Repairing Broken Syma X1 Quadcopter
As anyone who has flown quadcopters knows, unfortunately they have a tendency to break! After a series of hard landings or straight up crashes, even the best designed quadcopter may show some damage. This is especially a problem for the lighter models that are flown indoors and with full manual control, such as the Syma X1 quadcopter.
When I first was learning to fly the Syma X1, I crashed it probably five times per every flight (which last about 10 minutes) - and many times I thought it was a goner! It would ram into brick walls, hit the ceiling, fall down stairs, etc. and make an awful sound each time like the plastic frame was shattering and the propellers were popping off. Surprisingly, it held up quite well though and each time there was little to no real damage - sometimes I’d have to pop back in the plastic housing that held each motor in, but that was usually it.
But after a flight outside on a windy day, I lost control of the quadcopter and it came hurtling down to the hard-packed ground, bending one of the main arms. I was able to later bend it back and attach it with regular hot glue gun. This worked very well for fixing the quadcopter, at least for a few weeks and dozens more flights. Another option would be Gorilla Glue, a super-strong adhesive. The key when repairing is to get all the lateral arms to line up so none of the propellers are higher or lower than one another - if that’s the case, your quadcopter will always drift in one direction or the other.
As you can see in the pics, I had some success in repairing the quadcopter. But after a series of hard landings over the next few weeks the arm had bent back and the quad was drifting. I tried in vain to repair it again, doing a complete dis-assembly, but it didn’t work. The result?
I did get to learn more about the motors though, they’re pretty interesting - essentially they are coils of copper inside a magnetic housing, with a gear attached to one end that feeds to the propeller. Here’s an up close:
The main circuit board is also kind of cool - in later posts, I want to examine each component and learn more about which chips and components are common across different quadcopter models.
Anyways, after my disassembly clearly this thing was never flying again - but at only $35 online, buying another one wasn’t a huge deal and I think I definitely got my money’s worth before it died. What’s been your experience with quadcopters breaking? How many flights did you get, and what circumstances did it finally give out under?
Fun reading about your experience with the SYMA X1. This was also my first quad, and I’ve also crashed quite a bit while learning how to fly the Syma. After getting another quad, the Ares Ethos QX130, have finally gotten a better feel of how to control in flight, that is, until I flew it into a tree last week on a windy day
Now one of the arms on my X1 has completely broken off including the wires, and not sure it’s worth the trouble to try repairing.
Thanks for the blog!
Thanks Darowh! Yea unfortunately the same thing happened to one of our Syma X1s and though we were able to repair it temporarily (for a few flights at least) with hot glue, it didn’t last all that long. Luckily at only about $30 now they’re very affordable!
Hi, my syma x1 propellers are becoming very loose and comes off everytime i fly it quicky. Any idea how i can fix this without glueing the propeller?
Hi Yee, the propellers are attached by a small Phillips head screw that you access from the top of the quadcopter/propeller. I’d recommend trying to tighten that up and see if it helps - if you are still having issues, I would take the Philips screw out most of the way, and dab the threads with either some regular Elmer’s glue or similar lower-strength adhesive. Then, quickly screw the propeller back on and you shouldn’t have any problems with it coming undone again. As long as you don’t use too much (and the glue isn’t absurdly strong - i.e. don’t use Super Glue - you should be able to remove it later). Good luck and let me know if this works!
hi one of the the blades in my syma x4 is not working can you tell me how to fix it
It sounds like either the gears that drive the propellers have become misaligned with the propellers, or the motor has become disconnected to the power source, or the motor has died. I’d recommend looking closely at the motor/propeller connection and seeing whether that particular motor is making any noise/movement. If so, then it may be as easy as clipping it back into the correct place. If not, unfortunately you’ll have to buy and install a replacement motor (or just buy a new quadcopter).
I just received my X1 and didn’t even get through the first battery charge when I flew it into a wall. It was not a hard hit, but now the front left propeller is now slow to engage, but it does engage. The problem is that it doesn’t provide the same amount of lift as the other three blades, so the craft tilts heavily in that blades direction. The blade, gearing and strut are intact. Any suggestions? Thanks.
Hi Raajr, sorry to hear about the issue with the motor/propeller. If the gears are lined up and the drive shaft on the propeller is in the right place, then the issue must be with the motor itself. You can order new motors and then swap out the old one for a new one, though this requires some precise soldering and isn’t exactly a quick easy fix. You could also try and remove the propeller with a small screwdriver and reattach it to see if that helps. If none of those work, then your best bet is just to buy another whole quadcopter - not ideal, but at least they are cheap!
Merry Christmas. I picked up a couple of quadcopters for my kids as presents. First day, my son took his up to the school playground and sent it very high, where it caught a breeze and eventually the thing plummeted onto concrete a hundred yards away. One of the arms snapped off, and the housing around the motor on that arm is pretty banged up and broken. I’m going to try and repair it as best I can, but I’m not so sure it will hold up all that well to many more hard landings.
Hi David, Merry Christmas to you too and hope that your kids enjoyed the quadcopters for at least a little bit before they crashed! Essentially the same thing happened to my Syma X1 before its fatal crash. To be honest, you’ll probably have to buy a new one - the repair job may work for a bit, but since the frame’s strength is compromised its only a matter of time before another hard landing or bump will further damage it. Flying outside in any potentially windy or breezy conditions is not recommended, and I didn’t truly realize that until seeing how a small gust of wind can take out the very lightweight Syma X1!
HI, thanks for this post. I came across it after trying to repair my X1. I replaced the board and soldered all the leads for the motors back into the correct spots, but now when I fire it up, one motor is overpowering all the others. Any ideas? I have verified that they are in the correct spot. Thanks.
Hmm when you put everything back together, did you remember to place the quadcopter on a flat surface immediately after putting the battery in? That resets the gyro and makes it fly stable and hover - but you need to do it after every flight. Insert battery, place quad on flat surface, wait 5-10 seconds, and then turn controller on to bind. Other than that, I’m not sure what else to recommend. Unfortunately the X1 is a bit fickle after crashes so it may just be best to buy a whole new quadcopter.
Hi.i had just got my syma x1 two days ago.the two back propellers are not rotating as well as the front ones.please help me fix this.thank you.
The front two propellers are overpowering the two back propellers.please help.
I have a very basic problem but can’t find a part I need the tiny screw that holds each blade on lost one while changing blades and I don’t know where to buy one.
lincoln.you can look for those srews in hardwares
Hi I own a CX-10 Quad Chopper and I was flying it in my home and it landed in the kitchen sink witch was full of water how do I fix it or is it even fixable ?
I bought a Ethos HD and in my second attempt to fly it, it crashed. Nothing actually seems broke but the propeller touches the main body. I switched out the blade and the new one touches the body as well. It shows the parts list on the small manual but doesn’t have them numbered > not sure why but it makes it where I am not sure how to explain the problem. When the quad sits on the table, one leg isn’t touching the ground. the wheel shaft under the propeller moves up and down where the other three don’t. What is something I can do to level the quad so the propeller doesn’t hit the main frame? Thanks for any help. I paid two hundred, and it should last me longer then learning how to fly.