Soooooo...... Went out flying today in pretty good conditions, ~10mph winds or less with clear skies.  Flew around for about 4 mintues or so and was hovering at around 40m in the air well above all obsticles. Prop suddenly breaks and flies off causing my P3P to tumble and crash. Luckily I only broke the $9 gimble attachment piece, everything is working fine. The body of the aircraft got a little bent at the seams but will function normally.

My question... concidering the crash was completely out of my control and only because of a defective prop, would I be covered under any warranty? It would be nice to not have a scratched up frame.  I have video footage to prove everything I've mentioned. Lastly the props are used were in perfect condition and yes, I hand tightened all of them.  Unfortunately I could not recover the broken prop since it got flung about 50 yards away into heavy brush.

Carbon fiber or regular ones?

Regular DJI props

I can, uploading to YouTube now, stand by.

Fast forward towards the end.

Wow!  It didn't land in the water?  Lucky lucky you.

No it didn't land in the water, in the brush about 10 yards from bank.  Yes I was very lucky and only broke a $9 part. Still kinda lame though.

Was there any part of the prop left on the aircraft, or did the whole thing vanish?

Geebax Posted at 2015-12-31 18:22
Was there any part of the prop left on the aircraft, or did the whole thing vanish?

whole thing vanished, only 3 props on the craft.

jfarmer87 Posted at 2016-1-1 14:07
whole thing vanished, only 3 props on the craft.

Interesting, that raises the point of did the prop unscrew and fall off, or did it fracture near the hub and both halves flew away. It would be interesting to recover the prop to find out if it is in one piece, although I appreciate that might be too hard.

If the whole thing vanished there is a good chance it unscrewed....although I suppose it's possible that a prop could split down the hub, I don't ever remember anyone showing a picture of one.

Anything is possible. When it comes to most crashes it's hard to assign blame- and, even if you did, I don't think these quads are warranted against crashes!

I suppose in the end quad crashes are like similar stuff in the insurance industry where they assign a potential percentage of blame to various parts based on experience. That is, maybe the prop hub was cracked - maybe it could have been inspected, maybe the prop wasn't tightened on enough, maybe it was manufactured incorrectly.

Lots of options...in the end, quads only have a certain reliability since one motor or prop failure will cause them to fall.

The good thing with this crash is that the quad wasn't above cement and dashed to pieces!

jfarmer87 Posted at 2016-1-1 08:51
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glr_luctiBo&feature=youtu.be

Fast forward towards the end.

Sad start for the new year

droneflyers.com Posted at 2015-12-31 20:34
If the whole thing vanished there is a good chance it unscrewed....although I suppose it's possible  ...

So I put the flight log onto my comp and converted into plain text to read. It appears my motor 1 stalled, the centripetal force then tossed my prop.  The motor started shortly after the stall but it was too late.

jfarmer87 Posted at 2016-1-1 00:56
So I put the flight log onto my comp and converted into plain text to read. It appears my motor 1  ...

interesting.  So we should just do a bit more torque than just hand tightening.

jfarmer87 Posted at 2016-1-1 13:56
So I put the flight log onto my comp and converted into plain text to read. It appears my motor 1  ...

How did you get the logs to your computer? I am new have a P3S

walterm Posted at 2016-1-1 16:20
interesting.  So we should just do a bit more torque than just hand tightening.

but there is a thing that says tighten but not to tight... which is awesomely vague... I wish there was a different method of putting the props on.. some kind of spring loaded barb over the top of the prop, once spinning the barb would not sink back in too, I don't know im not an engineer but it does seem a little flawed...

WOW man I am glad you were lucky as that was pretty painful to watch as your bird went down.

I agree - how do you get the logs on to your PC?  Why did unit #1 stall - seems quite odd, no?

DJINoobWakeFore Posted at 2016-1-1 13:12
I agree - how do you get the logs on to your PC?  Why did unit #1 stall - seems quite odd, no?

See this post to get the logs.

http://support.dronesmadeeasy.co ... tom-3-and-Inspire-1

Bobro Posted at 2016-1-2 00:47
but there is a thing that says tighten but not to tight... which is awesomely vague... I wish ther ...

I don't think it's too hard - maybe because I've been doing it for a while. You spin them one and then give them a decent amount of torque while holding the motor with your fingers. I would call it "snugging" it.

It should seat nice and tight. I think you'd have to have strong hands to bust the threads.....

