Should "this" be repaired, or is the drone OK to fly?

[zlek131]

Mavic 2 Pro. Well I didn't crash it but I almost backed my car over it, sort of. The drone was in its Fly More Combo bag which was laying in the wrong place at the wrong time. The rear wheel of the car squeezed/put pressure (never rolled "over") on one of the corners of the bag, that's it. Thankfully it was the corner where the two spare batteries were stored, which are junk now. Some of the pressure shifted onto one of the folded up rear drone legs pushing it up past its normal folded position. The drone checked out fine during a quick close proximity test flight. All works/looks well, no issues. However when the rear legs are folded out, I am able to flex "up" the leg in question past its folded out position. I have to apply decent pressure to do this, and the leg snaps back to its normal position once I release the pressure. Please see attached video which shows exactly what I attempted to describe above.

My question is: Should this be repaired before flying the drone? Like I said, the test flight felt/looked perfectly normal. Please don't chastise me for being a dumb@$$, I already feel bad enough. Thank you in advance for your feedback.
Matt

 

[Thomas B]

Yes

 

[SkyeHigh]

Definitely should be repaired either by DJI or yourself if you’re confident enough and can handle a soldering iron. The leg joint and leg with motor are available on Amazon etc. make sure you get the correct one, ie Rear & Left or Right - they are different.

 

[Repaid1]

I concur, it should be repaired. But is it safe to fly now...well yes too. But only minimally. It is hard to say at what point if and when it may fail. It will come under stress when you are lifting off, during normal flight and during braking while in flight, thus pushing past parameters set in flight controller as it fights with other motors to establish level flight from what would be a normal rigid frame.

There are plenty of Youtube videos showing that repair, and what can cause the issue (what parts you damaged), you could have major body damage internal to the mounting system which retains that arm. As said if you feel confident to look up the videos and repair yourself , do so. If not hopefully you have Care Refresh to let DJI deal with it.

 

[hychewright]

Absolutely repair it before flight, Matt. I concur with the other answers.

 

[zlek131]

Definitely should be repaired either by DJI or yourself if you’re confident enough and can handle a soldering iron. The leg joint and leg with motor are available on Amazon etc. make sure you get the correct one, ie Rear & Left or Right - they are different.

Thank you for your feedback, much appreciated Sir!

 

[zlek131]

I concur, it should be repaired. But is it safe to fly now...well yes too. But only minimally. It is hard to say at what point if and when it may fail. It will come under stress when you are lifting off, during normal flight and during braking while in flight, thus pushing past parameters set in flight controller as it fights with other motors to establish level flight from what would be a normal rigid frame.

There are plenty of Youtube videos showing that repair, and what can cause the issue (what parts you damaged), you could have major body damage internal to the mounting system which retains that arm. As said if you feel confident to look up the videos and repair yourself , do so. If not hopefully you have Care Refresh to let DJI deal with it.

Thank you for your feedback. I will be heading to a local DJI store later today and have them give me a quote on the repair. I could probably repair this myself but I am super picky about the drone and want to make sure it gets repaired 100% correctly as I want 100% confidence level when flying. I would worry myself to death that I may have missed something if I was to attempt the repair myself. Unfortunately no Care Refresh as it has runout after my second renewal.
Thank you again!

 

[zlek131]

Absolutely repair it before flight, Matt. I concur with the other answers.

Thank you! That is the current plan for sure based on everyone's good feedback here.

 

[zlek131]

Definitely should be repaired either by DJI or yourself if you’re confident enough and can handle a soldering iron. The leg joint and leg with motor are available on Amazon etc. make sure you get the correct one, ie Rear & Left or Right - they are different.

Thank you very much for your quick feedback. Much appreciated!

 

[spsphotos]

Think of it like this, would you fly in an airplane where the wing was flexing more than it should due to it being in a minor accident? Probably now. Drones are aircraft and as the PIC it's your responsibility to ensure that it is in perfect working order prior to any flight. Besides, the cost of repairing it now will be less than if the motor failed due to severed wire or other failures in mid-flight.

