Introduzione
By nature of the sport, the brushless motors on a racing drone/quadcopter get damaged often. The motors are crucial for the drone to function, so proper inspection and repair of damaged motors is an essential task for any drone pilot. If one or more of the motors on your drone is not spinning or spinning intermittently, these instructions may help you reach the root of the problem.
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DISCLAIMERS:
1.) Lithium-ion batteries have the potential to be extremely flammable if handled incorrectly. DO NOT USE DAMAGED BATTERIES OR SHORT THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE LEADS.
2.) Propellers for the drone must be REMOVED at all times.
3.) The battery must remain UNPLUGGED unless otherwise stated in the guide.
4.) Any time the the guide DOES want the battery plugged in, it will be assumed that you have the drone secured to your workspace in some way. This can be done with something like a bench vise or a heavy book (if using a book or some other object, just make sure the motors aren't gonna rub up against it.)
5.) It is assumed that the reader has some basic soldering skill and has access to the necessary tools outlined in the guide.
Cosa ti serve
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Take a look at the motors on your drone. If they look dented, the motor bell (the part that spins) may need to be replaced. Also, physically spin each of the motors with your hand to listen for any gritty/grinding noises.
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If you hear this, it could mean there’s debris in the bearings. The motor bell and bearings can both be replaced by removing a screw/C-clip on the bottom of the motor.
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Once this screw/C-clip is removed, the motor bell can be removed allowing access to the bearings, which are press-fit in place.
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The copper windings of brushless motors are enamel coated, so the motors themselves are technically waterproof. With the motor bell off, you can spray some compressed air on the windings followed by a rinse under some warm water to clean out any dust and dirt.
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Replace the motor bell and listen for the grittiness by spinning it with your hand again. If the motor spins smoothly, you're probably good to go. If not, try a new motor bell and if that doesn't work, move on to the next step.
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If the issue persists after the previous step, the motor may have an internal issue and the affected motor(s) will need to be replaced.
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Locate the problem motor(s) and desolder the three wires attached to the electronic speed controller (ESC) after removing the heat-shrink tubing.
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Remove the four screws on the bottom of the motor affixing the motor to the arm of the drone so the motor can be removed (repeat this for any # of broken motors).
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Note: if the carbon fiber on your arms has begun to delaminate, be careful while unscrewing the motor(s) here because you could get a carbon fiber splinter, and those hurt.
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Place the motor on the drone arm and line the four motors screw holes up with the holes in the drone arm.
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Once aligned, the screws can be inserted to fix the motor to the drone. Also, make sure the motor wires run down the length of the arm and not in some other direction.
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If you are splicing the new motor wires to pre-existing ESC wires, then slide new heat shrink tubing onto each of the three wires before soldering the new motor wires in place. If you are soldering your new motor wires directly to the pads of the ESC, you don't need to use any heat shrink tubing.
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Now, solder the new motor wires to the ESC or the previous wires. Ensure there are no shorts (undesired connections) between any of the wires and make sure everything is properly insulated when you're finished. If any of these wires short to each other or the carbon fiber frame, it could brick your ESC.
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This is the point where we need to connect the battery in order to test the new motor. Please note that the propellers must still be REMOVED and the drone must be FIXED to the table.
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Plug the battery in and flip the arming switch (the arming switch is specific to what the pilot set theirs as) on the transmitter to idle the motors. Ensure each motor is spinning smoothly and in the correct direction.
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For each motor, the direction is typically:
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-Motor 1 (Bottom right): Clockwise
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-Motor 2 (Top right): Counter-clockwise
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-Motor 3 (Bottom left): Counter-clockwise
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-Motor 4 (Top left): Clockwise
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Note: switching any two motor wires around will reverse the motor spin direction. If the motor is spinning the wrong direction, you can simply switch any two of the three motor wires around. If you don’t feel like soldering anymore, you can easily reprogram the ESC to spin the motor the other direction using your ESC's programing software.
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If the motor still does not spin, the problem is most likely a damaged ESC.
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The ESC replacement/repair process is specific to the type of ESC you are using and will vary greatly depending i.e. a single board "all-in-one" ESC vs. four individual ones
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If an ESC replacement doesn't fix it, then it might be a deeper problem with something like the flight controller (which is essentially the brain of the aircraft)
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