Gimbal Pricing...

[ReadyKilowatt]

So do you imply my Solos are destined for the greatness that my Amiga achieved? Yes I do have an Amiga and I spotted the same characteristics in the Solo when it launched...

Yep. Exactly that. I'll one-up you in that I also have a Nokia N900 (although no longer used as a daily driver). Still does things I wish my iPhone could do.

One major difference is in the case of the Solo, the developers recognized the importance of OSS in keeping the platform relevant while it was still mostly current or at least the market was still fairly young. While I'm more interested in payload experimentation with my Solo (I have an Inspire 1 for photography), I like that there's a lot of possibilities for cameras and other payloads that might have some intelligence available to the community for hacking, even though we haven't yet seen the results. That and the integrated WiFi telemetry system mean potential for a much easier development platform. I think once the available stock of aircraft are sold out we'll really begin to appreciate the open platform. Especially when you see where DJI is going with forced upgrades, forced data collection and (I'm sure soon) EOL hardware.

 

[Freebird32]

Yep. Exactly that. I'll one-up you in that I also have a Nokia N900 (although no longer used as a daily driver). Still does things I wish my iPhone could do.

Ha. Too funny. I'll raise you, I've got a Nokia M-11 bag phone that worked better (as a phone) than any cell phone I've had since. Would probably still power-up OK. Bought it for my wife's back road commute in 1985 before cell phones were commonplace. 4 watt really connected well. Had a full size phone handset to talk with.

I hope the Solo community keeps Solo alive with mods as time goes by. It is a great bird. Totally agree on DJI. I've got a Mavic and a Spark, don't care at all for DJI firmware and fanatical control theme they are on. Will have my Solos long after the DJI birds disappear from my livery.

 

[Aussie in AZ]

Just some thoughts...as I'm bored.

I think the few people that made any money on Solos are out of inventory. So now you are left with hoarders rather than the opportunists, and hoarders don't typically sell things....

At present, if you want smart shots, the Solo gimbal is the only game. Plenty of 2 and 3 axis gimbals out on the market and an equal amount of DIY options. You'll spend mucho time working up any alternative gimbal and still have no smart shots.... What savings would that be less the smarts.

I guess you have to put a value on what is a fair price. Gimbals were released at $400 (1), then about six months later they were $200 (2) and then finally a year later they were $50 (3). $200 seems to have been the happy median price for most all Solo users back when, considering the DIY and 3rd party gimbals costs....then less the smart shots.

Me, I'm a hoarder. If I cost average what I've purchased to date it would be about $165 per a gimbal not including tax and shipping. What value should I put on the two I've repaired and am still using daily?

My opinion, $200 is a fair price for NIB from a broader perspective. Bruce's offering of refurbs is fair consider the time and effort required to make like new....and they have smarts.

I'm a hoarder mate Never know when I might need one of my stash.

 

[brianuc4]

I hate to break it to everyone but the Solo is already an old dog; good ole dog, but old. There are so many good things about Solo, but so many weaknesses.

I think many here are aware of this, they just refuse to think about it I guess. I've only had mine a little over a month and I already see all the weak points it has.

 

[just_bruce]

I think many here are aware of this, they just refuse to think about it I guess. I've only had mine a little over a month and I already see all the weak points it has.

Personally, it isn't that I refuse to think about it. All things aviation are but trade-offs as physics is an unforgiving bitch. So, I accept certain trade offs (what you cal, weaknesses) to get other things I want.

Or said differently, strokes for folks.

 

[Ralph E. Johnson]

And yet no one has contacted me about my refurbs...

Hi Bruce
so you do refurbs. I have a couple defective and crashed gimbals. would you be interested in fixing these for a price??

 

[Dobie Ardmore]

As of this writing there is an Ebay vendor selling many good used (ebay guarantee gimbals. I bought one last week for a winning bid of $137. I see that another one sold for $122. That is as cheap as you are ever going to see them.
Genuine 3DR Solo 3-Axis Stabilization Gimbal For GoPro (GB11A)
The vnedor is goldstar_tech.

 

[just_bruce]

Hi Bruce
so you do refurbs. I have a couple defective and crashed gimbals. would you be interested in fixing these for a price??

A lot of folks are asking the same question. the problem being that not all gimbals are repairable and I don't wanna promise I can fix anything. At present I would consider my knowledge to be in its infancy. I can fix select problems, and have figured out how to take them apart without breaking them and put them back together again. But I certainly can't claim, and don't wanna offer the false hope, that I can fix anything.

I've had to purchase DOZENS of gimbal to acquire the knowledge I currently possess.

 

[IrishmanPDX]

A lot of folks are asking the same question. the problem being that not all gimbals are repairable and I don't wanna promise I can fix anything. At present I would consider my knowledge to be in its infancy. I can fix select problems, and have figured out how to take them apart without breaking them and put them back together again. But I certainly can't claim, and don't wanna offer the false hope, that I can fix anything.

I've had to purchase DOZENS of gimbal to acquire the knowledge I currently possess.

Oh come on, be truthful, you purchased DOZENS because you have "Drone Addiction Disorder". Mind you, a list of gimbal problems that are fixable would be interesting. The only one I have is a messed up HDMI connection that needs to be soldered, but I'd love to know what other issues you see that you'd classify as repairable.

