My inspire crashed and broke the paper thin carbon fiber arm and ripped the camera gimble off and in half, can you buy any parts for these yet or do i have a $4000 piece of garbage now? thanks.

wow, this is the only source of parts?

HermosaDrones Posted at 2015-5-28 08:00
wow, this is the only source of parts?

Yeah pretty funny that "Zac" is making all the money while some of us want a simple motor replacement threaded for the inspire 1.

SIGH

HermosaDrones Posted at 2015-5-28 08:00
wow, this is the only source of parts?

Unfortunately DJI did not design the Inspire to be user-serviceable.  Most of the parts are only available through the DJI service facilities, and only when installed by their personnel.

I think i discovered a solution for the arm, now all i need is the camera and im back in business! http://www.rockwestcomposites.com/

PeteGould Posted at 2015-5-28 12:34
Unfortunately DJI did not design the Inspire to be user-serviceable.  Most of the parts are only a ...

Yes Pete, but most of us that have been in this hobby business for more than a few days can fix this stuff. Soldering, wiring, connecting connectors, replacing plastic parts with tiny screws etc. The hardest thing to do is programing, and most of you can do this by now (firmware).

This is what they want you to think and they keep control over your aircraft. If they would provide us with a drawings, instructions and the parts, most of us could make the repairs ourselves.  This is why Ifixit started up regarding iPhones, laptops, tablets and other devices. You can buy apple parts, pieces and many other brands as well.  DJI needs to make this stuff available so we can decide if the repair is in our wheelhouse.

Rich

RichJ53 Posted at 2015-5-28 13:00
Yes Pete, but most of us that have been in this hobby business for more than a few days can fix th ...

I completely agree.  I wasn't suggesting otherwise - merely that by designating the Inspire as "not user serviceable" DJI decided to NOT make replacement parts, manuals, technical specifications, exploded diagrams, repair procedures, etc., etc., available to the customer base.  While some extremely advanced technical types could perform repairs in spite of that, it's a much smaller number than could do the work with proper documentation and a direct source of OEM parts.  Heck - I design and build TV production facilities.  I've been servicing equipment since I started building Heathkit television sets from kits in 1974.  But I'm used to proper documentation and parts being available.

The other thing that goes hand in glove with this "not user serviceable" designation is an approach to building it that is much less repair-friendly than a UAS that is sold as a kit.

This all took me by surprise as well.  When we preordered our Inspire I also preordered replacement motors so we would have them in stock (you may remember, but more recent purchasers may not know, that replacement motors were part of the original announced stock of available parts for the Inspire before it started shipping).  When we received our Inspire the motors were still on back order.  Then we were notified by the dealer that DJI was withdrawing those motors from the market but they assumed there would be an upgraded replacement soon.  THEN after having taken delivery and started flying (i.e. the product was no longer returnable) we learned what everyone now knows: that as simple a thing as a motor replacement requires paying (and waiting!) to ship from the greater New York area all the way to LA, followed by the interminable repair cycle, and that there appears to be no plan to ever change that.

And I who always buy everything via Amazon.com had made an exception and bought through a large dealer within driving distance - a dealer with a substantial DJI-authorized repair business - so if something went wrong that was beyond our in-house repair abilities we could DRIVE (not ship) the aircraft to be fixed and hopefully keep the repair to no more than a few days.  You can see how THAT turned out.

To be honest, if we had learned about the Inspire AFTER it was on the market, with everything that we know now, we probably would have looked elsewhere.  There is too much anti-customer behavior by this manufacturer to make us comfortable doing business with them.  And that's sad, because their technology is clearly groundbreaking.  It's just that the founder appears to be ALL about the technology (i.e. a hobbiest himself whose fun hobby happens to have made him a billionaire) rather than having any sense of responsibility to a customer base.  A very sad state of affairs, to be sure.

sultangris01@gm Posted at 2015-5-28 12:41
I think i discovered a solution for the arm, now all i need is the camera and im back in business! h ...

Well at least THAT is listed as an available repair part on the open market.

B&H sells a small variety of parts. They sell gimbals but I don't see carbon arms. DJI really needs to improve there parts and service network. Even though we have a distributor in Western Canada I had to send my I1 to LA and it took 8 weeks to service and I'm still waiting for the return shipment to arrive.

I've seen cameras (part 40) on ebay lately.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_ ... camera&_sacat=0

PeteGould Posted at 2015-5-28 19:54
I completely agree.  I wasn't suggesting otherwise - merely that by designating the Inspire as "not ...

Pete

The culture difference is what we see and they have different value systems and beliefs than us Westerner folks.  Its all about the money and they think we are spoiled self centered capitalists. Maybe some of this is true, but customer service is the basis of our local business and this is how you have and keep repeat customers.

I hope that DJI will break loose the parts and drawings for us to service the Inspire 1. I think that if they continue to do business they way they are now, eventually people will stop buying and go elsewhere. Look at some of the latest options out there... Horizon just offered a new one today Chroma by Yuneec the top of the line kit is $1295 (phantom 3 look alike).  Its hard not to look and see where the new market will take us.

