Hey guys, back in November I replaced the props on all 4 motors on my mini. After that, I did a test flight and everything worked fine. When I was inspecting my drone the other day after not using it for 6 months, I noticed the back right motor was hard to turn. Some have suggested it could be rusted, and I might send it in to DJI. But back in November I didn't follow DJI's propeller guide to remove the old lock-tight. All I did was remove the old screw and screw in the new one with a new screw, could the old lock tight caused the motor to be hard to turn? Thanks

there is even a thing about removing old loctite? I always just screwed in the new one. Perhaps I take the care to remove old flaked off pieces but that is it. Have a close look at the shaft and see if it rusted on the shaft. I had this happen to me after after flying in and keeping my drone in a very humid city without dehumidifier. Also it happens easily if you fly by the coast and get sea spray (fine sea water droplets carried by wind). It is ok as long as it does not get into the bearing. If it did then it may feel hard to turn... I reckon using dust blower should be the easiest method to fix obstruction in motor (not useful against rust) potentially. if not electric contact cleaner which leaves no residue is the thing to try to blast out crap in there. It may be between the magnets or the shaft and bearing. Spray it and give it a few hand turns then leave it to dry. Try later. If no fix then get dji to replace that motor arm for you.

Guorium Posted at 5-11 18:32
there is even a thing about removing old loctite? I always just screwed in the new one. Perhaps I take the care to remove old flaked off pieces but that is it. Have a close look at the shaft and see if it rusted on the shaft. I had this happen to me after after flying in and keeping my drone in a very humid city without dehumidifier. Also it happens easily if you fly by the coast and get sea spray (fine sea water droplets carried by wind). It is ok as long as it does not get into the bearing. If it did then it may feel hard to turn... I reckon using dust blower should be the easiest method to fix obstruction in motor (not useful against rust) potentially. if not electric contact cleaner which leaves no residue is the thing to try to blast out crap in there. It may be between the magnets or the shaft and bearing. Spray it and give it a few hand turns then leave it to dry. Try later. If no fix then get dji to replace that motor arm for you.

Thanks, the weird part is that there’s no scraping sound or anything, it’s just hard to turn

Your motor is experiencing freezing/rusting. It may have gotten moisture inside or been in a high humidity environment. In any case it is likely failing soon. If you are handy with tools, you can replace it for about 20 bucks. Look to youtube for the procedure and Amazon for the part. I have replaced two motors on the Mini I used to own successfully.

Hello there AidanDroneFan. I am sorry for the trouble this has caused and thank you for reaching out. May we please know if you are receiving any error message on the DJI Fly application when you turn on your DJI Mavic Mini? In addition kindly please post a short sample video showing the issue for further assistance. Thank you.

There have been a number of threads about stiff Mini series motors after a lay up. It might be an idea to run the motors occasionally during a lay up......not that that helps in the current circumstances.
If you have the tools and skills it is fairly easy to swap an arm and motor.
I'd be inclined to try to work a sliver of paper into the gap between the end of the stator's poles and the bore of the rotor and then se if the sliver can be dragged for a full turn around the pole with the rotor, Then repeat but keep the sliver still and turn the rotor etc. etc..

AidanDroneFan Posted at 5-11 19:14
Thanks, the weird part is that there’s no scraping sound or anything, it’s just hard to turn

I had rust and it was just hard to turn. Shaft had visible rust on it. You need some electrical contact cleaner get in. Turn the motor and let the liquid evaporate. Hopefully the liquid and motion can dislodge the rust and at least make the bearing free to turn again. Not sure how much more life you can get after that procedure though. Rust on bearing means material is lost and it may impact motor performance in the long run. Probably still best to get a motor replacement either by yourself or ask DJI.