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What can be worst if gimbal clamp is not removed when turn on the P2V+
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20744 41 2014-11-10
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sukiat88
lvl.1

Switzerland
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Greeting from Malaysia. I am new to drone and have just bought a P2V+ about 2 weeks ago (still in the learning stage) . I need some advice here and would highly appreciate if you can help me out my question below......

I learnt that the gimbal clamp MUST be removed before the drone can be turned on. But yesterday, I have just forgotton to remove the gimbal clamp and turned on the drone with motor activated (without props) just to discharge my unused LIPO battery. The sooner I realized my carelessness 15 mins later, I immediately powered off the drone and subsequently removed the gimbal clamp and powered up the drone again. I observed no abnormality of the gimbal and camera as it can still function well (touch wood), except that I could feel some heat on the steel part of the camera.

May I know if my gimbal or camera will slowly damage later? Will its performance be affected? Is there a threshold for how long the gimbal can hold without removing the clamp when the drone is on?

Thank you in advance for your guidance!!   

2014-11-10
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Gerry1124
Captain

United States
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You could possibly overheat it and may cause damage to the board and electronics.  You might be able to get away with forgetting a few times, but repeated mistakes like that will eventually cause the major damage to alignment to the gyros and heat damage to the circuit boards.
2014-11-10
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sukiat88
lvl.1

Switzerland
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Gerry1124 Posted at 2014-11-10 18:44
You could possibly overheat it and may cause damage to the board and electronics.  You might be able ...

Hi Gerry, thanks for your tips. I will be more alert next time. Hopefully it didn't cause any damage so far.
2014-11-10
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DJI-Blair
lvl.3

China
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Agree with Gerry~
Take care~
2014-11-10
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jrussphantom
lvl.1

United States
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Get you a remove before flight tag and put it on gimbal clamp.  This will help.  http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=251604441476
2014-11-10
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Dragonrider
lvl.1

United States
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jrussphantom Posted at 2014-11-10 19:49
Get you a remove before flight tag and put it on gimbal clamp.  This will help.  http://pages.ebay.c ...

How cool is that!!  Had to have one.  Thanks!!!
2014-11-10
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jrussphantom
lvl.1

United States
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Dragonrider Posted at 2014-11-11 09:20
How cool is that!!  Had to have one.  Thanks!!!

Glad to help. Should be standard equipment!!!!
2014-11-11
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knarfboy
First Officer
Flight distance : 494508 ft
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Germany
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DJI-Blair Posted at 2014-11-10 19:05
Agree with Gerry~
Take care~

The software recognizes this when the protective bracket is forgotten and this indicates.
In the next revision, the firmware should be extended, then the Disable the engines to prevent damage.
Can you improve this proposal forward to the developers.
2014-11-11
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insitb
lvl.4

Singapore
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Or better yet, disable the battery.
2014-11-11
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shep941
lvl.1

United States
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I drew a big arrow on mine with a red sharpie!
2014-11-11
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sukiat88
lvl.1

Malaysia
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Thanks for all the advice.
2014-11-12
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Capt. Bill
Second Officer

United States
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The gimbal clamp should have been made out of red plastic instead of clear which is hard to see. I ran a ribbon through mine for now but plan to get a red Remove Before Flight ribbon. Just looks sharper.
2015-1-10
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Gerry1124
Captain

United States
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Capt. Bill Posted at 2015-1-10 21:10
The gimbal clamp should have been made out of red plastic instead of clear which is hard to see. I r ...

I have 4 of the red "Remove before flight" ribbons.  It looks so cool and helps me not to lose the guards when they are off.
2015-1-10
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Capt. Bill
Second Officer

United States
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I think this looks good ribbon.jpg
2015-1-13
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mike
Captain
Flight distance : 228255 ft
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United States
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Those key chains are super helpful. I got mine from Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product ... Id=NSG5N26RAJAGYSJZ
2015-1-13
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Capt. Bill
Second Officer

United States
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Being ex US Air Force, it was the first thing I thought of when I left mine on while checking it out.
2015-1-13
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power
lvl.4
Flight distance : 3140876 ft
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Sweden
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Hi all.

I have a newly purchased DJI Phantom Vision 2+ v3.0 with the latest firmware.