I had the exact same problem.  50 seconds into flight and 300 feet up in the air a prop flew off.  I found it on the other side of a building with damaged threads.  this was a newer reg DJI prop that had about 15 flights on it and no crashes.  This happened in Decemeber, its currently getting repaired.  DJI intially sent me a bill for $500 and then worked with me.  They stated improper installation of the prop.  I still find it hard to believe i installed in wrong

i saw some fail safe modes for quadcopters Why DJI dont add something like that
at least just for landing , i already say it in big quads ,   i know that phantoms are not that fast but could be an idea or at least a parachute

There should be a torque value. The plastic tool provided is nice, but when it comes to warranty issues, knowing what lbs/ft. would be helpful, although, how does one prove that? I like the idea of a spring or clip that rotates with the rotor, maybe will spin freely, but not allow the props to elevate off the threads once properly clipped on. Seems worthwhile...

koine777 Posted at 2016-1-16 10:16
There should be a torque value. The plastic tool provided is nice, but when it comes to warranty iss ...

The props are self-tightening, the only time they can come off is when the aircraft is braking hard. If you fly gently, it should never be a problem.

Geebax Posted at 2016-1-15 17:19
The props are self-tightening, the only time they can come off is when the aircraft is braking har ...

so basically if we fly fast that means that  maybe one of the props comes off ?

Geebax Posted at 2016-1-15 16:19
The props are self-tightening, the only time they can come off is when the aircraft is braking har ...

I agree with what you're saying. However, the propellers shouldn't fly off at all, ever, and the velocity/braking mechanics designed by the manufacturer should ensure this. If they design a device to fly at a certain rate and brake at a certain rate, they should test and verify their design doesn't inadvertently cause the device to lose a prop.

I don't trust the loose, finger tight approach many take.   I snug mine with the wrench and two fingers.   If the motor stalls, the props won't come off.

Cessna172 Posted at 2016-1-15 17:36
I don't trust the loose, finger tight approach many take.   I snug mine with the wrench and two fing ...

do you know if there is a metal screw inside of the prop or all is plastic

GTDrone Posted at 2016-1-16 10:45
do you know if there is a metal screw inside of the prop or all is plastic

The prop is all plastic, so you need to be careful not to tighten iit too much. However, as Cessna172 says, I always snug mine up with the wrench.

jfarmer87 Posted at 2015-12-31 19:51
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glr_luctiBo&feature=youtu.be

Fast forward towards the end.

Ouch...hurts each time I see one of these vids.  Glad it was minimal damage!

DeeperImage Posted at 2016-1-2 02:24
See this post to get the logs.

http://support.dronesmadeeasy.com/hc/en-us/articles/206171443-How ...

Thanks for the link. I too am new with the phantom 3.

Bobro Posted at 2016-1-1 11:47
but there is a thing that says tighten but not to tight... which is awesomely vague... I wish ther ...

My vote goes with yours. The admonition to "...tighten, but not too tightly..." does seem way too vague. How do you really know how tight is too tight?

I own a carbon-fiber-framed bicycle. Virtually every part that goes on it has a torque spec to go with it. It's apparently way too easy to over-tighten something and crush the tubing.

On the Phantom (and the Chroma as well), the blades are attached essentially with a plastic center. I go to great pains to not be constantly removing and re-installing my props - on both quads. The hubs of the "approved" props are plastic - they ain't gonna last forever!

Art - N4PJ
Leesburg, FL

http://www.loctiteproducts.com/products.shtml

Geebax Posted at 2016-1-16 01:19
The props are self-tightening, the only time they can come off is when the aircraft is braking har ...

I am also under the impression that the props self-tighten on the P3, since the thread is in the opposite direction that the blades turn? Surely that should be enough to keep it in place? I know when I take the props off, I have to "pry" them often - sometimes I can do it with my fingers, and sometimes I need to use the wrench to unscrew it.

aburkefl@gmail. Posted at 2016-1-16 09:35
My vote goes with yours. The admonition to "...tighten, but not too tightly..." does seem way too  ...

My chroma blades have metal centers (threads)

Considering all the forces generated during flying and the weight of the drone all depend on the integrity of the prop threads, I'd inspect them before each flight or at least each time you put them on.  Threads are pretty strong and can take a lot of stress but if they are damaged, who knows.  Props are cheap.  If one looks bad, toss it and replace.  Over tightening could crack the prop as well.  When it's the metal prop shaft vs the plastic prop, metal will win every time and the forces put on the prop during flight could easily cause a small crack to become catastrophic.

Bobro Posted at 2016-1-1 09:47
but there is a thing that says tighten but not to tight... which is awesomely vague... I wish ther ...

you can do this yourself if you can find an "internal star" lock washer that fits.

GTDrone Posted at 2016-1-15 16:11
i saw some fail safe modes for quadcopters Why DJI dont add something like that
at least just for l ...

that's a cool response to the blade breaking off.  I am curious whether there is any further control of the bird or just the option to go straight down.  would definitely make a 100% chance of crash into at least a chance of recovery