roy@netraction. Posted at 2015-5-11 07:47
I've never used prop guards but it might not be a bad idea when I'm doing real estate.

Of all the p ...

Yes P2 guards will work with the P3

venkatstarmixin Posted at 2015-4-10 22:09
any one Using Prop Guards for inspire 1

Looks like they just came out.

I used the DJI prop guards during my first few flights but once I got proficient with "parking", I removed them so I can carry the phantom in my backpack. Cheers.

I would rather risk a set of $15 props than my $1400 drone so I don't own prop guards. I always hand catch now so tip overs are no longer a problem. They should be called people guards. If I was flying inside or near people (which is generally a bad idea) then people guards would make sense.

paul@westpointd Posted at 2015-4-10 03:47
Nope.  I saw a video attesting that they cause turbulence that could upset the bird in certain circu ...

I agree. I found vibration when using them. I no longer use them.

grangerfx@gmail Posted at 2015-5-12 04:18
I would rather risk a set of $15 props than my $1400 drone so I don't own prop guards. I always hand ...

when you stall a prop, you dont just risk $15 props.  you risk the ESC which, if failing on a subsequent flight, can crater your whole drone.  not relevant for you if you dont land but for others that isnt true necessarily.  i had an esc (and motor) failure due to a prop stall and lucky for me the esc failed in between flights not during one, but that is nothing you can count on.

and they dont 'cause' vrs, i use them all the time (as do apparently 50% of the decent number of people polled here) and if that many are using them, we'd have shit tons of crashes from vrs if that were strictly true.

gnixon2015 Posted at 2015-5-14 07:46
when you stall a prop, you dont just risk $15 props.  you risk the ESC which, if failing on a subse ...

No the guards don't cause VRS. They cause drag. Drag reduces performance and lowers the chances you can fly out of VRS. My plan is to A: not crash and B: hand catch my drone every time (I did a big 180 on that after the first time I tried it). No tip overs. No more prop stalls. No more wanting prop guards, wider legs or any of the other ideas I had to prevent tip overs.

The down side to the Phantom design is that it is that it is top heavy and likes to tip over when it lands. The up side is that it makes hand catching really easy. I have been having so much more fun with my drone since I started doing that. It is a huge relief. I just take my time getting the drone to a safe height and location near me with the camera pointing away and then briskly walk up and grab it by a rear leg. Safe and easy.

granger, good points, just pray this never happens to you during a hand catch because if it does,  you could literally die from it (i 'stalled' my props on my fingers and it took a month to recover, had it been on my arm or neck it could have been life changing):



this was a random inflight roll.  it wasnt vrs, it wasnt pilot error.  it was malfunction.  if this happenned to you at head height (where your phantom is when you hand catch) you very possibly wouldnt have time to react.  not saying it WOULD hurt you, but after being hurt by mine (totally my fault) i take it much more seriously and wont put my health in the hands of statistics.

I use prop guard everytime, but they need only 2 time in about 100 flight...

I fly with prop guards and I'm thankful that I do.  I had a crash last week where the Phantom just took off sideways and crashed on the road and the battery ejected.  The prop guards were scraped a bit but if I didn't have the prop guards on I would have at the very least ruined all the props.

I haven't noticed any excessive vibration with them on and I use my Phantom for still photography more than video and the images are stunning.  I was contemplating taking them off but I'm going to leave them on.

regarding props guards.
does anyone use the thread?
I installed the guards. later I was trying to figure the best way to add the thread.
I ended up threading it through the holes and around and tieing it off.
then pulling it out and over those litte notches under the guards creating a little tension.
otherwise I wasnt able to get the slack out.

wondering if this is the correct way to do this. wont have time to fly and test it till sunday. but being such a newbie dont now if I am best qualified to make comments on its performance

I got my Phantom in the beginning of the year and, since I had never flown one before, a set of prop guards. I installed them but didn't use the thread. In several hours of flight I've accidentally tested the guards once (Where did that telephone pole come from?) and they saved the props and probably a crash. I recently got a backpack for the bird and had to remove the props. I'll be picking up a set of snap-ons for future use. I haven't flown with them off but wind (and especially windshear) seems to be something to consider with them on but it is probably true of all lightweight flying devices.

Hi,  I only use my prop guards when I think the conditions require them.  Another thing to remember has to do with the guards that are screwed on have LONGER screws to keep the guards on, and so you must remember when you take them off to put the original screws back in.  If you do not replace the shorter screws and use the longer ones these can damage the motor.  Regards   Ian.

Looks like the new prop guards for the P3 are out now.
Do not use P2 prop guards on a P3. The screws are too long and it can damage your motors.

cob666@gmail.co Posted at 2015-5-21 04:13
I fly with prop guards and I'm thankful that I do.  I had a crash last week where the Phantom just t ...

I agree with you. I am very happy with the images I have been getting also.

I used them for the first 10 flights or so. Btw the SummitLink prop guards STINK. They are too brittle.
Prop guards give you a false sense of security while robbing you of flight time. They weigh a lot, they catch wind and make you unstable. They contribute to VRS more than without. Decrease maneuverability...and scream IM A NOOB.  If you fly indoors then you are asking for trouble. And they get in the view of your camera and spoil the free flying feel of videos.

Never used them.I understand the debate though.My personal opinion is that without them I am always aware of the possibility to cause damage.
Wether it be to someone's personal property or to my own.Not to mention bodily damage to myself or others.
I find that flight without them tends to focus my attention on all possibilities and what is really taking place at the same time.
Summation.I find that flight without prop gaurds causes me to be a better pilot.
Over 150 flights.
1 tree misjudgement(From The Top).Prop gaurds would not have helped.Pure pilot error($400.0 Gimbal lesson learned).
1 landing tip over.Hand catching everytime since.

