How often do you change your props?

[RavenTBK]

Barring any obvious visual defect, I intend to keep flying them until the rivets no longer hold light friction between the blade and hub.

 

[Fletcher500]

My Mavic had one minor prop bump last month, and today, it got a nick out of one when it grazed a wall. Key point, it never crashed, and no major blade damage noted. But after todays prop graze, its flight was erratic. I therefore changed the lightly (1/32 in) end chipped prop, but it didn't help much. The other 3 were then changed, and it appears to be holding position better, but its a bit windy here (10-15 mph) so I cant verify for sure the quad is completely back to normal because I normally fly in light winds of 10 max, or less..

Question- with moderate winds of 10, gusting to 15 mph, how well does your Mavic hold position? IE, how many feet will it move vertically and horizontally from its original hover position with no stick inputs?

 

[namja]

Question- with moderate winds of 10, gusting to 15 mph, how well does your Mavic hold position? IE, how many feet will it move vertically and horizontally from its original hover position with no stick inputs?

Today, I flew in about 15 MPH winds (per weather reports). It may have been more, I'm not certain. It was enough wind that I kept getting warnings during flight to take caution due to high winds. When I brought it down to about 10 feet and let go the sticks, it held its position. With every gust of wind, it would budge a foot or so but bounce back a bit. In about 45-60 seconds of hovering, it did drift about 3 feet due to the gusts. When the wind was steady but mild, it didn't drift at all.

As for the OP's question, I'll probably follow DJI's suggestion of changing it every 200 flights. If any one of the propellers got damaged, I'll probably change all 4 at the same time. I do a mini pre-flight check (visual check; start motor; let it hover at 5 feet for 5 seconds; then fly) but I should probably do a more thorough one.

 

[namja]

It's good to establish a routine before every flight no matter how minor the flight may be. I have made an excel spreadsheet to log my preflight checklist and maintenance log. I check batteries, MP body, props, gimbal and camera.

Some may feel it's overkill, but should anything happen, I have the documentation showing that I examined the drone prior to the flight. I feel that it reflects how serious I take flying it as well as how responsible I am.

Just my 2 cents.

Do you mind sharing your preflight checklist with us? I'd like to follow some/all of that.

I used to fly Cessnas about 20 years ago. I remember following a 2 minute preflight checklist before every flight. Probably a good idea for drones as well.

 

[Ray Dunakin]

When I bought my Mavic, the props looked to me like the most fragile part of the drone. I figured I'd be snapping props every time I had a minor mishap, especially during the early stages of learning to fly it. So I bought a bunch of extra props.

Well, first of all the Mavic turned out to be so easy to fly that my mishaps have been few.

And when I have accidentally hit something with the props, they are amazingly resilient. I crashed into objects (and the ceiling) during a couple early flights indoors, with no damage. Outside, I "trimmed" some small branches once, still no damage. Even after a rough encounter with some rocks the props were still ok.

 

[darren6270]

I only changed mine recently as they were caked in bug splatter with a couple of little nicks.

 

[mikesher]

Never. But I plan to replace them with the Mavic Pro Platinum blades I ordered.

 

[locoman]

when ever they get a ding on them or when the MP flies eradicatelly

 

[lokinhei]

i cracked my props during my first few flights. Crashed into and stuck in trees and finally fell to a bush, cutting into some hard paper box indoor etc. Visible cracks can be seen in 3 out of 4 blades, and the tips of the blades are also somewhat worn.

Didnt replace them, as the MP performed well with the cracked props on, but until now, my MP only flew a total distance of 46 km.

Anyway, I just replaced them, not too worried of the cracks actually, but the props are not expensive anyway.

 

[locoman]

better safe then sorry.

 

[Dextra]

Props should be changed if not damaged, deformed in anyway, nicked, haven't hit anything, etc, every 200 flights. You will know when your props need changing soon because you'll see a slight change in flight performance. Craft will ricket about, vibrate, video quality will become a little poor, more noise, less response, lack of speed, etc. RULE OF THUMB. IF THE PROPS ARE IN GOOD CONDITION EVERY 200 HUNDRED FLIGHTS RENEW THEM. Ensure you buy the correct props for the correct device.

 

[AnzacJack]

new props replaced on a schedule is cheap insurance. 200 flights seems like a reasonable time. I tend to change every couple of months (i wouldnt be getting 200 flights with my Mavic in this time)

 

[Lake_Flyer]

Over time the plastic of the props dries out due to UV light. They might seem OK and perfect but they are not. Don't just wait until your mavic shows it in flight. It takes quite a lot of damage for a prop to show vibration. The chance the plastic simply breaks for no apparent reason (other than just being dry and old) is the biggest. Changing after 200 flights or at least once a year for less heavy flyers is good practice.

In cold weather it is best to use new props.