Gimbal willl not 'settle down'... Please Help!

[Ntexguy]

I fly a mavic pro very gently and have had it for over 2 years with no issues. Recently when I am
doing the setup by connecting to the controller, the gimbal continues to rotate for a bit and the info on the screen shows
comments like 'Gimbal motorload too large' or Gimbal obstructed'..or 'Pllease check to see if gimbal clamp is removed', and 'Gimbal clamp removed, restarting'. After several resets it will 'connect' and all is well, however, most of the time the gimball will not function properly and is very erratic. The mavic has NOT been crashed, the small clamp cover is always removed prior to starting, and none of the little rubber bands that 'support' it are broken. This bird has not been abused and flys as it should. Am I missing something? Is there some sort of reset or adjustment I need to attempt? Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated.

 

[FoxhallGH]

There is a gimbal calibration that you can do from Go4 ... Might be worth a try?

 

[Mossiback]

If you recently updated software/firmware, you might try reverting to previous version.

 

[Ntexguy]

There is a gimbal calibration that you can do from Go4 ... Might be worth a try?

Super thought...I'll give it a try this evening ! Thanks so much. Anyone have additional thoughts?

 

[Ntexguy]

If you recently updated software/firmware, you might try reverting to previous version.

I just held on the phone for about 30 minutes and their only suggestion was update my ipad version
and/or the aircraft version. Ill check that as well. My thanks.

 

[Dave Maine]

Check the gimbal mechanics for dirt or anything else that could cause the gimbal not to move smoothly. It should feel silky smooth in all directions moving it with your fingers when the power is off.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

The ribbon could be worn, not sure how old or how many hours you have up, but lots of gimbal movement will eventually cause some wear and tear.
I suspect flying sports mode a lot would facilitate this . . . not suggesting it's your style of flying, just my own observation that the gimbal works a lot harder that's all.

My M1P is pretty much 3 years now, although I had replaced a few months after purchase with gimbal problem, wouldn't calibrate and gimbal would finish aimed down to one side, my fault, left clamp on for a minute or two on a flight

 

[Ntexguy]

The ribbon could be worn, not sure how old or how many hours you have up, but lots of gimbal movement will eventually cause some wear and tear.
I suspect flying sports mode a lot would facilitate this . . . not suggesting it's your style of flying, just my own observation that the gimbal works a lot harder that's all.

My M1P is pretty much 3 years now, although I had replaced a few months after purchase with gimbal problem, wouldn't calibrate and gimbal would finish aimed down to one side, my fault, left clamp on for a minute or two on a flight

To all that have responded....please accept my sincere thanks..I live in Wichita Falls, TX USA and seldom do we snow see but we have had 3 or 4 inches in the last couple of days so flying really hasn't been possible. I will try the suggestions just as soon as the weather permits. I am grateful for the ideas.
Mike

 

[JamieB]

My guess is your gimbal ribbon's failing. My drone showed the same error messages, and swapping out the old ribbon for a new one cleared it right up. You do have to do a bit of disassembly to get the gimbal out of the drone and take some pieces off the gimbal itself to install the ribbon, so I wouldn't recommend doing it yourself unless you have some previous electronics repair experience and don't mind taking your drone apart. That said, it's not a terribly difficult repair, and the part's only about $8 on eBay.

 

[Ntexguy]

After exhausting all other solutions...I simply assumed it was something like you suggested, however I did not have the guts to grab a screwdriver and a hammer and a hacksaw and start surgery! So I sent it to a drone repair facility in Frisco TX and will pay them the 'pound of flesh' I appreciate your time to respond.
Mike
Wichita Falls, TX

 

[Michael Skiba]

I have a similar problem but only when I put a lense filter on, with the lense filter on there was no control of the gimbal. When the lease was removed everything was fine again, any suggestions?

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

I have a similar problem but only when I put a lense filter on, with the lense filter on there was no control of the gimbal. When the lease was removed everything was fine again, any suggestions?

Sounds like the filter either isn't pushed on properly (right down to the ring / line on the camera barrel), or the filter is too heavy to complete calibration.
This is usually accompanied by a gimbal overload message, do you get that come up ?

A typical weight of a good filter is around 1 to 1.2 grams.

Some are also too bulky and hit the body when calibrating, but you can usually hear the clunking impact sound that makes.

 

[Michael Skiba]

I’ll weigh the filter, I am not sure if I bought it from DJI or Amazon. I did not get any errors when I had it on.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

I’ll weigh the filter, I am not sure if I bought it from DJI or Amazon. I did not get any errors when I had it on.

What brand, do you recall / know ?

 

[Thomas B]

Never had a problem with my PolarPro ND or Pl filters. Same with Freewell’s variable ND. I kind of assume that DJI filters should work.

 

[Michael Skiba]

The brand is Freewell, my scale doesn't show any weight. appears to be not that sensitive of a scale.

 

[Thomas B]

Freewell lists it at 2.08 ounces ... addendum. This is wrong. See below

 

[Michael Skiba]

Wow, that converts to 58.96701 grams

 

[Michael Skiba]

I would play around with it today but it's snowing here?

 

[Thomas B]

Wow, that converts to 58.96701 grams

Sorry... NOTE: that’s the shipping package weight.
The Freewell variable ND filter itself weighs only 8 grams.