Ok show of hands....how many of us have started to walk away from the bench and had the quad jerked out of
our hand because of the USB cable was still connected to the FC board?  If you were fortunate, it didn't do any damage BUT in my
case I ripped the USB jack off of the FC board .

Ok no problem, I'll just solder it back on, done deal.

BUT.... for me once was not enough. I did it a second time to the same quad (within a week!) but this time I ripped the pads off the board. .   $40 mistake and
I never even got the quad in the air.


Here's my fix so I will not do that again.

Small latching hook attached to the USB cable




and hooked somewhere on the frame of the quad.



 
This provides enough protection that the USB jack on the FC should be safe.

That's a great tip. Thanks for sharing the idea

Another reason that USB sockets get ripped off boards is because people use USB cables that have a tight fitting plug, so if you get the angle wrong then it is all too easy to rip the socket off if you're heavy handed while plugging in.

The solution is to make sure you use a lead that has a nice loose fitting micro USB plug on it. I have what I call my "special" lead that has a loose fitting plug on which I only ever use for my quads and I've never ripped a USB socket off a board using it

(18-Mar-2020, 10:12 PM)SnowLeopardFPV Wrote: That's a great tip. Thanks for sharing the idea

Another reason that USB sockets get ripped off boards is because people use USB cables that have a tight fitting plug, so if you get the angle wrong then it is all too easy to rip the socket off if you're heavy handed while plugging in.

The solution is to make sure you use a lead that has a nice loose fitting micro USB plug on it. I have what I call my "special" lead that has a loose fitting plug on which I only ever use for my quads and I've never ripped a USB socket off a board using it

hey I have a special lead too! on mine I have reduced the pressure of the locking springs with a pin, and cut away all the plastic around the plug as I have some FC's where the usb port is almost touching the frame on the bottom of a stack and you can't get a normal lead in there...

Great idea! I am on that list for sure

Great little idea! Never ripped a USB before but I don't mind being extra careful.

I havent tried these yet, so can’t vouch for em. Theyre kinda like a USB version of magsafe on old macbooks, where the power cable coupled with the laptop magnetically.

https://www.amazon.com/NetDot-Generation..._2_ac_d_pm

If the little dongle is light enough, you may just be able to leave it plugged in pemanently.

(25-Mar-2020, 07:21 AM)akin Wrote: I havent tried these yet, so can’t vouch for em. Theyre kinda like a USB version of magsafe on old macbooks, where the power cable coupled with the laptop magnetically.

https://www.amazon.com/NetDot-Generation..._2_ac_d_pm

If the little dongle is light enough, you may just be able to leave it plugged in pemanently.

Thats a really cool idea .  My first thoughts were: will the end that stays on the FC get plugged up with dirt? Will it stay put while flying? Does it work for data transfer? According to the Q&A's the insert can be cleaned,it fits snug in the jack so it should stay in while flying and it can do data transfer. So, for me this is worth a try. The next time i need a USB cable i will give it a try.

(25-Mar-2020, 07:21 AM)akin Wrote: I havent tried these yet, so can’t vouch for em. Theyre kinda like a USB version of magsafe on old macbooks, where the power cable coupled with the laptop magnetically.

https://www.amazon.com/NetDot-Generation..._2_ac_d_pm

If the little dongle is light enough, you may just be able to leave it plugged in pemanently.

Have you tried it out yet?

Great idea man. Thanks a lot!!!

My struggle has been working with the tiny whoops getting the USB connection in & out without pulling the FC off the rubber grommets.

So I ended up filing the little retention nubs off USB connector. Now the force required is next to nothing.

So I use this cable on all my builds now. If I accidentally yank on the cable it's more likely to just popout.

(23-Aug-2020, 12:47 PM)rdsi55 Wrote: My struggle has been working with the tiny whoops getting the USB connection in & out without pulling the FC off the rubber grommets.

So I ended up filing the little retention nubs off USB connector. Now the force required is next to nothing.

So I use this cable on all my builds now. If I accidentally yank on the cable it's more likely to just popout.



Yes, I do the same thing but unless the usb cable is pulled pretty much straight out it can still bind on the
jack and tear off the jack off of the board.

Thanks for the tip

(25-Mar-2020, 07:21 AM)akin Wrote: I havent tried these yet, so can’t vouch for em. Theyre kinda like a USB version of magsafe on old macbooks, where the power cable coupled with the laptop magnetically.

https://www.amazon.com/NetDot-Generation..._2_ac_d_pm

If the little dongle is light enough, you may just be able to leave it plugged in pemanently.

Here is link to a review I did on the NetDot Magnetic Usb cables....they work great