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Camera Gimbal damage... possible to fix ?

george3d6

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So, I managed to crash the parrot (well, to be fair, the parrot managed to move by about 30 meters horizontaly whilst I was rotating it since it lost GPS signal) and it, actually, kinda survived.... except for damage to the case and slight damage to the camera gimbal, as can be seen here:


As far as I understood the guys from parrot aren't into servicing the drones themselves and they don't sell the camera + gimbal or gimbal spare parts.

So, I'm wondering if any of your guys have advice for fixing this ? Where could I find spare parts and a guide to fix this ? Could I just use a bit of foam to re-build the part of the gimbal that broke off ? Are there any shops around Europe that could repair this kind of damage ?

(Alternatively, since I will probably end up buying a new drone, if anyone has advice for something like the ANAFI with added obstacle avoidance, since I don't always film in perfect GPS conditions, even if it's at the cost of added size, I'd be glad to hear your advice on what to buy next).
 
Have you tried raising a case with Parrot? Some owners have had a free replacement when the Anafi has crashed by itself. You have nothing to lose.
 
@Liger 1956

I have, but they haven't answered yet (understandably so, since it's the weekend).

As far as I understood the chances of that happening are low... but, who knows. The thing definetly didn't crash "by itself", I flew it with no GPS and turned it around (which causes it to also move horizontally... in this case quite fast).

I hope parrot can service the drone (I mean, replacement would be execsive, it's like a 20$ plastic bit that broke)


Hopefully they can fix it, but I always like having alternatives :)
 
@Dirk_ANAFI

T
Dronivo has spareparts:

Thanks for the link, didn't find the website. However, they only have the camera + gimbal combo, not the plastic gimbal alone... which is kind of a bummer, since at 300$ + 100$ for the plastic casing from parrot + my time fixing the whole thing, well, I might as well just buy another drone. Still, it's an option, better than what I was able to find. Cheers :)
 
You will not get the gimbal without cam, I think.
If don't get another or repaired bird as replacement, there are cheaper offers for the whole gimbal on eBay.
 
This might be a temp solution. I have not tried this stuff but some in the RC community swear by this stuff and say it holds very well. Might get you going until you find a better solution.

 
Thanks everyone for the feedback, sadly enough parrot ended up telling me I have to pay 410$ to replace the broken wing and the plastic bit holding the camera :(... which is obviously a bit much, considering I spent like 700$ for the whole drone.

I might try DIY repair as per @Augustine's recommendation , but I doubt I'm skilled enough to do it.

Currently I'm in the market for a more easy to repair drone having learned my lesson, so if you guys have any recommendation for parrot-like drones that are easy to repair, please let me know :)
 
I stumbled across this page when my Parrot Anafi Camera got a bit wonky after I crashed it into a bush.

I managed to fix it. Then, I have crashed again and, since then, managed to fix it again.

Although I take care not to fly my drone in places where it harms or frightens living creatures, I do tend to take risks when flying the drone around the garden. It is more fun that way.

Here are a few wreckless attempts to fix the drone which worked for me.

# The first fix

The first time my camera and gimbal were a bit slanted and the gimbal calibration process did not appear to work. I just gave and started flying my Anafi with a wonky camera. Then, I accidentally crashed the drone into the branches of a tree. That fixed it. :) True.

# The second fix

Another time, I crashed my Anafi into a bush at speed (always accidentally). This caused a metal t-bar foot to come out of its socket. I riskily forced it back in to its socket. That was a bad idea; it bent the t-bar out of shape and . I fixed this by unscrewing the four screws at each corner of the gimbal 'hammock' that hangs under the main body. Then, used pliers to straighten the bent footer, put it back into its socket and screwed the gimbal 'hammock' back onto the main body.

That fixed it. Although, if I had been more sensible I would not have attempted to force the t-bar foot into without first unscrewing the gimbal 'hammock' off from the main body.

# The third fix.

Another time, I crashed my Anafi into a bush. This time the camera, did its little dance upon start-up and always ended at a tilt. The message in the app was saying to check camera for obstructions. I cleaned the lens, gave it a good looking over but just could not see any obstructions. I turned it on and off and on and off an on again. Tried to perform a gimbal calibration, but this did not do anything.

