Princes FPV Drones Project (August, 2025)

Princes FPV Drones Project (August, 2025)

I finally found a 3D printed case for the featured BMS board that was removed from a dead Original DJI battery. No changes were made to the board. I discovered that, since it is a version one model, it is compatible with all 6s batteries and not only that, it powers on drone as well as allows me to take off! I am looking to obtain the STL files, as they are currently not publicly available. (On going)

DJI FPV Drone Lipo battery Upgrade (6-24-2025)

DJI Original battery 286 grams

Weighs only 79 grams!

Weighs only 290 grams with SMC 1400 Mah battery

Fits perfectly!

Side view

Top view

Socket View

Endurance flight – BMS DJI FPV Drone – 1400mAh SMC battery (6-28-2025)

Endurance test 12 minutes

32% battery left

Normal mode

1400mAh SMC battery

DJI Battery: 280 grams

DJI Battery cells: 242 grams

The modified cage: 80 grams

Stock DJI Drone with my set up with 1400mAh battery: 788 grams

Stock DJI Drone with DJI Battery: 790 grams

Only 2 grams heavier then the stock DJI FPV Drone and DJI battery set up!

Resulting in 12 minutes of flight time, same as the stock drone with DJI battery!

Endurance flight – BMS DJI FPV Drone – 1400mAh SMC battery (6-28-2025)

Testing DJI FPV Drone with Genuine DJI cells (7-05-2025)

Testing DJI FPV STOCK Drone with Genuine DJI cells in my new system!

DJI Battery: 280 grams

DJI Battery cells: 242 grams

The modified cage: 80 grams

My set up with DJI cells: 323 grams

Total: 40 grams heavier then the Original DJI battery

11 minutes 20% battery left on the DJI cells

Over all voltage 21.55 volts

Cell voltage: 3.6 Normal mode

DJI FPV Drone 2000mAh original battery cells in modified case.

Forced landing

Testing DJI FPV Drone with Genuine DJI cells (7-05-2025)

DJI FPV STOCK Drone SMC 1400Mah (7-13-2025)

13 minutes

20% battery

Over all voltage 20.55 volts

Cell voltage: 3.2

Normal mode DJI FPV Drone

1400mAh SMC Battery Battery

Forced landing

CONCLUSION: This set up provides the SAME battery time as the stock DJI battery!

DJI FPV STOCK Drone SMC 1400Mah (7-13-2025)

DJI FPV Drone battery mod conclusion (7-26-2025)

DJI FPV Drone battery mod conclusion

What does locked BMS board mean (7-27-2025)

How to find and test a BMS board like I have.

How to dismantle DJI FPV Drone battery in under 5 minutes (7-29-2025)

So in conclusion this is the best method of running non-DJI batteries for your DJI FPV drone.

This research has now reached its conclusion and thus is completed as of August 2025.

The next phase is to put this solution into production and make it available to the FPV Community.

You are welcome to place your comments in the comments section of the videos.

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Princes FPV Drones Project (July 2025)

Imagine my surprise!

My first discovery of a BMS that allowed the DJI FPV drone to start up!

Then I discovered another BMS board that also allow the drone to fly!

I devised a mounting system for the BMS board by utilizing the back of one of the DJI Battery cases. Then, a 3D-printed cage was created to secure the battery, and the BMS board was zip-tied into the retrofitted case, attaching it to the cage.

Front side of the modified case.

Backside of the modified case.

I utilized a SMC 1400mAh battery, perfect size to fit in the drones 3D printed case.

Perfect dimensions to fit in the 3D printed cage!

Everything matched up perfectly!

Following that I conducted a hover test and to my shear amazement that worked!

Finally, a battery upgrade that extends flight time!

The featured BMS board was removed from a dead Original DJI battery No changes were made to the board I discovered it is compatible with all 6s batteries and not only powers on but allows me to take off!

Battery that works for this upgrade!

SMC 1400mAh-FPV battery

Before testing flight times, we need to establish a base to compare from. We will be using a completely stock DJI FPV drone with no modifications to the physical configuration or software. We will be using the stock DJI FPV drone battery, which is fully charged and has fewer than 10 cycles. We will be cruising around in Normal mode with zero wind. We will be recording the weight of each configuration as weight affects flight time.

