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One of the tiny struts holding the rotor on my TinyWhoop Nano broke (surprise!) and I've used superglue (cyanoacrylate) to bond it back together. I don't know yet if this fix will be suitable or not, because I haven't even gotten the quad properly flying.

As fragile as some small drone frames seem to be, I wondered whether it's possible to glue them together, or if there's irreversible damage due to having the angle of a rotor changed slightly.

I know some frames are carbon fiber and I wouldn't expect superglue to work well.

Is it a "standard practice" to repair minor damage on frames, or is it recommended to always get a new frame should non-superficial damage occur?

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It depends on the risk you are willing to take, but for such a small drone being flown indoors I'd give it a go1 and accept it may crash - after all, it has already done so once so it can't be made worse! The repair will, however, be a weak point in future crashes.

How well it flies will depend on how accurately you reposition the part, but you're likely to get 'close enough' (again, probably 'worth a try'.) I would also, once the glue has fully set, try to hold the drone only by the broken bit and give it a shake - if it can hold the whole weight, it should be OK when the weight is divided between the propellers.

For larger drones you should replace the part to manufacturer specs or get a professional to take a look.

1 Subject to the normal indoor flying considerations - avoid pets, other people and anything expensive or valuable, etc.

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some frames are carbon fiber and I wouldn't expect superglue to work well.

CA is surprisingly good on carbon fibre. It wicks into the cracks and around the splinters, and the large surface area gives the bond a lot of strength. It works better than on the relatively clean breaks of a plastic frame.

Don't worry about getting the alignment perfect, the flight controller can adjust for all sorts of imbalances.

Standard practice is to order a new frame, and try to patch up the existing one while you wait for delivery!

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Won't repeat two answers already given - offer this only as an addition to both.

Might try placing a small piece of shrink wrap tubing around broken strut (before) super glue repair. After superglue repair, pull same down over area where strut was broken and apply nominal heat.

Good Luck

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I wouldn't recommend to trust super glue. That area will become a fail point in the frame. Also, if you are trying to fix a broken arm it will definitely weaken the structure. There is a lot of force with thrust, wind, speed and turns. Buying a new frame would be your best bet. Most of your racing drones have replaceable parts. Not so much on the whoop mini drones. Weather will play a huge factor on the glue failing or deteriorating. It wouldn't be worth the risk. Definitely this would all be true if you fly in acro mode. I haven't seen to many of the whoop mini drones that are expensive. I would just try and purchase another body.

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