I bought two of these. On one, the charging module (round part) popped out about a half inch the first time I removed the charging cable, and the hatch cover would not close. I was unable to re-seat that part, and had to return the unit. I considered taking it apart (for about 2 seconds), but after watching this video, I'm glad I didn't try. I suspect that it would have ended up as a pile of small broken pieces sitting in a waste bin (especially if I used a BFH to split the halves.) Thanks for confirming my decision. The bonus was that I saved money, as the price dropped $45 in the week between online orders. It was still full price in WalMart.
You are the man! Thanks for sharing with us all! I'm surprised they incorporated so many mechanical features to mimic most of the stage droid movement.
Mike,Like the rest of the folks here, great video! I am a Mech E. and the engineers at SpinMasters did a beautiful job with the drive system. It is a very elegant concept - nicely packaged! I wish I could work on a project like this as it would be great fun. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Thank you so much for a wonderful video. I'm trying to take mine apart to change the battery. If you have any suggestions to help with this project I'd greatly appreciate it. Thanks.
So I JUST BOUGHT THIS THING AND ITS GREAT, BUUUUUUUUUUUUUT the battery life is garbage, especially the heads bettery, but i already plan to change it and know how, but i was wondering , since i do not know the full battery life of the bodys battery, can anyone suggest if i should? with what kind? and how? the reason is i plan to bring this to star wars con in chicago and have it walk the floor with me and would love if it didnt die after 20 minutes of using it, ANY HELP AT ALL WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED
Hey Mike Senna, I just got the, BB-8 sphero for my, Birthday last week, and I love it so much!!!! I play with him every day after school, and he is so hot, I love him, but thank you for for giving us good reviews on the BB-8 toy’s Mike, It means a lot to, me and, BB-8 too
I wouldn't recommend it since it uses electronic gyro stabilization. Making the magnets stronger would result in more drag when the head motors run, and it could result in him being generally more unstable. The head shouldn't come off unless it isn't all the way on, or he runs into something. It's pretty stable when it's going around on its own.
My bb8 stopped working yesterday. not sure if it's the remote or the body. The charger for the body indicates it's fully charged but when i turn it on it does a slow flash every 1 second. thoughts?
little late to the party, but i'm curious how hard would it be to replace parts? in particular the battery? i love this little guy and he's great at events, but he only gets about 10-15 minutes of battery life before needing to be charged again. also, how hard would it be to incorporate the IR tracking feature into a life sized model?
Thanks for showing us, Mike! Really nice track mechanism with that bottom mass. If you get a chance, can you weigh the head? It looks light from the way your handling it.
Hello Mike, I have a BB8 droid also with a slow red light flashing on the ball body with a faster red light flashing on the head part. Does it mean the battery is dead? I charged the body for full 3 hours and the charger showed the battery is fully charged. Also fully charged the head unit. Does it mean the main battery needs to be replaced in the body? Thanks!
Can you please make a video how to replace the battery/ where to buy battery ? My BB-8 battery drains fast. My little boy wants to play. I tell him BB-8 sleeping :)
Mike, I own a bb-8 hero and replaced both batteries using your deconstructed video…but now it is reassembled I get blinking lights on both pieces. I am assuming it has to do with the leveling device since it’s the only thing I removed. I live in SoCal and am looking for any help…would hate to just throw it out…thanks for the help!
It could be the leveling mechanism was not put back on properly. I talk about it in my video around the 3:03 area. ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
If you got a remote that doesn’t even turn on- can you still make bb8 work? Ours just keeps blinking system error- not sure if it’s because remote won’t turn on
Great video. I love my bb8. I hadn't turned him on in a couple of years. I also forgot to remove his batteries, so I had a little corrosion on one of the coils. After cleaning, it comes on, but bb8 doesn't respond. Bb8 turns on and moves his head initially, but that's it. So sad.
