Setup & Maintenance:

• This is not a toy - Aviation requires discipline, inspection and risk analysis - Multicopter motors form part of the critical aircraft flight system and become your duty of care when purchased and built.
• If a motor fails the Copter can fall from the sky and cause harm to person or property below - Always do a full pre-flight inspection on the motors ; A post flight temperature check for thermal stress (hot motor)
• Schedule of maintenance you must perform includes : -

1. Remove and add Blue Loctite® to the shaft grub screw - make sure Loctite® does not enter any bearing!
2. Ensure the Circlip is set (crimped) correctly to hold the shaft in place - inspect closely for any sign of looseness
3. Carefully apply 1 small drop of OIL to each bearing every 5 hours flight time - with a syringe & needle (new SAE20-50 motor oil) - allow the oil to soak in for 1 min; wipe away all excess oil - oil traps abrasive dust!
4. Avoid all dusty Landing/Takeoff zones - We recommend Ops from a dust-free rooftop LZ on a 4WD/SUV vehicle or a 1.5m circular plywood dust-free Helipad on the ground to prevent any dust ingress to the bearings.  Abrasive dust entering bearings will shorten the effective life dramatically - inspect the bearngs for wear and replace if worn -Spin the motor - Magnetic cogging will slow and stop the motor which is normal - check for any wear or abnormal sound/roughness/dryness or non-linear friction indicating a bearing failure. 
5. Use high pressure air (can of comressed air - or air line) to clean any sand,dust, grass or dirt away from an engine after every flight
6. Inspect the wires to ensure the insulation is in-tact
7. Check that the collect (Prop-adapter) is tight and cannot be pulled off with 2kg force - Dont assume it's tight - check it in Pre-flight
8. Use Blue Loctite® to mount the engine screws to the carbon/G10 engine holder.  Check the engine mounting screws never penetrate too far into the engine & short the winding wires
9. Inspect the prop for any fatigue cracks or white stress lines - immediately repalce any prop suspected of weakness - Routinely replace props every 10 flight hours.
10. Shaft must be replaced if bent - using a 3mm punch and tapped out - or shaft can be reversed by removing the grub screw and using a bench vise to push it further in and out the other side - then retighten the grub screw
11. if the motor is observed to be showing some initial warning sign - AN INDICATOR - noted by the pilot but not considered to be a risk by the pilot - and he decided to continue flight ; consider fully the RISK ; this can cause subsequent engine failure and total loss of your aircraft if it has less than six engines. Be aware -
     
    the most common causes of engine failure are
    • ingestion of FOD (foreign object damage) dirt, dust, stones or debris which can enter the motor during take off and landing - causing trauma (cuts) to the windings or insulation of the windings, damage to bearings
    • breakage of one or more of the internal lead-in stator winding wires by stress (pulling of the wires during ground handling or assembly) - can be caused in incorrectly handling a motor, crash impact tension, carry the craft by gripping the motor assembly wires causing a break inside a motor.
    • magnetic variation - de-magnetising of one or more magnets by placing the magnets on or against other motors/magnets or in magnetic fields - tapping against metal objects of the can of the motor - this partial de-magnetisation can cause the ESC to overheat the engine because the timing cannot be accurately determined by the ESC. Thermal run-away - engine overheats because it is effectively overloaded - Copter is too heavy.  Overheated magnets are permanently ruined.
    • dry-joints or inconsistent  loose push-connections/soldering between an ESC and a motor leading to timing faults - if one of the three connections is loose or not 100% soldered correct - Should you observe ANY motor hesitation or stutter on first power applied 10% throttle - immediately cut power - do not Power-up further or you will blow the ESC  - DO NOT FLY especially relevant for long wiring runs or self soldered joints - USE solder paste - use a Digital Multimeter DMM to check all 3 wires show the same Resistance in ohms - check the wires for breakage or shorts.  Save your ESC by careful observation of problem indicators.
    • Shorting of any motor wire(s) internally to the metal/carbon booms or too the airframe- INSULATION of ALL WIRES annd joints is vital.  - short of the insulation from sharp carbon edges not filed smooth during construction - leading to timing problems or stuttering - Should you observe ANY motor hesitation or stutter - DO NOT FLY - replace the motor /wires/ESC as applicable to the fault - Beginner fault to observe AN INDICATOR - such as hestition then continue to fly - delibrately blowing the ESc - leading to failure and a crash - Pro-Pilots discontinue flight/Land at the slightest hint of a problem - because they realise that warnings are only given once. 
    • Poor bearing maintenance lubrication and/or exposure/ingress of abrasive dust leading to bearing breakdown
    • Failure to balance the motor/prop leading to wear and tear. Check closely for security ; tighness of all componenets ; security of the grub screws, circlips and the bell. Be vigilent to check for variations in gaps your pre-flight on all engines  
    • Post crash damage re-use - Pease consider a crash has trasferred massive forces to the motor. a sudden stop from Prop Stike can have drastic effects on a motor turning at 7000 rpm. Check the bell and magnets to ensure they are 100% true and secure after crash. Change a shaft involved in a prop strike.

     

    it's VITAL to monitor the temps of all engines on the post-flight check, avoid operations where FOD. dust is a risk and keep motors padded in transport.  It is also recommend to ground the aircraft and 100% locate the cause of any abnormal performance item.

• NEVER fit the propellers to a motor until AFTER you have fully Tested and set-up the motor and YOU understand that electric motors can start suddenly without any warning.  With proper understanding and maintenance the motors are safe.
• NEVER run a propeller without FIRST balancing it on a magnetic balancer
• Do a staic and a dynamic balance of all props for best results
• Do a hand Maiden - before any flight maiden;  to observe all engines running normally under power applied condition - and all controls responding correctly.
• During the hand maiden feel the airframe for vibration levels - there should be none - smooth - vibration indicates an out of balance motor/prop and must be traced and balanced.