Mini 2 Lurches forward on takeoff- and Cine Smooth not so much

[Skybuyer]

In addition to my Mavic 2 Pro I now have a Mini 2, previously having a Mini 1 which I sold to upgrade to the 2. I have the Mini 2 to be able to work and maneuver in tight spaces (indoors) where the Mavic 2 would be a hazard. But the Mini 2 surprises me on takeoff and I'm not sure what to do. I didn't have this much of an issue with my Mini 1.

Upon takeoff it appears that the rear motors lift up the rear end of the Mini 2 first and by the time that the front motors catch up in speed and it levels off, once off the ground the Mini 2 lurches straight forward a foot or two and I have to catch it with the right stick lest it crash into something close by before it settles. Additionally, when trying to fly slowly and precisely I don't find the C mode a whole lot slower and more controllable than the N mode. This is the 2nd Mini 2 I've had (the first one was defective and replaced) and both exhibited the same faster C mode. I've tried launching and slow flying in both modes and don't experience much difference at all in handling.

It should be noted that I usually use PGYTech leg extenders so that the props clear any grass or low obstacles and I then can mount a strobe on the bottom when needed. I tried to take off with and without the extenders. In C mode as well as N mode, which made no difference at all in speed or control. And the right stick needs to be very, VERY gentle in the pullback to keep the Mini 2 in check or it can lurch back a bit too much.

I'm just looking for anything I can do to get a nice, straight up vertical takeoff without having to worrry about keeping that lurch in check.

Thoughts and/oruggestions? TIA

 

[Deleted member 103366]

My MM does the same thing but I would say it is a gentle drift/slip, if your's is violent then maybe we are seeing different behaviours.
I think the mini does not sit level, hence the reason for the rear lifting first, I see the same thing with an M2P. Maybe set up a tilted launch pad so that it sits level?
Are you using an automated takeoff or the stick?
If "the stick" try an automated take off, I did an automated take off today, from a hand launch, and there was no drift. I usually use "the stick".

 

[old man mavic]

obvious things to do are IMU calibration and stick calibration on the RC when you have the landing gear extenders fitted does it make the front of the drone higher than the back this could account for the rear motors trying to level the drone as it takes off

 

[Lastrexking]

Mine doesn’t lurch, but I agree on the Cine mode speed, it doesn’t seem much slower. My old Mavic Air Jed a way of lowering the maximum speed, I can’t find that on the MM2.

 

[TDZHDTV]

when the drone is powered on it will default to N mode regardless of the switch position of the other two modes. If it doesn’t take off level when no accessories are fitted you may want to try changing the rear props

 

[Repaid1]

when the drone is powered on it will default to N mode regardless of the switch position of the other two modes. If it doesn’t take off level when no accessories are fitted you may want to try changing the rear props

Additionally to expound. If you take off with the switch in any other mode other than normal. As said it will default to normal, so you then have to switch to the "N" mode pause for a second, then switch back to the Cine or Sport for it to activate. So in good practice always take off in "N". Many pilots are doing this error. As it has been posted quite a few times.

 

[Skybuyer]

obvious things to do are IMU calibration and stick calibration on the RC when you have the landing gear extenders fitted does it make the front of the drone higher than the back this could account for the rear motors trying to level the drone as it takes off

The landing gear appears to be proportional to the standard parked angle of the drone without them. It could be the mass differential of front to back extenders. I'll check them out later.

I've recalibrated everything and think I've found part of the answer; weight and balance of accessories. I stripped it down of everything except the two small strobes on the arms and it did better. Not perfect but better. It's going to move a bit forward, but I think I've moderated the gross "lurch" so it's not so scary.

But what remains scary is the sensitivity of the sticks. The very slightest movement gets response. Slightly more and I get a jerky motion. It's like trying to operate a single action pistol safely that has a 1 pound trigger. I've written to DJI about that issue, in hopes that someone who makes decisions on firmware can address this, hopefully providing adjustable curves. Can you adjust the response curves on the MA2?