 

[IrishmanPDX]

Latest Gimbal Pricing (are we ready?)
Lowest price (including shipping, only looking at "Buy it now" sales) $230
Highest Price (same as above) $329

There are two other items of interest though....
Solo 3Dr Gimbal GB11A See description | eBay
Gimbal with a broken HDMI feed (but everything else works apparently)

And taking top honors a genius 3DR SOLO must have....
3dr solo Pistol Grip,,free better feet or better gimbal brace incl. Limited time | eBay
It's a pistol grip for your solo.... why? So you can use your 3DR solo as a steady cam........ now if only he could come up with a Helmet Mount.... (no seriously, I really think this is a certain kind of genius...).

Mind you, good news is that compared to last month, the average price of a gimbal has dropped from $261 to $256 (as opposed to the $99 mark this summer).

 

[KDan]

I have two spare gimbals bought early last spring that I've been hanging onto. Never expected the price would go up so much. Looks like they are turning into almost as good of an investment as the Bitcoin I mined a few years ago. Well... maybe not quite

 

[RichWest]

There are two other items of interest though....
Solo 3Dr Gimbal GB11A See description | eBay
Gimbal with a broken HDMI feed (but everything else works apparently)

Seems over priced for what is a non-working gimbal, but more power to them... Ouch!

 

[PaulClement]

I just found a used one on Adorama. 32.50 plus 6and change for shipping. Will let you know if it works. Listed as used but E+ rating, Adorama is a photography store like b&h photo and both are in NY.

 

[PaulClement]

Wow.... so just did the latest round of checks on the usual sources. The cheapest gimbal on Ebay at the moment is $200 (I'm only including "buy it now" options, no auctions). Amazon, $226 (and I think there was S&H involved). B&H... discontinued... Looks like the supply is drying up.

So question is, are people going to hold onto their gimbals for dear life? Keep paying the increasing costs for spares? Or when the price of a gimbal hits $400, sell off all you have and invest in a new drone? Or just eventually turn your solo parts into a frankendrone?

So honestly, what are your future solo plans?

 

[Frank Foster]

Hummm, I've got 4 new sealed in their box. Kinda like watching a 401K account, and the stock market, going up and down. Solo's seem to be going down, while the gimbals are going up. I just like looking at mine, and remembering when they were like hens teeth, when the Solo first came out. People waiting in line at $400 a piece!

 

[ReadyKilowatt]

A few years ago I bought one of these Scrubbing Bubbles automatic shower cleaners:

https://www.amazon.com/Scrubbing-Bubbles-Automatic-Cleaner-Starter/dp/B001QJAHIY/

I most certainly did NOT pay $220 for the device. But now that it has stopped working I have a ton of extra cleaning fluid. When it worked I liked it, but lots of plastic gears and lousy construction doomed it to fail after about 3 years. IDK when Johnson Wax stopped producing them but now that they're gone I guess there is a collector market. I just found an old squirt bottle and it seems to work just fine.

 

[IrishmanPDX]

Ok, because I have more than enough Gimbals and I'm not looking to buy any more, here's one that I just found on Walmart of all places. Still over $200, but cheaper than most Ebay prices. Only one left....

https://www.walmart.com/ip/3DRoboti...94359&wl11=online&wl12=49314799&wl13=&veh=sem

 

[carts123]

I have noticed this for sure as I need a new fumble and have done the comparing shopping. It sux if u ask me. Thinking of selling off likev u said and getting a different drone, I do not really want to I like my solo!![emoji45][emoji45] but without gimble it's not the same at all. Why are gimbles almost the same pricev as the darn drone? I know they took some engineering to design so on So on but man come on....is it that or is it a low number actually produced. What ever it is the result is the same. They are high darn it.....so it might be ,I hate to even say it a Dji in my future or a Yunkee ( or however u spell that one hey I dont spell well dyslexic don't u know) I will miss my solo if this is the way iam forced to go.......this saddens me !!!!!!! Lol

 

[overdriver999]

I have noticed this for sure as I need a new fumble and have done the comparing shopping. It sux if u ask me. Thinking of selling off likev u said and getting a different drone, I do not really want to I like my solo!![emoji45][emoji45] but without gimble it's not the same at all. Why are gimbles almost the same pricev as the darn drone? I know they took some engineering to design so on So on but man come on....is it that or is it a low number actually produced. What ever it is the result is the same. They are high darn it.....so it might be ,I hate to even say it a Dji in my future or a Yunkee ( or however u spell that one hey I dont spell well dyslexic don't u know) I will miss my solo if this is the way iam forced to go.......this saddens me !!!!!!! Lol

I couldn't agree more..the prices are ridiculous..I did find me a new one for 150$ so hopefully that'll do it for me because I definitely won't pay those 200 plus prices for a gimbal,ill move on before I do that,even though I would hate to..I'll just ride it out with the solo rig I have now till she won't work anymore.

 

[Frank Foster]

This is a strange lesson in human philosophy. If you look at the original price of $400, just for the gimble alone, $150 or $200 is a steal. However, because we saw prices for $49 at one time, now $150 seems ridiculous. The people that paid the original price for the Solo with a gimble, must be jumping out windows by now.