 

[hiflyer201]

Will it fly ...Yes. Should you fly it ..NO!
I think most of us have been in that position at least once with our drone. DJI might not be the cheapest out but you are going to end up with a flawless drone if you send it to them. Go ahead..get that mailing label drop it off ..you'll always feel better about it.

 

[Dale D]

Mavic 2 Pro. Well I didn't crash it but I almost backed my car over it, sort of. The drone was in its Fly More Combo bag which was laying in the wrong place at the wrong time. The rear wheel of the car squeezed/put pressure (never rolled "over") on one of the corners of the bag, that's it. Thankfully it was the corner where the two spare batteries were stored, which are junk now. Some of the pressure shifted onto one of the folded up rear drone legs pushing it up past its normal folded position. The drone checked out fine during a quick close proximity test flight. All works/looks well, no issues. However when the rear legs are folded out, I am able to flex "up" the leg in question past its folded out position. I have to apply decent pressure to do this, and the leg snaps back to its normal position once I release the pressure. Please see attached video which shows exactly what I attempted to describe above.

My question is: Should this be repaired before flying the drone? Like I said, the test flight felt/looked perfectly normal. Please don't chastise me for being a dumb@$$, I already feel bad enough. Thank you in advance for your feedback.
Matt

At least it wasn't a small child, although we treat our drones like one.

 

[Fizzbang]

The screw on the underside of the leg (on top if folded) needs to be loosened. Apply pressure horizontally to push the leg back into the joint. Tighten the screw and check if the leg is now secure with no sizable gap at the leg to body joint.

 

[Pilot Adam]

Mavic 2 Pro. Well I didn't crash it but I almost backed my car over it, sort of. The drone was in its Fly More Combo bag which was laying in the wrong place at the wrong time. The rear wheel of the car squeezed/put pressure (never rolled "over") on one of the corners of the bag, that's it. Thankfully it was the corner where the two spare batteries were stored, which are junk now. Some of the pressure shifted onto one of the folded up rear drone legs pushing it up past its normal folded position. The drone checked out fine during a quick close proximity test flight. All works/looks well, no issues. However when the rear legs are folded out, I am able to flex "up" the leg in question past its folded out position. I have to apply decent pressure to do this, and the leg snaps back to its normal position once I release the pressure. Please see attached video which shows exactly what I attempted to describe above.

My question is: Should this be repaired before flying the drone? Like I said, the test flight felt/looked perfectly normal. Please don't chastise me for being a dumb@$$, I already feel bad enough. Thank you in advance for your feedback.
Matt

 

[Pilot Adam]

While the drone flew, it causes the gyros to work overtime. The weakend arm will cause more issues later. Best of luck.

 

[zlek131]

Think of it like this, would you fly in an airplane where the wing was flexing more than it should due to it being in a minor accident? Probably now. Drones are aircraft and as the PIC it's your responsibility to ensure that it is in perfect working order prior to any flight. Besides, the cost of repairing it now will be less than if the motor failed due to severed wire or other failures in mid-flight.

Got it!

 

[zlek131]

At least it wasn't a small child, although we treat our drones like one.

Thank God!

 

[zlek131]

Thanks again everyone for all the advice, much appreciated ? Dropped off the drone at the local DJI store. The tech said it was totally fixable. Hopefully will hear back today on the cost, etc as they are assessing the damage. While there I decided to move up Father’s Day to today ?...

 

[GFields]

Yes; I would for sure

 

[Fizzbang]

Thanks again everyone for all the advice, much appreciated ? Dropped off the drone at the local DJI store. The tech said it was totally fixable. Hopefully will hear back today on the cost, etc as they are assessing the damage. While there I decided to move up Father’s Day to today ?...View attachment 130200

Note to self. Do not leave under the car!