 

[quemazon]

Lurching at takeoff is consistent with a damaged prop in my experience.

 

[Skybuyer]

Lurching at takeoff is consistent with a damaged prop in my experience.

Props are onlya few days old and in pristine condition. No crashes and minimal flying time. I did inspect them for any damage but didn't see or feel any.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Re the stick sensitivity, can you adjust the/their "EXP"?

 

[Kilrah]

You can take off in C mode, but you must be sure to do the N-C switch transition after everything is powered on and connected. Just before take off bring the switch to center and then to C.

 

[quemazon]

Props are onlya few days old and in pristine condition. No crashes and minimal flying time. I did inspect them for any damage but didn't see or feel any.

If nothing else fixes the problem, you may still want to consider changing the props. I had pristine-looking props, and was getting erratic take-offs. When I changed the props, though, the problem went away. The way I see it, the drone applies equal power to all four motors at launch. Under normal circumstances, this will generate equal lift on all 4 corners and the drone will take-off cleanly. But if one of the props isn't generating as much lift, the drone will launch at a bit of an angle. The control software will quickly correct the problem by increasing the power to the other motors, to compensate. In my case, I think that's what was happening. But this could also be caused by an unequal or imbalanced load on the drone.

 

[Skybuyer]

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• PhiliusFoggg​

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  Re the stick sensitivity, can you adjust the/their "EXP"?
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  DJI support says there is no EXP adjustments with the Mini 2
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Kilrah​

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You can take off in C mode, but you must be sure to do the N-C switch transition after everything is powered on and connected. Just before take off bring the switch to center and then to C.
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I generally do that, but thanks for the reminder

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quemazon​

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JoinedNov 22, 2020Messages4Reactions1Age48LocationNew Mexico

vindibona1 said:
Props are onlya few days old and in pristine condition. No crashes and minimal flying time. I did inspect them for any damage but didn't see or feel any.

If nothing else fixes the problem, you may still want to consider changing the props. I had pristine-looking props, and was getting erratic take-offs. When I changed the props, though, the problem went away. The way I see it, the drone applies equal power to all four motors at launch. Under normal circumstances, this will generate equal lift on all 4 corners and the drone will take-off cleanly. But if one of the props isn't generating as much lift, the drone will launch at a bit of an angle. The control software will quickly correct the problem by increasing the power to the other motors, to compensate. In my case, I think that's what was happening. But this could also be caused by an unequal or imbalanced load on the drone.

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I would consider doing that if the thing took off "cockeyed", but the back leg come off the ground together in sync and then then the front legs come up together in sync.

In retrospect I think it may partially be a balance issue as I keep leg extensions on my Mini and small light-weight strobes on the front arms. When I had the most severe lurching was when I forgot to take the strobes off the top, that I generally "park" there for storage. So I've got the two foot lurch now down to 1'. I'll also be recalibrating the IMU today just to be secure that all systems are functioning as they should.

As a side note, one of the things that DJI informed me of is that the "maximum speed" of the C Mode on the Mini 2 is 6 m/s (13mph), not a terrible thing in itself. It's about the speed that a bicycle would be traveling at a modest clip. But the problem is that the stick response ramps up too quickly making it hard to make slow, smooth precise maneuvers. Without changing any EXP settings the Mavic 2 does this marvelously, but I am reluctant to disable the sensors until my skills get better. I'm not looking to crash a $1500 drone in a closed-in area when the Mini would do the job, were it easier to control without having to have a feather-touch to the sticks.

 

[old man mavic]

@vindibona1 as an owner of a MM and a MPP, i can attest that C mode with the mini ,is nowhere near as slow as tripod mode with the MPP ,it seems that the C mode is more an attempt to reduce some of the stick response when flying to help new pilots get a better smoother video ,and also they have minimised the amount of changes that can be made to the flight characteristics on the later drones using the fly app ,i suppose if you had no experience of the GO4 app ,and the bigger mavics then you would not know what you were missing

 

[karlblessing]

If you've replaced the props, did you make sure to replace them in pairs, and on the correct arm (since each pair has a specific set of arms they can go on, marked on the arms and props).