Hope to keep my Inspire 1 going and it would be sad to end up leaving such a wonderful machine behind in search of a reliable customer centric company with service and parts available after the sale.

Rich  

RichJ53 Posted at 2015-5-29 11:52
Pete

The culture difference is what we see and they have different value systems and be ...

Coptershop have the cameras. Top supplier as well.

RichJ53 Posted at 2015-5-29 11:52
Pete

The culture difference is what we see and they have different value systems and be ...

Agreed on all counts.  I just hope someone at DJI hears it.

If you're not having warranty work done to your Inspire, there are dealers that can do the work. Here's one, though I've not tried them. May be worth a call, however:
https://www.tcirc.com/product/inspire-1-repair/

Abe Posted at 2015-5-29 12:59
If you're not having warranty work done to your Inspire, there are dealers that can do the work. Her ...

If that company services an Inspire and makes a mistake that results in a crash and total loss of the aircraft - will they replace it for you?

Get this. I did the exact same thing. Broke a strut and the camera ribbon cable tore off the connectors. I sent it in for repair, and got it back in 8 weeks. DJI makes you fill out an online form. I specifically requested them to repair the strut and send back a new ribbon cable. I got all kinds of email notifications along the way telling me when they received it, when it got into the repair queue, when it was shipped back. I was quite impressed actually. Then the nightmare hit. There was no ribbon cable in the box.

I thought, no problem, I'll call customer service and have them send me one. After replacing a $35 + labor strut at no charge, it never occurred to me they would give me grief over a $3 ribbon cable, six inches long. Well, I called customer service and they gave me all kinds of grief over it. They said I should email them a picture of the cable. I don't have the cable. I threw it away. It was trashed. He refused to send me one. I tried to reason with the guy, telling him I invested $4K with the extra controller and extra batteries, and now all I have is a door stop - because of a $3 custom ribbon cable. And, I can't buy one. I got a bit testy and he hung up on me.

I'm working on a business model focused on training people who want to start a drone videography business.  I'm including a drone and accessories in the price. Hopefully, I'll have 50 or so sold by the end of the year, and even more hopefully, several hundred next year. The Inspire seemed like a perfect platform because of its ease of use, its features and its camera quality. However, you can't run a business if you have to wait 8 weeks for a basic repair and can't buy a $3 ribbon cable.

The 3DR Solo is supposed to launch next month. I have my pre-order already in. Seems to me 3DR will be a lot more parts and service friendly as their roots are more of a hobbiest/maker culture.

How can DJI eff up this badly?

My Alterego Posted at 2015-5-30 03:10
Get this. I did the exact same thing. Broke a strut and the camera ribbon cable tore off the connect ...

You are singing to the choir my friend!

I was looking at some of my marked sites for parts:

http://www.multicopterwarehouse. ... -gimbal-mount-cable
http://www.helipal.com/djinsp-17 ... bal-port-cable.html

PeteGould Posted at 2015-5-29 20:02
If that company services an Inspire and makes a mistake that results in a crash and total loss of  ...

I don't know the answer, Pete. I've never tried it. I'm sure a reputable dealer will stand behind their work. Regardless, after the experience of sending in multiple units for repair to DJI, I am definitely willing to take that risk.

Abe Posted at 2015-5-30 11:24
I don't know the answer, Pete. I've never tried it. I'm sure a reputable dealer will stand behind  ...

It was admittedly a rhetorical question.  It's difficult to trust third-party repair centers unless they are factory authorized, because there is no one to stand behind the repair but the individual repairer.  If they end up being fly-by-night you're on your own, possibly with a smoking pile of melted plastic that was once your Inspire.  Of course the repair center could also be absolutely wonderful and put DJI's repair facility to shame (which wouldn't take much).  Tough to analyze and quantify the risk.  I admittedly tend to be very conservative.

anyone else taken one of these apart? the dirty bastards seems to have glued the shit out of the arms so im not sure how to get the tubes out, plus one of the antennas in the feet had the wire rip off when the leg broke because it was much shorter than the rest of them.  I dont see any actual wire in there though, looks like maybe a fiber optic wire?? Not sure if its repairable.

turns out its repairable, silver wire in the antenna wire, about 3 tiny strands, lol! Still working on the tubes.

you  can check this site for parts: http://dronespecialist.nl/en/mul ... dji-inspire-1-parts

ea6le Posted at 2015-6-3 18:45
you  can check this site for parts: http://dronespecialist.nl/en/multicopter-parts/dji-parts/dji-ins ...

Interestingly even though they don't have every part listed the parts they do have add up to more than the cost of a new Inspire 1. Probably big money in buying them new and stripping them down for parts!

turns out its not easily repairable cause its an antenna wire, shielded and kind of a double wire.  could probably fix it but need to extend it or splice it or make it shorter and drill a hole in the arm and put the antenna on the side of it instead of in the foot where it is originally, not worth the hassle though, easier to get a new one i decided.