12 minutes

20% battery left

Normal mode DJI FPV Drone

Original DJI 2000mAh battery: 280 grams

DJI FPV Drone with stock battery: 784 grams

Testing DJI FPV STOCK Drone DJI Battery (7-13-2025)

Hover Test Results

5 minutes with

Upgraded DJI FPV drone

45% remaining on original DJI battery

3.7 volts per cell

Increased prop size and mounting the Hero Bones 10

Total: 915 grams (with battery)

8 minutes with

Upgraded DJI FPV drone

45% remaining on 1400 SMC Lipo battery

3.7 volts per cell Upgraded FPV drone

Increased prop size and mounting the Hero Bones 10

Total: 912 grams (with battery)

8 minutes with

Stock DJI FPV Drone

45% remaining on original DJI battery

3.7 volts per cell

Total: 791 grams (with battery)

9 minutes with

Stock DJI FPV Drone

45% remaining on 1400 SMC Lipo battery

3.7 volts per cell

Total: 794 grams (with battery)

DJI FPV Drone battery mod extended flight time! (5-30-2025)

Then it was time for some flying in the field and there were no issues!

Stock DJI FPV drone

SPORTS mode

FPV Drone Without battery: 508 grams

6:30 minutes

45% remaining

1400mah SMC battery: 296 grams

Stock DJI Battery: 288 grams

Total: 794 grams (with battery)

DJI FPV Drone battery mod, 6:30 minute flight! (6-01-2025)

Princes FPV Drones Project (June, 2025)

Princes FPV Drones Project (June, 2025)

The DJI FPV smart batteries can be quite pricey and typically offer a flight time of only 8 to 15 minutes. Their proprietary design means you can’t simply swap them out for regular 6S LiPo batteries, and unfortunately, there aren’t many third-party solutions available to tackle this issue. I’ve noticed that the community doesn’t seem to have a wealth of alternatives or innovations around this, but maybe I just haven’t dug deep enough. This gap inspired me to dive into some experimentation with one of my three batteries, drawing motivation from the projects of innovators like DuaneDegn, theosky, Reversing Entropy, and BigBallVlogs. I wanted to explore more options, which is what started me on this journey.

First of all, I wanted to show how easy it is to disassemble a DJI FPV battery.

Please follow the steps below:

The first step was opening the battery case without damaging it. It won’t open after removing the two obvious screws. In addition to four clips, a double-sided tape holds the battery cover in place.

After using gentle heat, the sticky tape will soften, making disassembling immensely easier.

After removing the cover, it was still not possible to remove the control board and the LiPo cells. The cells are stuck to the bottom of the housing with double-sided adhesive tape. However, with a bit of heat and patience, the cells and control board can be easily removed.

A DJI FPV drone BMS board, or Battery Management System board, is a crucial component that manages and protects the drone’s battery. It monitors voltage, current, and temperature of each battery cell, ensuring safe and efficient charging and discharging. The BMS board also balances the charge across cells and communicates battery status to the drone’s flight controller. 

Here is the outer case.

This is a view of inside the case.

This is not a destructible disassembly; the cover can be snapped back on and reassembled if so desired.

Here are the outer case components of the DJI FPV drone battery.

Here are the outer case components of the DJI FPV drone battery.

Here are the outer case components of the DJI FPV drone battery.

Here is the BMS board and the Power management board.

Here each of the 6 Lipo cells that make up the DJI FPV drone battery.

The BMS board uses sensors to track voltage, current, and temperature of each cell within the battery pack. The BMS board is shown here removed from the battery.

The BMS board redistributes energy between cells to ensure they are all charged to the same level, maximizing battery capacity and lifespan. 

I soldered XT60 connectors to the main BMS Power wires and JST-XH connectors to the balance wires.

I soldered XT60 connectors to the battery wires and JST-XH connectors to the balance wires.

I soldered XT60 connectors to the battery wires and JST-XH connectors to the balance wires.

Hooked up the BMS board to the original battery.

All the lights lit up as normal.

I hooked it up to the DJI FPV drone, and the patient survived. Then, I tested the modified battery set up with the drone. Everything worked fine. I was able to turn on the drone and even start the motors. Next, I did a quick hover test. Everything worked fine.

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