Should I Repair this Damaged Bottom Cover?

[Simplicity]

Hi there!

I just crashed my DJI Mavic Mini yesterday and after close inspection, the only part that seems to be damaged is this bottom cover:



So I just wanted to ask, if I should replace it and if yes, where to buy the part. Even if I don't have to replace it, I would still like to take it off once to re-aline all the pins and fix the crack, so has anyone a recommendation for a tutorial on how to do this? I would also appreciate to hear about any tipps and tricks regarding this matter.

Thank you very much in advance for your help!

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

should I replace it ?

Yes
Tutorial = google "dismantle mavic mini" and watch several videos, some repairers are ham fisted. You will have to judge for yourself which one you should follow. I'd warm the plastics a bit with a hair dryer first, that might reduce clip breakage.

One thing that you might find is the the rear left screw has stripped the female threads out of the corresponding hole, I have one mini like that and the stripped threads are not detrimental. DO NOT try a bigger screw or a bodge, just leave the screw out. If that worries you then you are looking at a complete rebuild to replace the middle shell, quite easy if you have the tools but not everyone's cup of tea.

Where to get it ? Try googling "bottom cover DJI mavic mini", my guess is ebay or one of the Chinese OEM sellers.

 

[old man mavic]

judging by the small amount of damage that is evident from the pics then because of the age of the drone ,personally i would just very carefully apply a small amount of super glue along the cracks and snap it back in place ,and hold it till the glue sets try it dry first to see if it will go back in place

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

judging by the small amount of damage that is evident from the pics then because of the age of the drone ,personally i would just very carefully apply a small amount of super glue along the cracks and snap it back in place ,and hold it till the glue sets try it dry first to see if it will go back in place

Sorry OMM did you realise there are two photos there, that got me too at first, click on the left hand one.
Perhaps the OP might like to edit the post and try to put a space in between the two photos
LHS

 

[Starz]

Number three post has the solution.

 

[Cafguy]

Those covers cost around 20 Bucks and are easy to get......Replace it! see post 2

 

[Simplicity]

Sorry OMM did you realise there are two photos there, that got me too at first, click on the left hand one.
Perhaps the OP might like to edit the post and try to put a space in between the two photos
LHS

I see them both next or ontop of eachother depending if I open the post on my laptop or my phone and since OMM said „pics“, the problem might be on your side.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

I see them both next or ontop of eachother depending if I open the post on my laptop or my phone and since OMM said „pics“, the problem might be on your side.

Odd, on computer they are siamesed, on tablet they are vertically separated.

Ahh I missed the plural but there's no way I would glue that.

 

[old man mavic]

my advice about glueing the cracked portion back was based on the age of the drone and the fact that the piece that is cracked is not really structural in as much as holding the rear arm on
of course the person who ownes the drone, can choose to do whatever they want ,in regards to a repair
my advice was my personal preference ,given the circumstances

 

[MS Coast]

Odd, on computer they are siamesed, on tablet they are vertically separated.

It has to do with the width of the page. If you shrink the browser window width on your computer, the second image will roll down to the next line below the first.

 

[Simplicity]

Since the crack was really minor and the part doesn't seem to be of any structural importance, apart from the little legs the drone rests on when taking off, I decided to fix the broken part.

After detaching the two screws holding it in place, I was able to losen the back end enough to force the slipped-out pin back into place and re-aline the two sides of the crack after making it more flexible by warming the part up with a hairdryer. Since I didn't want to remove the part as a whole, to avoid the risk of braking any pins, I couldn't glue the crack, but since it re-alined so perfectly and the screw, that is screwed into the foot, still worked and fixed the foot into place just fine, I think it's the best to leave it like that.

Here are the after pics, if anyone is interested:



I would appreciate, if you could share your thoughts about my solution down below!

Thank you all very much for the fast and great help!

 

[old man mavic]

@Simplicity thats looks fine ,i would still advise you to put a little glue where the crack goes around the foot ,just to add some stability to the repair

 

[Simplicity]

@Simplicity thats looks fine ,i would still advise you to put a little glue where the crack goes around the foot ,just to add some stability to the repair

Should I just use standard superglue, or something special?

 

[Cafguy]

Just make sure whatever you use will dry before it "seeps" thru the crack. Maybe a superglue gel

 

[old man mavic]

@Simplicity as @Cafguy says above there are differences in viscosity of glues ,be sparing with how you apply it, do it in stages, allowing it to harden between aplications,untill you build up a nice fillet of glue

 

[Simplicity]

@Simplicity as @Cafguy says above there are differences in viscosity of glues ,be sparing with how you apply it, do it in stages, allowing it to harden between aplications,untill you build up a nice fillet of glue

I will do that. Thank you all again for the great help!