air2 screen was not as good as I expected it would be. The S7 edge is in fact higher res albeit much smaller. iPad is good for making Litchi mission, though & I am sure the newer models are higher res.


Use:

I use Litchi for WPT mission flying and taking 360 Panoramas.

I use DJIGo 4 for FPV flight as I prefer its interface. Course Lock is my favorite smart flight mode and really the only one I use frequently.

I read the manuals inside out (numerous times). I have hung out and learnt a lot at this forum and the DJI one. Some very helpful people around here. Thankyou all.


Past Issues:-


Early on I had one Toilet Bowl Event (TBE) & an ATTI event. Both occurred whilst learning to use Litchi WPT missions and had my Mavic drifting downwind out to sea. Fortunately I was able to recover from both. Since the recent Mavic firmware updates it looks to me like this issue has been addressed one way or another.


Crashed/Mowed my way into long grass at ~ 35kmh one evening with VPS off – No damage. Me being stupid flying in semi darkness and misjudged the height. Lucky.


S7 edge Phone – Has at times had app crash issues during flight. For example when DJIGo4 was first released. For the most part this can be fixed by killing all apps, which I do as part of my setup each time I fly.


Current Issues:-


Litchi Adroid – App frequently crashes after LOS on WPT missions (I hate this bug but not a show stopper).


Memory Card Door (Said battery door - brain fade sorry) one of the two tabs broken – No real issue until the second tab breaks. Possibly in time this will be the first wear & tear part to break on other Mavic’s too. Unfortunately, it is attached by tape to the inside of the case so not readily user replaceable. I wonder if a copy can be made with a 3d printer without the tape? DJI have said to send it in for a repair but this seems an overkill.



Overall:-

I have really had a trouble free & reliable run with my Mavic.. After 2.5 months of solid use it, is still in excellent condition and looks new. I have been thrilled with what I can do with this thing. I see it as great value and it has given me loads of enjoyment and satisfaction. I trust this shows how reliable this little marvel can be. This is what I do. It is not necessarily the right way but it works.
Thanks for the positive unfiltered feedback. Now I really can't wait for mine to arrive!!
 
You should share this post with DJI and ask them if they can send you a new door for the memory slot under warranty.
 
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