C23 rubber dampers (gel filled)

DCH · Dec 17, 2018

New to this thread and the damper problem. Ditto here, dampers were all stretched out & leaky looking after only 5 flights and 3 months of sitting in the box when I got it. Just replaced them today, should have read this post first. I also got 3 hollow old style dampers and one retainer like @Ty Pilot. That is a strange one for sure. If they included 4 hollow ones I would have mounted them instead of the messy jelly-filed doughnuts I just bought.

So @Steve Carr, are your replacements still working well? No issues?

Steve Carr · Dec 18, 2018

DCH said:
So @Steve Carr, are your replacements still working well? No issues?

So far I have not seen any difference but I'm not sure what they will do when I fly in really cold temps. I'm watching for any indication of vibration.

PatR · Dec 18, 2018

Steve Carr said:
So far I have not seen any difference but I'm not sure what they will do when I fly in really cold temps. I'm watching for any indication of vibration.

Anyone know the freezing temp for silicone?

Answering my own question, the pure stuff freezes at -67F.

Steve Carr · Dec 18, 2018

Some where between -60 to -70 F.

DCH · Dec 18, 2018

Silicone itself is supposed to be stable to -100C

terrence davidson · Dec 20, 2018

those who are using cgo3+ dampers. after a while check you upper slipring wires for wear and exposing of bare wires. lost one e90 camera due to wire insulation rubbing off after I swapped e90 dampers to cgo3+ ones. Lost the birds mainboard as well.

DCH · Dec 20, 2018

terrence davidson said:
those who are using cgo3+ dampers. after a while check you upper slipring wires for wear and exposing of bare wires. lost one e90 camera due to wire insulation rubbing off after I swapped e90 dampers to cgo3+ ones. Lost the birds mainboard as well.

Thanks for the valuable heads up. Would you mind clarifying that a little. When you say CGO3+ dampers, are you referring to the round ball shape or the hollow 3-rib type? I have seen both on the CGO3+.

My factory Referb H Pro came with the short round Ball type common on the earlier CGO cameras. I can see this could be a problem with short dampers, as the wires from the slip ring exit the top and they can rub on the metal plate just above it. I pulled the protective cover off the top half and sure enough I can see that the wires are indeed rubbing on that plate, there is zero clearance and in time would wear thru and cause a short. The 3-rib style are longer and should provide more clearance, but please let me/us know which dampers you were using when the short occurred. I'm currently researching a suitable replacement for the gel filled.

terrence davidson · Dec 21, 2018

short round ball type

DCH · Dec 21, 2018

As I was suspecting. I'm surprised there hasn't been more reports of this, it is a potential disaster for many using these dampers. This effects some H480 owners as well besides me. I'm sure grateful to you for posting this before mine fell out of the sky! It was only a matter of time, and not much more was left. I'm replacing these before my next flight.
...How many others are waiting to fall out of the sky because of these ~~bad boys~~ bad balls!?
Thanks again for sharing. ...Sorry for your loss.

DCH · Dec 29, 2018

Hey everyone still watching this thread! I have spent the last few days researching an alternative solution the the damper problem, working with @Steve Carr & @Ty Pilot on his foam idea, and we all agree this is a great solution. Check it out here: C23/E90 Gel Filled Damper Solution

cbecker125 · Mar 23, 2019

I just took your advice and packed two dampers with foam (opposite corners) and seems well supported now. Will test fly soon. I'd like to eliminate the slight but irratic shift right/left on quick descent as well as other times.

Steve Carr · Mar 24, 2019

cbecker125 said:
I just took your advice and packed two dampers with foam (opposite corners) and seems well supported now. Will test fly soon. I'd like to eliminate the slight but irratic shift right/left on quick descent as well as other times.

You may find the problem is resolved with the foam filled dampers.

cbecker125 · Mar 24, 2019

Steve Carr said:
You may find the problem is resolved with the foam filled dampers.

Thank you. I'll update later.

Kylekc239 · Jul 5, 2019

haupfear said:
So what does Yuneec have to say on the subject? View attachment 11293This is my Plus right out of the box.

Are they not supposed to look this way? Mine look just like that and I’m having jello effect issues. Right out of the box as well. Most of them look stretched and caved in on the sides. Is that bad? Do they need replaced already and they never been used?

Phaedrus · Jul 5, 2019

Mine looked a little misshapen. Did not cause an issue. Then I had one fail (started leaking messy, sticky slimy gel). They give you two replacement dampers with the H+. You can replace the worse two if you want to see if that makes a difference. You need to be careful not to damage them in the process.

There is also a thread on retrofitting dampers and filling them with a piece of foam rubber. You can mess around with cleaning the ones you have or buy the dampers for the CGO3 camera on the H and use those.

Can you post a picture of yours?

Eagle's Eye Video · Jul 5, 2019

Phaedrus said:
There is also a thread on retrofitting dampers and filling them with a piece of foam rubber. You can mess around with cleaning the ones you have or buy the dampers for the CGO3 camera on the H and use those.

Referenced thread here... C23 Gel Filled Damper Solution

Phaedrus · Jul 5, 2019

Thanks. I was too lazy to search for it!!

Kylekc239 · Jul 5, 2019

Just looked more closely at my dampers and all 4 of them are caved in. My drone came with 3 replacement dampers...2 that are gel filled and 1 open. So at this point I have no idea what to do. Brand new drone flown once. But been flying other brands for a while now. I can’t seem to find any video showing how to even remove the C23 dampers. All sorts for the CG03. But even if I can get them off I’m not sure I should replace them. I have the jello effect right out of the box. I am not comfortable with having to do modifications and repairs when it’s brand new. Plus I haven’t been able to get in touch with Yuneec support yet so I’m not sure I should touch anything yet. Still debating wether to just return for good or get it replaced. Got it through Best Buy and they said they will exchange it for a new one. But I also read a lot of posts that many people have this issue right out of the box. We shouldn’t have to be doing all these mods for a $2000 drone. So not sure what to do. Try and replace dampers but I only have two gel filled. Or wait to speak with Yuneec on Monday. Or just return it and get a new one.

AH-1G · Jul 5, 2019

It won't hurt to return back to Best Buy and a get a new one. Let them deal with it.
Why wait for Yuneec!

Phaedrus · Jul 5, 2019

I'll add that your experience is not typical. More people have not had any issues, but you tend only to hear about those that have. Sampling bias. If you look at most forums you will see people unhappy with every brand out there. Doesn't mean it doesn't suck when you get a lemon. I can tell you the long tale of woe that I had getting DJI to replace a defective gimbal on a P3. Ended up buying a full price replacement gimbal and flew on. I personally was very unimpressed with my DJI CS experience.

Hope you get it sorted. The H+ is a pretty awesome machine in my experience.