 

[Kilrah]

If you've replaced the props, did you make sure to replace them in pairs, and on the correct arm (since each pair has a specific set of arms they can go on, marked on the arms and props).

The aircraft wouldn't even fly if the wrong props were on.

Don't understand why people always ask that question.

 

[Skybuyer]

@vindibona1 as an owner of a MM and a MPP, i can attest that C mode with the mini ,is nowhere near as slow as tripod mode with the MPP ,it seems that the C mode is more an attempt to reduce some of the stick response when flying to help new pilots get a better smoother video ,and also they have minimised the amount of changes that can be made to the flight characteristics on the later drones using the fly app ,i suppose if you had no experience of the GO4 app ,and the bigger mavics then you would not know what you were missing

"It seems that the C mode is more an attempt to reduce some of the stick response when flying to help new pilots get a better smoother video"

It sure ain't doin' that! I think I got my lurch problem fairly well ironed out with a number of steps. But afterward I was doing some tests indoors and in terms of reducing stick response, the difference between the N mode and C mode on the Mini 2 is so negligible I wonder why even bother? If I had to put a number to the difference it would be maybe a 10% difference, 12% tops.

If you want to know why I'm doing all of this it's because I want to be able to fly through interiors. But it is becoming more and more apparent that a lot of it may need to be done hand held with drone camera taking the video until I need some sort of elevation shot.

I'm definitely going to need prop guards. I was practicing precise maneuvering so I can at least get a feel for the sticks, but something that has become even more apparent with the Mini 2 more than the Mini 1 is that it seems to be greatly affected by its own turbulence in small spaces. I was trying to fly through a galley kitchen and through the exit doorway just past the refrigerator no wider than 4' between counters and appliances. Just efore that doorway the Mini 2 got pulled left into the refrigerator and took quite a bit of right stick to keep it from getting sucked up against it; more right stick than should have been necessary. I was afraid of a slingshot effect once it broker free. A bit later I tried flying down a narrow hallway and it wanted to pull right. At least this tells me that there isn't a drift bias in one direction, but an effect of the airflow bouncing off objects causing the Mini to veer of a straight course. I did find that a little more power/speed helped in this regard, but the power ramps up so quickly that the speed control is relatively unpredictable and precision control in a long narrow spot challenging. But again, you're right. In this case prop guards are a necessity if I'm going to fly indoors.

 

[old man mavic]

@vindibona1 ,what you are describing is one of the pitfalls of drone flying inside even with the downwards sensors keeping the drone on the spot ,as you say the prop wash bouncing off the fixtures and fittings plus the walls ,can create significant disturbance to the air where you are,
even though the mini is small and seems fine for inside flying, when you add up the air being moved through 4 props as it flies, it produces a fair amount of downwards air movement, just fly at 3ft over a pond and see how much it ripples the water

 

[MavicAir2Marc]

@vindibona1 as an owner of a MM and a MPP, i can attest that C mode with the mini ,is nowhere near as slow as tripod mode with the MPP ,it seems that the C mode is more an attempt to reduce some of the stick response when flying to help new pilots get a better smoother video ,and also they have minimised the amount of changes that can be made to the flight characteristics on the later drones using the fly app ,i suppose if you had no experience of the GO4 app ,and the bigger mavics then you would not know what you were missing

I just have the MA2 but it is definitely a lot slower in C mode as opposed to normal. Being that I'm like an ape on the controls sometimes, it for sure helps to fly slow in C mode. N mode can be pretty twitchy sometimes...at least for me.

 

[Kilrah]

Maybe you should just train a bit to be more gentle on the controls.