The second time I turned it on, I forgot to remove the gimbal clamp and left it on for approximately 5-6 minutes before the Phantom itself started producing a noise that sounded like a high frequency audible alarm.


I have 5 questions and I am wondering if anyone can help in answering them

1) I am wondering if the bird itself has such an audible alarm feature on it to remind users that they should remove the gimbal guard or whether this sound was the gimbal servos being tortured?

2) This happened just once and the gimbal seems to be working OK since but I am wondering whether such an incident has damaged the gimbal.

3) Are you aware of any safety features on the gimbal mechanism or the bird's control unit to detect that something is impeding the gimbal's motion and prevent further attempts to move it in order to save it from being damaged?

4) If I turn the bird on and lift it up by hand, the gimbal tries to remain stable and does so well. If however I turn the bird sideways or up or down to the point where the gimbal can no longer remain on the horizon, it seems to turn itself off. Is that normal? It comes back on soon as I re-establish an angle that it can cope with.

5) When I turn the bird on, the gimbal stabilises itself and within a second or two after it does that, it flicks once (by flick I mean, a sudden tiny shake or small movement). It does that always once, right after the first stabilisation when turned on. Is this normal? Do your gimbals do that too?

Sorry for the many questions but I haven't been able to find answers to these exact points and it would be nice to get that information from someone.

Best of luck with your flights!

p.s. "Remove before flight" ribbon is in the post ;-)
2015-4-1
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i_anderson
lvl.3

United States
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mike@singerscre Posted at 2015-1-13 21:32
Those key chains are super helpful. I got mine from Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001 ...

I'm about to dye some props, and am going to (try) and dye the guard too. (I'll report back....)

But, I've also just placed an order for these little guys - Thanks for the link.

Cheers,
Ian
2015-4-1
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SoCalUAV
New

United States
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Capt. Bill Posted at 2015-1-13 20:00
I think this looks good

FWIW, I just bought two "Remove Before Flight" key chains from a Hong Kong seller on eBay. Less than $1.00 each, including shipping.
2015-4-1
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JATO
Second Officer

United States
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jrussphantom Posted at 2014-11-10 19:49
Get you a remove before flight tag and put it on gimbal clamp.  This will help.  http://pages.ebay.c ...

You can also make one with a label machine:
2015-4-1
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busclas
lvl.4
Flight distance : 609012 ft
United States
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I've got an elastic band with a clip that I hook where the battery goes.  I can't insert the battery without seeing it and remembering.
2015-4-1
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i_anderson
lvl.3

United States
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i_anderson@iclo Posted at 2015-4-2 02:52
I'm about to dye some props, and am going to (try) and dye the guard too. (I'll report back....)

B ...

Reporting back.....

The props came out *great"! Pretty much a match with the 'snap on' prop guards I'm using.

The gimbal protector OTOH wasn't having any of it. Nothing. May as well have been made of steel!

Oh well, I tried. Key chains will be here Friday.

Cheers,
Ian
2015-4-1
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Capt. Bill
Second Officer

United States
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i_anderson@iclo Posted at 2015-4-2 14:53
Reporting back.....

The props came out *great"! Pretty much a match with the 'snap on' prop guard ...

I had a feeling that clear plastic would not take the dye.
2015-4-2
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mike
Captain
Flight distance : 228255 ft
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United States
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Maybe just get a brighter gimbal lock. This one fits well, is easier to clamp on, and is impossible to miss if you leave it on:

http://www.toledoaerialmedia.com ... ision-gimbal-holder
2015-4-2
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adrianjacobs
lvl.4

United Kingdom
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my P2V+ V3 and vision app pops up a warning if anything interferes with the gimbal operation.
2015-4-2
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mike
Captain
Flight distance : 228255 ft
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adrianjacobs, all versions of the P2V+ do that. The problem is that can damage the gimbal if it happens often and/or for an extended period of time (per the discussion above).
2015-4-2
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power
lvl.4
Flight distance : 3140876 ft
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Sweden
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Thanks guys! With respect to my other questions, if I turn the bird on and lift it up by hand, the gimbal tries to remain stable and does so well. If however I turn the bird sideways or up or down to the point where the gimbal can no longer remain on the horizon, it seems to turn itself off. Is that normal? It comes back on soon as I re-establish an angle that it can cope with.
2015-4-2
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mike
Captain
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United States
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The gimbal was most likely not designed to stabilize itself in positions that the Phantom is not able to fly. And, considering that you won't be flying at that angles, I don't think it's something to be concerned about.
2015-4-2
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adrianjacobs
lvl.4

