Remote stick removal confirmed

Random155 · Nov 20, 2016

Welcome to the club!

Graves14 · Nov 20, 2016

P0V said:
I, too, have taken both the Mavic and the controller apart (check my posts in the Mavic reverse engineering thread).

P0V, can you elaborate on the controller disassembly? Did you record the opening process for the controller? I'd like to silence (or at least minimize) the controller's beeping.

dsd317 · Nov 20, 2016

Yes. Mine also comes off fairly easily (very little effort). It's as if they were meant to be removed. If not, then DJI did a very poor job in attaching sticks to controller.

TheLightSpeed! · Nov 21, 2016

I can't get mine to budge. I've pulled anyway I can think of and nada. Mine are in tight as heck

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Chris M · Nov 21, 2016

My Apple Store Mavic doesn't have sticks that come out easily and I'm not about to try using much force. What's the issue with packing them with sticks attached if it's required for them to be pushed asid to fit? Is there concern the off-axis force will somehow ruin the spring mechanism? Since they are Hall effect sensors surely the position of this sticks when stored is otherwise irrelevant. I'm looking at transporting the RC in a pouch where the sticks will be pushed aside. I'm not sure what the issue with that is. I would think keeping them attached but deflected is better than constantly removing/inserting them.

dsd317 · Nov 21, 2016

I think it's up to the owner, how he/she wants to pack their controller. If they want to pack it in a pelican case with foam/cushion/padding all over, then that's perfectly fine for that person. If they want to pack it into purse/camera bag/small backpack, then that's perfectly fine too. So there is no issue with any choice....unless they start throwing things around....as if they were in the baggage area of an airport/airplane.

Since I like to keep things compact and yet carry a lot of camera gear (serious photographer), real estate is hard to come by in my camera bags. That means packing things tight is the norm. Which is why I would prefer to remove the sticks from the controller. I've always packed them into my bags with the sticks installed and was always concerned that I would accidentally bump my bag the wrong way against a pole, tree, or rock and cause something in my bag to shift enough to snap or bend the sticks. With the sticks removed, I'll have no problem.

As for the concern of removing and inserting the sticks, I don't see it much different from a pen holder on your desk. You just place the stick in the hole and LIGHTLY press down. I fly with my thumbs, which are always on top of the sticks pushing down (light pressure), so I don't have to push them ALL THE WAY DOWN.

Just my 2 cents. To each his own.

Random155 · Nov 21, 2016

dsd317 said:
I think it's up to the owner, how he/she wants to pack their controller. If they want to pack it in a pelican case with foam/cushion/padding all over, then that's perfectly fine for that person. If they want to pack it into purse/camera bag/small backpack, then that's perfectly fine too. So there is no issue with any choice....unless they start throwing things around....as if they were in the baggage area of an airport/airplane.

Since I like to keep things compact and yet carry a lot of camera gear (serious photographer), real estate is hard to come by in my camera bags. That means packing things tight is the norm. Which is why I would prefer to remove the sticks from the controller. I've always packed them into my bags with the sticks installed and was always concerned that I would accidentally bump my bag the wrong way against a pole, tree, or rock and cause something in my bag to shift enough to snap or bend the sticks. With the sticks removed, I'll have no problem.

As for the concern of removing and inserting the sticks, I don't see it much different from a pen holder on your desk. You just place the stick in the hole and LIGHTLY press down. I fly with my thumbs, which are always on top of the sticks pushing down (light pressure), so I don't have to push them ALL THE WAY DOWN.

Just my 2 cents. To each his own.

Good point about not pushing them all the way down for flight if youre just going to take them out again anyway. Im still up in the air about constant on and off again. I did notice that there appears to be a certain way these go in. You just can't put them in any way or any side. It took a minute for me to figure that out. What I mean is, one stick fits best on one side facing a particular direction. Otherwise you have to push really hard to get them back in.

Chase R · Nov 21, 2016

P0V said:
Sorry, I should have linked DJI Mavic Stick Guard by Hovership
If you don't have a printer, you can either wait a few days until somebody starts selling those on eBay, or you can order a print from some local provider near you.

DJI Mavic controller Stick guard USA seller fast shipping many colors available | eBay

Random155 · Nov 21, 2016

I'll just pack like this for now. Sticks on...

Pedro · Nov 21, 2016

Mine came out, one much easier than the other. Cleaned the holes out, smeared touch of oil on the sticks, cleaned that off, now they slide in really positively and pull out without any problem.. Much safer when in the bag..

tripinasia · Nov 25, 2016

P0V said:
I, too, have taken both the Mavic and the controller apart (check my posts in the Mavic reverse engineering thread).

After I saw the internals, I decided to stop removing the sticks. Pushing the sticks down requires force, but there's no way to give support for the socket or the connected parts at all. Your only way to have leverage is to push back with the whole controller, essentially forcing the external components inside the controller. Doing it a few times is okay, the controller is well built, but doing it every time you pack it isn't a good idea. At least I wouldn't recommend it.

For now, I'm gonna stick with my 3D-printed stick guard (credit to Hovership on Thingiverse)

These are great. Just got some printed ! Had a file a little as they were too tight. Went with black but orange look cool

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Random155 · Nov 25, 2016

Make one for me!

erkme73 · Nov 25, 2016

I managed to get one of my sticks off. Took some pulling, but it popped off. The other, with even greater force, wouldn't budge. Upon close examination of both the controller hole and the end of the stick, I'd bet these were NOT meant to be removed. If so, then there would be some sort of a detent in the hole, and a matching spring-loaded ball or other mechanism in the stick. As it is, the only thing holding the stick in the hole is the tightness of the hole and any vacuum created by the tight fight. Since it's plastic on metal, I can only assume that after repeated insertion and removal, the hole will widen, and the fit become less tight. Eventually, the sticks will fall out if the remote is turned upside down. Never mind the stress the pushing/pulling creates on the controller mechanics that are really only designed to be moved laterally.

TheLightSpeed! · Nov 25, 2016

erkme73 said:
I managed to get one of my sticks off. Took some pulling, but it popped off. The other, with even greater force, wouldn't budge. Upon close examination of both the controller hole and the end of the stick, I'd bet these were NOT meant to be removed. If so, then there would be some sort of a detent in the hole, and a matching spring-loaded ball or other mechanism in the stick. As it is, the only thing holding the stick in the hole is the tightness of the hole and any vacuum created by the tight fight. Since it's plastic on metal, I can only assume that after repeated insertion and removal, the hole will widen, and the fit become less tight. Eventually, the sticks will fall out if the remote is turned upside down. Never mind the stress the pushing/pulling creates on the controller mechanics that are really only designed to be moved laterally.

I can't get mine to budge

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Bikemonster · Nov 25, 2016

Was able to remove my sticks. Received my Mavic 2 weeks ago from Apple, having ordered early. One was easier to remove than the other. Both sticks had what looked to be just a touch of white silicone like cement at the very bottom of each. Maybe DJI is cementing them in, and some people are removing them and others are not. Replacing the sticks does take some doing. I believe DJI intended to not have them removable and we have figured out a way to remove them.

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