Preparing the arms and motors
To get started, we will first assemble the motor mounts and arms.
NOTICE: New motors for 2021/2022
If you purchased a drone kit in late 2021 or 2022, you will receive the new 5010-750kV motors. These motors use a different type of propellor and propellor attachment mechanism. Please pay attention to the updated pictures below for the new motors. NOTE These 5010 motors use only CW mounting propeller screws. This is accepted in the industry. Please however be certain to mount the correct CW or CCW propellers and be extra careful ensuring the nuts on the CCW propellers are tighened very securely to avoid accidental unscrewing. Check nuts regularly and before flight. See also our notes under Safety section for additional general precautions.
Motor mounts
The four motor mounts go on the end of the arms (carbon fiber tubes). Each one consists of two small carbon fiber plates, four tube clamps (the arch-shaped parts), and four long M2.5 screws with locknuts (with an elastic ring inside). Additionally, you need the motor itself and four short M3 screws from the labeled bag.
When watching the video below, please use the updated instructions below to attach each motor.
Assembling the 5010-750kV motor
The new motors for late 2021/2022 require some assembly. Please follow the images below to assemble.
In late 2021/early 2022, some kits do not include the silver M3 screws. You will need these screws to mount the motors. You will need to source some M3x5mm screws for this step. We apologize for the inconvenience.
First, you should organize the parts that come in the package for each motor. The package should include 4 black M3 screws, 4 silver M3 screws, a washer, a hub, and a cap.
Install the hub to the top of the motor using the 4 included black M3 screws.
Add the washer and the cap to the hub.
Use the video below to get an idea of how to attach the motor. It takes 4 screws on the bottom just like the previous model. You will find that the motor blocks the nuts for the comlete motor mount package. We suggest using the included wrench to tighten these down, rather than the nut driver shown in the video.
For the motors, make sure that you are using the +/- 5 mm long silver M3 screws from the separate package with the label saying to use these screws for mounting the motors. Do not use the longer M3 screws included with the frame, these screws may go in too deep and can damage the motor windings. The black screws included with the motors might be safe to use, but be careful.
The first step is to mount the motors onto the carbon plates. You need a carbon plate and four M3 screws for this. Make sure the three motor wires come out on one of the short sides of the carbon fiber plate. Repeat this step until you have all four motors mounted. Make sure you tighten the screws appropriately, because it will be hard to access the screws later.
While we have not seen many problems in practice, you may still want to consider using a threadlocking adhesive such as Loctite 243. This will make sure that the motor mount screws don't come loose due to vibrations. It is also recommended to check all screws regularly to ensure they haven't come loose.
Note that the main body screws for the arm clamps have nylon locking nuts and are not really affected as much by the vibrations.
For the next step, we need: four tube clamps, the other carbon plate, four long M2.5 screws and the locknuts.
The screws go through the holes in the corners of the carbon fiber plate.
Then on each side, slide *two* tube clamps (forming a circle) over top of the screws The carbon fiber arms will fit between these clamps.
Finally, the remaining carbon fiber plate goes on the part of the screw left sticking out. A locknut goes on the end. Tighten the nuts slightly by hand, so they don't fall off. You don't have to fully tighten them with a wrench yet, because we have to put the carbon fiber tubes through first, and then we will tighten it around the tube.
Alternative approach
There are two ways to assemble the motor mounts. While having the screws come down from the top, with the locknuts on the bottom makes logical sense as you would probably only lose the nut if it comes loose during flight. However, it can also be convenient to put the screws up from the bottom. In this case, you put the screws through the "bottom plate" first, with the tube clamps going on top. The advantage is you can then put this structure on the table and put the plate with motor on top of it.
Serviceability is also a bit easier since the Motor plate is easy to put on and off without disturbing the screws and clamp portion. This is nice if you are building multiple drones kits, or when you have to take them apart often. Similarly "up" going screws are especially useful for the clamps in the middle main body part of the drone. These are built in a similar way as these motor mounts. The disadvantage is that you are likely to lose both the screw and the nut in case it comes loose. Ultimately, it comes down to preference.
Inserting the carbon fiber tubes
You can now insert the carbon fiber tubes between the tube clamps. The motor mounts should be on the end of the tube. The tube should extend slightly beyond the motor mount, but a few millimeters should be enough. The motor wires should be on the opposite side of the carbon fiber tubes. These wires will later plug into extension cables that will come from inside the carbon tubes. Once the tube is inserted, you can tighten the screws using a hex key and a wrench.
This guide will instruct you to put the ESCs inside the drone frame. Extension cables are provided for this. It looks a lot cleaner. However, it is also possible to put the ESCs on the arms. This is a bit easier to do, but doesn't look as nice. You can also experiment with other configurations, such as putting the ESCs underneath the motor mounts.
If you look carefully, you can see that two motors have a notch on top of the shaft. The other two motors have a flat top. This is an indication of the direction in which the motor is supposed to rotate, and the threading on the shaft corresponds to this.
We will come back to this later. Just keep in mind that there are motors that are supposed to rotate clockwise, and motors that should rotate counter clockwise.
Motor extension wires
You can choose to insert the extension wires into the tubes already. These wires will plug into the ESCs (electronic speed controllers) that we will put inside the center of the drone frame in a later part.
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