DIY Repair issue - Mavic 2 Pro

[Roberto1965]

I had a crash which snapped the right front arm. I've made successful repairs to the drone in the past. So i thought I'd order the part, study some videos and attempt the repair myself. The drone is out of warranty. Everything about the repair went well, I followed what I felt were good instructions. I grounded myself and the drone and soldered carefully. upon finishing the repair the drone would no longer power up whereas it did prior. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Saigondroner]

I had a crash which snapped the right front arm. I've made successful repairs to the drone in the past. So i thought I'd order the part, study some videos and attempt the repair myself. The drone is out of warranty. Everything about the repair went well, I followed what I felt were good instructions. I grounded myself and the drone and soldered carefully. upon finishing the repair the drone would no longer power up whereas it did prior. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Battery damage perhaps, despite it working before? Maybe a shorted wire or ribbon? Front arms contain antennae, so run back (check) the RF connection, to the receiver? Check all the battery tabs on the battery and Mav. Does the battery blink when charging? Does it show the current power level? Finally, disconnect the motor from the EMC, and any other connections from new arm. The drone should at least power up and report no arm. I have never repair an M2...but many DJ models, including Mav1. I hope it works...

 

[bumper]

Having recently, more successfully, repaired my M2P with two broken arms (front and back left side), I have at least a clue. :c) Edit: Had not seen Saigondroner's post above when I wrote this. I agree w/him, my "at least a clue" comment was not meant to disparage him or anyone else. :c)

You should first take it apart again and double check all the wiring to make sure no wires are reversed and there's not other defect that might be identified visually (solder joint bridging etc). If you replaced a front arm, then you also removed the main board to access the antenna coax plug - make sure that's all good too.

I watched a YouTube video where one owner was soldering away using a Weller "transformer type" soldering gun! This is *not* the way to do it. A pencil iron, preferably adjustable temp etc. is the way to go. Use a solder sucker to remove old solder from trace pad. This is not a job for the hamfisted, but very doable with care.

 

[Roberto1965]

@bumper & @Saigondroner, thank you for those helpful replies and helping me through the process of elimination. I'm using two separate batteries with the same results. The drone was still operational after the crash. It could fly with the arm taped up, just didn't want to push my luck. I've checked the wiring arrangement and it was in fact correct. I am using a pencil soldering iron, not a gun which would be overkill. I'm going to try re-attaching the old arm and see if anything changes.

 

[Saigondroner]

@bumper & @Saigondroner, thank you for those helpful replies and helping me through the process of elimination. I'm using two separate batteries with the same results. The drone was still operational after the crash. It could fly with the arm taped up, just didn't want to push my luck. I've checked the wiring arrangement and it was in fact correct. I am using a pencil soldering iron, not a gun which would be overkill. I'm going to try re-attaching the old arm and see if anything changes.

My last ditch guess is to a magnifier, and visually inspect the circuts...1 tiny hair can short things out. I am plagued with corrosion, in a humid country. I spray WD40 almost weekly on USB charging stations, and battery tab, even on the AC. It seems to have helped most things, from flashlights to wall sockets.

 

[bumper]

My last ditch guess is to a magnifier, and visually inspect the circuts...1 tiny hair can short things out. I am plagued with corrosion, in a humid country. I spray WD40 almost weekly on USB charging stations, and battery tab, even on the AC. It seems to have helped most things, from flashlights to wall sockets.

Rather than WD-40, which builds up to a gunk over time and reapplication, you might want to consider something a bit more benign. A small amount of silicon spray, (applied to a Q-tip or similar) will prevent corrosion on contacts. Corrosion-X (and similar) is widely used on aircraft to help prevent metal corrosion.

Good idea on using magnification to inspect. I used a 6X jeweler's hood thing to do the soldering on my M2P.

 

[Saigondroner]

Rather than WD-40, which builds up to a gunk over time and reapplication, you might want to consider something a bit more benign. A small amount of silicon spray, (applied to a Q-tip or similar) will prevent corrosion on contacts. Corrosion-X (and similar) is widely used on aircraft to help prevent metal corrosion.

Good idea on using magnification to inspect. I used a 6X jeweler's hood thing to do the soldering on my M2P.

Thanks for your advice; I just went old school navy with WD-40; if it moves, grease it, if it doesn't, paint it....I'm pretty careful checking, preflight. you'll get it going...

 

[bumper]

Thanks for your advice; I just went old school navy with WD-40; if it moves, grease it, if it doesn't, paint it....I'm pretty careful checking, preflight. you'll get it going...

Hey, I can relate to old school navy ('63 to '70, USN ET1)! Unfortunately, looks like there are too many drones succumbing to the old standby Navy "floatation test" i.e. If it don't work, over the side it goes . . . let's see if it'll float!

 

[Saigondroner]

Hey, I can relate to old school navy ('63 to '70, USN ET1)! Unfortunately, looks like there are too many drones succumbing to the old standby Navy "floatation test" i.e. If it don't work, over the side it goes . . . let's see if it'll float!

You made my day!