I fully see why people use them.For me though,knowing that my props are vulnerable keeps me on my toes,just like the first flight. Complacency kills Phantoms.

They are great to keep the Phantom in the tree. Doesn't hit the ground. Hate climbing those trees though!

I had a set of prop guards, they lasted one flight and were destroyed when my phantom 2 fell about 100m into trees after an ESC wire cracked off mid flight.
I don't plan on getting replacements as I don't intend on flying close to anything! I was also a bit concerned that the props could actually hit he prop guards... there did not seem to be much clearance on mine and a little flexing of the props could clip the guards.

Have a set, thought about it but I have a lot of wooded area I fly over. My concern is they give more handles to hange into the trees. So I have always flown without them. No incidence without guards.

Personally I do not use them.

I am not using them because of the extra weight.

I had it on my first Phantom 2 Vision and i would recommend it to Newbees.

Now with my Brandnew P3 and the Hardshellbackpack i do not use them anymore because the do not fit in and i got more confidence in my own flying and yes i´m trying to be always a security Pilot.

Mike

I'm old school and from WAY back, I've seen what happens when you get any body part in the way of those wooden props (or fiberglass) running a nitro poweed 051 or 045.    It ain't pretty.
The electric motors and plastic props on the Phantoms are nowhere near as dangerous.....but coming from old school RC, I guess the fear and caution lingers.

Prop guards (yes).  For those of us who seem to get sucked into RC model props.    (I know, stay away from real aircraft)  

Took my guards off after I descended they flexed and clipped the props. Nearly lost the Phantom.

I used prop guards when I first got mine but I missed in the manual about using the left lever only so when I landed I pulled both controls down and to the middle, the blades hit the guards and ruined 2 guards and 2 props.  Last time I used any. Hand catching would make me a little nervous so I always land but never come close to tipping over.

Mark

I did not for awhile.

Now, having done a bit of testing with a light breeze and a lit cigarette, I found my designated landing pad has some wild and weird wind patterns.

Explains why several landings tore up rotor blades.

Also going to use some 1/4" fiberglass tubing, and surveyor's tape cut to half width and glued on the top.
This will provide constant indicators of the screwy wind patterns.  Then I can compensate for them.

Now I am just waiting for two full sets of blades direct from DJI.  Can't beat the price, and shipping is free.  Just longer delivery time.  That is OK too!  There happen to be a bunch of Dr. appointments to deal with.

Cheers!
Old Sarge Bob

I'm still REALLY green so far but I do use them if I plan on landing it where there's a danger of it tipping over upon landing, eg tall grass or rough dirt.

The only time it tipped on me I was lucky enough top havbe the prop guards on it.  Mine are the snap-ons and their carbon fiber.

What I want to practice is catching it instead.

IDEA - What I want to do is make up a set of thin, aluminum paddles (2" tall?) that will not only act as prop guards, but will allow me to see which way the coper is headed by way of seeing which color paddle is facing me.  Those would be a lot better than the stock prop guards - don't ya' think???   Maybe put some chrome foil on one of them and blue on the other one???  I used to be a sign maker and you can get the foil from most any sign maker for a couple bucks.

roy@netraction. Posted at 2015-5-11 07:47
I've never used prop guards but it might not be a bad idea when I'm doing real estate.

Of all the p ...

Get a set of snap-on adapters.  Just rotate them sideways to remove them.  You can hele offset the weight by using carbon fiber props.

Yepp, use them, and it has saved me on 3 occasions..

Also installed RC killers gimbal guard, has saved me once..

I own a set but did not like the performance penalty. I don't fly indoors, but if I did I would use them then. Outside, I agree with the others, they are super easy to catch and hang on things. I'd rather replace a prop than climb a tree -- too old for that!

I put a set on my first Phantom when learning to fly it and ended up leaving them on.

P2 W/go pro yes
P2 V+ no
P3 Pro no

still no past about the 15th flight...were slowing me down and reducing flight time too much...not that i would not put them back on if a family member wanted to try to learn to fly but otherwise, not prop guards for me.

SVTRay Posted at 2016-1-24 20:19
I put a set on my first Phantom when learning to fly it and ended up leaving them on.

P2 W/go pro  ...

I use them; no thread between them painted the front ones red; have the ones that remove easy; hundreds of no accident  flights. makes the drone easy to tell which is front. I'm 83; eyes aren't what they used to be.

melvonnar@yahoo Posted at 2016-1-30 04:31
I use them; no thread between them painted the front ones red; have the ones that remove easy; hun ...

good point Melvon, i have considered a set of the removables as a "just in case" and may put them on my wish list.

I use them because I like to fly between trees. I don't want to lose my drone!

There is a major issue with screw mounted prop guards on P2. If you remove them and replace the mounting screws with the same supplied prop guard screws they will destroy your motors and boards as they are too long and interfere with the motors. I have since found a plethora of posts about this design fault. So stick with snap ons. You need to replace the screws with the smaller original screws pre prop guard mounting.
DJI made no mention of this with the product and should have designed the guards to screw onto the chassis if at all. BE WARNED

I have a set that I installed once and I kept seeing them when shooting videos....they are back in the box.

After two sets of props touched the ground and chipped from landing on a not 100% level surface I got the snap on guards and I use them every time. As long as I don't have the camera totally horizontal I don't see them in the camera. Cost $13, much cheaper than keeping on breaking props and possibly damaging a motor!

Well, today in fact, I lost view of my phantom for a few seconds and flew into some trees. The guards helped bounce the Phantom off the branches and keep her in the air.  This allowed me to slowly fly out of the patch safely. No prop guard would have been disastrous. Funny that I even considered removing them today. It maybe a "newbish" thing to do, but the safety outweighs the juvenile insults anyday.