United Kingdom
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mike@singerscre Posted at 2015-4-2 19:05
adrianjacobs, all versions of the P2V+ do that. The problem is that can damage the gimbal if it happ ...

yeah, I know, but why have a flag when you get a little pop-up?
2015-4-2
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Gerry1124
Captain

United States
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adrianjacobs@nt Posted at 2015-4-2 21:09
yeah, I know, but why have a flag when you get a little pop-up?

You won't see it if you don't have your phone app connected.  
2015-4-2
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power
lvl.4
Flight distance : 3140876 ft
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Sweden
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Thanks Mike.

I wonder if anyone else is experiencing this...
When I turn the bird on, the gimbal stabilises itself and within a second or two after it does that, it flicks once (by flick I mean, a sudden tiny shake or small movement). It does that always once, right after the first stabilisation when turned on. Is this normal? Do your gimbals do that too?
2015-4-2
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Gerry1124
Captain

United States
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power@groovy100 Posted at 2015-4-2 21:58
Thanks Mike.

I wonder if anyone else is experiencing this...

Yes, they do that, that is the automatic calibration of the gimbal extremes of movement programmed into the flight controller.
2015-4-2
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leostrat_54
lvl.4

United States
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I have forgotten to remove the gimbal clamp at times when I download the images to the computer.  I think the remove before flight tags will help with that too.
2015-4-2
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power
lvl.4
Flight distance : 3140876 ft
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Greece
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Have you forgotten it often and how long before you found out? Have you seen any differences in its behaviour?
2015-4-2
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dmctom
lvl.3
Flight distance : 126804 ft
Poland
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I'd like to ask if anyone has actually damaged their gimbal by leaving the clamp on. I've seen a lot of talk about it burning out and a lot of warnings but I have never heard/read a first hand experience where a gimbal was actually damaged.
I ask about first hand experience because to me it seems more like an urban myth that actual fact. For a brushed motor I can see this being a potential problem... locked shaft, high current on the brushes and damage is possible but in the case of brushless motors it is unlikely. Oh, and actually it makes no difference if the gimbal is locked or not, it still uses about the same amount of current and has about the same cooling. With the clamp removed the gimbal holds the camera in one position so it's not like it's completely off.
I believe that the warning to remove the gimbal lock and the screen pop up is just to make sure you get good quality video. Otherwise the gimbal simply doesn't work, there is no stabilization and the video will be of very low quality.
BTW, I have left the gimbal lock on and even made a few flights with it. There is no excess heating, so damage whatsoever but the video feed was very shaky. Recording is not possible with the gimbal lock on because the app will not let you press the record button.
What do you guys think?
2015-4-2
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leostrat_54
lvl.4

United States
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power@groovy100 Posted at 2015-4-3 06:39
Have you forgotten it often and how long before you found out? Have you seen any differences in its  ...

Maybe half a dozen times and I hear some buzzing at times in the gimbal I didn't hear before. Well over a hundred flights with no problems.
2015-4-2
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power
lvl.4
Flight distance : 3140876 ft
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Greece
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Wow! Thanks to everyone for your replies. Good to hear some reassuring stories. Still, can't believe they built the clamp out of low-key transparent plastic! :-)
2015-4-4
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ibx
lvl.4
Flight distance : 40938 ft
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United States
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i left mine on to take the content off the camera a few times. im guessing i shouldnt do this anymore ;[
2015-12-16
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DJI-Dave
Captain

United States
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Capt. Bill Posted at 2015-1-13 04:00
I think this looks good

Great idea!


Dave
2015-12-16
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marcosnunes
lvl.1

Ireland
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My drone arrived today. I've already removed the gimbal clamp but I still getting the message "Aircraft Motor Overloaded. Check that the whether gimbal clamp removed". I suppose it's broken.
Any advice?
2016-11-24
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