I have been doing test flights today and i am certain one of my motors is bad.  I can post video of Dulce falling out of the sky if you want to see it.  I think this explains Sunday's crash too.  I will order a new motor, soldering iron and a de-soldering pump. Is there anything else i need?  I have soldered a lot in the past though not in a while.  Any other pointers you can give will be appreciated.  It will arrive Friday and i have an important shoot tuesday so it has to be fixed by then.

By the above post we can assume you have the proper tools to open the bird?

If you are careful, it should not be too hard with the tools you will have.  I would recommend a pointed tip to the soldering iron - you can always tip it sideways on the cone for tinning/pre-heating, but the point will help you get the lead where you want it and the solder will run down the tip onto the joint.  Just my experience with soldering in tight spots.

Oh and yes, you said you were getting a soldering iron and pump, no solder?

i've bought a soldering kit with solder, the iron, the de-solderer, stand, etc.  if i have it maybe i won't need it in the future.  doubtful, right?

HermosaDrones Posted at 2015-3-26 06:32
i've bought a soldering kit with solder, the iron, the de-solderer, stand, etc.  if i have it maybe  ...

I have had numerous soldering irons in various places in the house for decades - shop, basement, yes my office - I guess I have always had a use for them/or just found them handy for various things.

mine is 10+ years old so will not try to make it work.  a new one is in order for my drones.

The brushless motors on the Phantom should either work or not, if you have an intermittent or stuttering motor then I would replace the ESC first, its a cheaper option especially if you have ever had a tip over or crash that stopped the prop while under power.
Just my opinion...

cool.  my local hobby shop has the motors but not the ESC.  Crap.  will go get the motors just to have them.  Am thinking i may need to buy a 2nd phantom for my tuesday shoot.  Even though i plan to get an Inspire i see some incredible shots coming out of gopros on this bird and two of them won't be too many.

I found the ESC at another store.  should i swap out the ESC first, then the motor?  I will buy the motors to have anyway.

Since it will be open, replace them both.

Hey JATO, why you spending my money like that?  But yes, that is the route i plan to take.  I bought the ESC and the two motors just now so just waiting for the soldering kit to arrive.

Any special calibrations to use after all ESC are installed????

TheRann4u Posted at 2015-3-26 10:57
Any special calibrations to use after all ESC are installed????

To play it safe, re do your calibrations, then run it in the house with the props off before you try flying

I've started doing the advanced calibration after any major change.  Also, before i replaced the motors i decided to do the 3.12 upgrade to see if it fixed the problem.  it didn't but now i will be fully up-to-date.

HermosaDrones Posted at 2015-3-26 10:22
Hey JATO, why you spending my money like that?  But yes, that is the route i plan to take.  I bought ...

Ha better yours than mine Good luck, hope all is well after the replacement.

i am going to buy a vanilla phantom 2 and put all the current gear onto it,. then try to send this one to DJI to have them look at it.  It's been doing it every flight now, but i don't want to just start swapping stuff without knowing what to swap.  Maybe they will help me.

I replaced a motor about a month or more ago and it may have been just me but my soldering iron had a pointed tip on the end of it and it looked like "poo" when i was done and i was not going to fly with it like that. I then got a flat tip for it (like a flat head screw driver) and when i redid the solder it looked like it did when it was new, very solid conection and was much easier to solder.

just for giggles i called DJI and they said sure, send it on it and even sent me a label for the shipping.  It will take 5 to 6 weeks they said, but am going to have them do a thorough going over on it and see what they say.  Beats spending the weekend soldering new ESCs and motors in, right?  And, oh yeah, I bought a new Phantom 2 with the H4-3D gimbal  Supposedly it is much better than the H3-3D.  we shall see.

You can order waterproof laquer to cover the soldered joints as it was before.

stock12to32 Posted at 2015-3-28 02:44
I replaced a motor about a month or more ago and it may have been just me but my soldering iron had  ...

yes a flat tip is the best and a very good soldering iron is needed to get the heat. The cheap ones usually fail

i have the soldering gear now but want to see how DJI will treat this.  This bird was very reliable until it fell out of the sky int he desert recently.

Six weeks later they are sending a refurb unit.  we'll see how it works out.

HermosaDrones..I too fly a P2 Zenmuse H3-3D Gimbal...I am using a hero4black...considering purchasing the H4-3D gimbal...if you do not mind will you post your thoughts..pros  and  cons..Thanx

Be sure when you heat the Solder on the ESC board that it's hot all the way through. Don't pull hard on the wires trying to free them from the solder or you may lift/tear the copper pad that the wire are soldered to. If you tear the pad loose the ESC is shot. If your replacing the ESC then it's not an issue. But the same applies to the main board where the ESC power connection is with the coax power cable. Their is a copper pad on the main board to. Heat solder till wire comes of freely and easy. Just a tip!

Michael Starley, the h4-3d kicks ass compared to the h3-3d.  i was counterbalancing my h3 with velcroed nickles whereas the h4 does not need it so far.  (i also don't fly it with my nd filter though will try it in Buenos Aires this week).  i am moving up to the inspire but will keep the p2s for overwater and potentially dumb flights.  i will add an extra charge for these flights to clients once i start charging.  I may also pick up another p2 with the h4-3d since i know prices will drop due to the p3.  f**k the p3.  it's still a phantom and we know they think phantoms are throwaways, hence the shi**y service times.  but it is what it is and i don't want to do design/build on drones.  I love my phantoms, both of them, but hate the f**ked up service from DJi on them.  The can hire LI help for $10 an hour yet they do not do it.  F**K.  Someone please give us a better option than buying ten phantoms so three can fly.