I was about to give up and buy a new drone, when I decided to tap the end of the drone onto my table ( being careful not to smash the lens of the camera). Whilst the drone was on. I tapped each side of the front of the drone on my table; top, bottom, left side, right side. I turned it on and off again. This time the camera found its self and was back working once again. Straight. Sorted. I guess tapping the drone on a table may have dislodged some tiny specs of fauna that may have got into a part of the mechanism. Or, it may have reset the internal 'bubble level'. I am not sure which.

-------

So, in general, here some solutions that fixed the wonky ANAFI camera/gimbal that worked for me:
* If it is clearly a physical issue, it is not too hard to unscrew the gimbal holder and fix it (ensure you take plenty of detailed photos of the drone _before_ you take it apart so you know how to put it back together again)
* Don't give up. Keep flying it and sometimes the gimbal just magically fixes itself.
* Sometimes a *light* bash of the drone onto a table can knock it into shape.

Bare in mind that at all times when I made the decision to try these techniques, I was prepared to accept that it could go horribly wrong and I could lose the whole thing. I guess I have an unusually blasé attitude to 'things', I take a few more risks and don't beat myself up if my fixes turn it into a useless plastic brick. I guess one has to have that attitude with drones otherwise flying them would be a highly stressful affair. Spending on drones, for me, is like gambling or risky investing - only spend what you can afford to lose. :)
 
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The skill is not in hitting the part it is in knowing where to hit and how hard. That comes with experience (both good and bad).
 
# The first fix

The first time my camera and gimbal were a bit slanted and the gimbal calibration process did not appear to work. I just gave and started flying my Anafi with a wonky camera. Then, I accidentally crashed the drone into the branches of a tree. That fixed it. :) True.

I laughed a lot hahaha, flying with a wonky camera, I mean I'm sure there definitely wasnt even a good picture.

I crashed my drone into a small tree at 4m/s (8mph) and the gimbal arm is now wonky and no longer at a 90 degree angle, but more acute. The camera can no longer turn up and down . I've just ordered the screw drivers (Torx) necessary to perform a repair. I'm hoping it is just a physical bend back into place fix :/ really surprised this damaged it but I guess the tree branches actually hit the gimbal itself which caused the damage.

Because it has previously careered into a building at a much fast speed after experiencing what must have been a lot of interference as I lost all control over it and it just continued on its path.
 
Unfortunately the gimbal on the Anafi is more exposed than on some other drones. This is partly due to the Anafi's unique ability to look straight up under things.
I hope that your repair goes well but take it steady as the ribbon cables are very fragile and some are glued to parts of the gimbal.
 
gone and ordered another one :/ can't believe I let myself do this crash, just wasn't focusing at all argh. I think the short fix is to remove the housing that obstructs the rotation as mentioned in another post. If that does work that I'll just have to fly it as the new parrot's retarded brother.

If the camera housing removal doesn't fix the issue, then it would probably require replacing the whole camera and gimbal I suspect and cost probably the same as a new drone. God **** pain.

From what I've seen bending the bracket isn't an option?
 
Other members have said that replacing the camera does not work as it is electronically linked to the motherboard by its ID. If you change the camera there is currently no way to tell the motherboard its new ID.
 
I too crashed my drone into a tree branch trying to get a good photo shot and loss the camera ? and gimbal capability. I tried all of /@Johnnie Walker’s above tricks to no avail. I even took apart the drone, as per the YouTube Anafi repair to check the electronic connections. I finally found my issue in a micro crackin the plastic covering on the bottom of the gimbal swivel bracket. (See my two below photos). I removed the
piece and voila my gimbal passed its preflight boot up gimbal clearance check. Though it still will not calibrate. That is ok I now have the camera back for my photo projects. that is why i bought the Anafi.
D8E3DDB0-1C61-4385-B4BE-8BFC70CE3CE9.jpeg
note that you cannot see the crack, but when removed...
2A45A3F0-FDAB-4199-BD21-87E088E54731.jpeg
 

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