landed on side, squeal and smoke

[whichgreekisland]

Hi all, I just had a bit of a crash with the P3a, it landed on some uneven ground and tipped over, one of the blades got stuck in the ground and it started to squeal, I tried to stop it but that didn't work and it started smoking so I quickly pulled the battery.

I then left it to cool and waited for the burning smell to go, once it had cooled down I tried moving the motor by hand and it seemed to move fine. I started it up without the blades on and all 4 motors moved freely, I decided to take it for a quick test flight keeping it close to the ground and it seemed to be ok.

Do you think I got away with it or is it a crash waiting to happen when that motor finally fails?

Any advice would be great.

Cheers.

 

[alokbhargava]

The first thing that burns is the motor winding insulation as props are not cooling the motor any more. As these are low voltage motors, chances are there that you can use the motor as it is but it is suggested to replace the motor, it doesn't cost much. You should also unscrew the motor to check if shell is OK.

 

[flpholt]

try and learn how to hand catch wont have these problems

 

[alokbhargava]

try and learn how to hand catch wont have these problems

Its one's choice. I don't hand catch if I have a flat and stiff ground and I can use my landing pad.

 

[flpholt]

yeah some people don't feel comfortable hand catching but it sure does prevent accidents

 

[rene van der meer]

try and learn how to hand catch wont have these problems

Good advice. See the posts about hand catching and taking off
I would also follow the advice of Alok. If the motor really burned it is likely also damaged.
Did the smoke come out of the engine that was obstructed?
You could also try to measure the resistance to see if it is electrical different, but this is only an indication that some wires are short circuited. Which may be occasional.

 

[Oso]

I tried to stop it but that didn't work and it started smoking so I quickly pulled the battery.

How did you try to stop it? Was it the CSC?
I'm asking because there seems to have been several people now who have reported that doing the CSC did not stop the motors on a flipped Phantom. At first I was very skeptical, but now I am starting to wonder about it.

 

[whichgreekisland]

Nothing I did stopped the motors so I pulled the battery as quick as I could.

 

[Oso]

Nothing I did stopped the motors so I pulled the battery as quick as I could.

Yes, thats what you said earlier. I'm asking if one of the things you tried was the CSC.

 

[whichgreekisland]

Does anyone know where I can purchase a genuine replacement motor? They don't seem to have them on store.dji.com

 

[whichgreekisland]

Yes I tried CSC, I also tried turning the P3 off using the button on the battery and then pulled the battery.

 

[alokbhargava]

Does anyone know where I can purchase a genuine replacement motor? They don't seem to have them on store.dji.com

Amazon is selling these motors, there are two types: old and new. Check what you need.

 

[alokbhargava]

Yes I tried CSC, I also tried turning the P3 off using the button on the battery and then pulled the battery.

If motors had stopped before touching the ground, they would have been safe. May be you tried CSC but it didn't work or worked late.

 

[Oso]

Yes I tried CSC, I also tried turning the P3 off using the button on the battery and then pulled the battery.

Okay you did the CSC. Thanks for clarifying. That aligns with what a few other people have noted in other similar threads asking about motors after a flip. Several posters have met with skepticism when they said that CSC didnt work, but now more and more people are saying the same thing.

 

[GmanTerry]

Hi all, I just had a bit of a crash with the P3a, it landed on some uneven ground and tipped over, one of the blades got stuck in the ground and it started to squeal, I tried to stop it but that didn't work and it started smoking so I quickly pulled the battery.

I then left it to cool and waited for the burning smell to go, once it had cooled down I tried moving the motor by hand and it seemed to move fine. I started it up without the blades on and all 4 motors moved freely, I decided to take it for a quick test flight keeping it close to the ground and it seemed to be ok.

Do you think I got away with it or is it a crash waiting to happen when that motor finally fails?

Any advice would be great.

Cheers.

I had the same thing happen to me. My P2A tipped over and the motor stalled. Mine also started to smoke even though the prop was now free. I had to pull the battery too. It was recording and when I pulled the battery it destroyed the video memory card. If you look at the windings you will notice that that motor's brown insulation has darkened. Mine worked fine but the new motor was only $20 on Amazon so I replaced it. The only plus was I got to disassemble the burned motor and see how it's made. The motors are nicely built. However the high heat from the cooked motor may very well have overheated the bearings and in the future cause trouble. If you're handy with a soldering iron or gun the motor is simple to replace. The hardest part is splitting the shell. I found a video online showing where the catches are and I used a table knife to gently pry the shell apart. When ordering a replacement motor remember; Blacks spin clockwise, silvers spin counter clockwise.

GmanTerry

 

[rene van der meer]

Okay you did the CSC. Thanks for clarifying. That aligns with what a few other people have noted in other similar threads asking about motors after a flip. Several posters have met with skepticism when they said that CSC didnt work, but now more and more people are saying the same thing.

I had a similar experience. Mine was upside down and didn't respond to CSC.

 

[Quadcopterpilot]

Safe thing to do is replace the motor as suggested.
I have over 50 flights on a smoked motor with no issues, but it really depends on how hot the motor got.

 

[WetDog]

Interesting. As Oso points out there have been a number of threads about the CSC maneuver failing under these circumstances (it certainly seems to work when the Phantom is flying). Might be a bug. Should be visible by analyzing the log - I would expect the current to shut down once the CSC maneuver was registered. If not, DJI has some 'splaining to do.

 

[Steve J Stephens]

Does anyone know where I can purchase a genuine replacement motor? They don't seem to have them on store.dji.com

helipal

 

[RabanJr]

This just happened to me today. Landed and the grass was a bit uneven. It tipped over. Initiated CSC and it stopped the two blades that were free but the two that were on the grass squealed like crazy. I flipped it up and had to pull the battery to make the squeal stop.

After that I restarted and the motors turned on and functioned normally.

This is brand new and not being able to turn the motors off quickly is bad news.