After about 60 flights in backcountry desert conditions my gimbal was dusty.

On a couple of flights, especially in the highest wind conditions, the gimbal became twitchy. In one case it could not follow me with ActiveTrack.

On inspection, I could feel two distinct grains of grit in the vertical gimbal bearings. By gently moving the gimbal I was able to get this grit out.

At this point my thought was to get canned air and blow the whole area out.

On second thought I realized this would likely move dust further into the tiny rotary circuit connections and even inside the aircraft body.

Instead I used a cotton swab SLIGHTLY dampened with water to cleanse the gimbal area. You can see before and after below. (Note the HDR exposures are different.) It is still not pristine but there is a big improvement.

Gimbal

With practice I have become much more efficient in all phases of flight. So I have now started using a pad in even the hardest conditions. More on that later.

That looks much better. A Landing is the best option when taking off/landing in dusty areas.

I used compressed air to clean mine... maybe I should reconsider. xD I never thought about pushing the dirt in more.

I move the gimbal around with my fingers while I blow the air in the crevices. I'll take a closer look to see if I'm actually jamming stuff in there instead of blowing it out.

ChaosKnign Posted at 2018-3-27 11:17
I used compressed air to clean mine... maybe I should reconsider. xD I never thought about pushing the dirt in more.

I move the gimbal around with my fingers while I blow the air in the crevices. I'll take a closer look to see if I'm actually jamming stuff in there instead of blowing it out.

The rotary electrical contacts that transfer signals through the pivots have got to be nearly on a microscopic scale.

There is no way to clean them so I figure reduce dust as much as possible. I am becoming an enthusiastic pad user.

Another problem with canned air is it may increase static charge. Technically, the dust you see adhering is probably "clay" fineness which starts being dominated by static attraction. The water wiping may have reduced or eliminated the static charge.

Back in the day I had a StaticMaster Polonium brush. I was a teen and surely did not pay $75 for it

http://www.company7.com/staticmaster/products/staticmaster.html

Anyway... mind-boggling technology is often vulnerable to nature

Hi HighMesa, from the pictures that you provided, it looks much better after you cleaned the gimbal camera. Actually, it is not recommended to fly a drone in such a harsh environment, with dusty and highest wind. If there is any further issue of your gimbal camera or the aircraft, I recommend you send it in for a whole diagnosis: https://www.dji.com/support, thank you for your support!

DJI Diana Posted at 2018-3-27 19:31
Hi HighMesa, from the pictures that you provided, it looks much better after you cleaned the gimbal camera. Actually, it is not recommended to fly a drone in such a harsh environment, with dusty and highest wind. If there is any further issue of your gimbal camera or the aircraft, I recommend you send it in for a whole diagnosis: https://www.dji.com/support, thank you for your support!

It would be rather nice to hear from DJI the proper way to care for our drones. How to clean, what to watch for when cleaning and what products to use.

At least the manufacturer recommendation.

DJI Diana Posted at 2018-3-27 19:31
Hi HighMesa, from the pictures that you provided, it looks much better after you cleaned the gimbal camera. Actually, it is not recommended to fly a drone in such a harsh environment, with dusty and highest wind. If there is any further issue of your gimbal camera or the aircraft, I recommend you send it in for a whole diagnosis: https://www.dji.com/support, thank you for your support!

Thank you for the recommendation.

I do wonder if DJI could shoot its promotional videos in the wildlands if it followed its own recommendation ;)

Natural environments have natural hazards. I enjoy shooting videos like this



so much that I see damage and even loss of the aircraft as simply the cost of admission.

By thinking about dust, wind, and other factors I have so far been able to manage them.

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