Hey @TheMikeSenna can you help me? The power and ground wires came off the charger board on the body for my spin master bb8…There are more than 2 solder joints and I want to make sure I get the correct ones when I solder back on…Can you help me?
Jeremy Lester He probably made it himself! There’s a whole community of people who like to create complete replicas of droids from Star Wars, it’s really cool!
Hey Mike! The battery life on mine has been reduced to about 25 minutes of play time. Would you consider that normal? Also it only takes about 50 minutes roughly to fully charge the main body. Thank you!
Also...would you recommend just replacing the battery? I really don't want to return the droid to the shop since I weathered the sucker for a few hours.
Cool regular guy I was able to switch out the battery on the head and with the upgraded head battery the total life span of the regular ball battery is about an hour and 15,
Hello, I opened the droid and replaced the internal battery that was no longer charging, after that the droid seems to have misconfigured and has all the lights flashing, with the head out of position and does not respond to the control. Do you happen to have any suggestions to fix this?
You'll either have to buy one with a charger or buy a charger alone which sells for over $50. There is no way to charge it without the charger specifically designed for it
How did some of you guys get this so early? Mine's on a preorder. Anyhow, great demo of the inside workings. Very interesting and I'd say Spin Master did a great job of engineering this little guy!
Ah, that makes sense. I didn't know they were available for Force Friday II. I'm hoping you guys make a kit version of a "plug and play" full size version from the club. Unless some company, maybe even Sphero will make a full size one. That would be cool!
It is available on the Toys R Us website. The product isn't on the self yet, however you can order BB-8 and receive it within five business days. Free shipping too. :-)
I originally had it on order from Spin Master but I found out Best Buy is going to be selling these also, so I bought it from them since I had a $200 gift card so that worked out great!
good morning my bb-8 spin Does not work the red led of the body turn on and off why? Is it normal or should we charge the battery more? please help me, thank you
thanks for the video, i was hoping to see where the battery is in this, mine seems to have battery issues, it sat forever since my son, now 9 stopped playing with it, its in great shape out side of that and my 3 year old loves it.... but battery is shot
I am going to swap my batteries also. I have like 4 of these bb8s so I will chop one up. For the head I might swap it out with 2 batteries and for the body I am thinking add or just upgrade. Not sure how yet.
I just opened mine to check why it doesn’t go forward or backward, I checked the gears set, and they’re locked, I don’t figure it out if it’s the motor or if it’s only the gears set, can you help me please?
Update: Disregard message below. I found out where that switch needed to be. Another thing, It's my understanding that some people are regluing the sides. I decided not to. It just makes dismantling process more tedious and the possibility of breaking the plastic panels. Instead, I am using a very sticky braid that is usually used for automobiles. The ball has channels, and that is where I place the braid. Well, I have taken the challenge. Disassembling BB8 I found relaxing, oddly enough. This replacement battery is due to arrive today. I have accounted for every screw for every part removed. Pictures included. However, there is one switch, and I have no idea where the heck it came from. It is small switch, rectangular in shape, with red and black wires coming from it located at the left hand side bottom of the bezel. I do not recall removing screws for this sensor. There is another sensor that looks just like it and it has yellow wires coming from. I recall removing those screws. Any idea where this sensor is supposed to go? Jonathan
Trying to decide if I'm going to open up the defective one we just received so we have it for Xmas morning, or if I will do a return and have a disappointed kiddo. The issue is that BB-8 won't move forward or backward. Could be a bad motor, but maybe it's just slipped off the gear/tooth track being jostled in shipping?
Just purchased one yesterday, turns out have the exact same issue you describe. I have been in contact with Spinmaster this morning and have arranged to ship the unit back to them for repair/replacement. They are covering the shipping costs. This looks like a well engineered toy. I don't know what the QA process is like, or if it received some minor damage on the long voyage from China to Ohio, USA.
XxxRedrocker95xxX spinmaster replaced the whole unit. Took about a month for them to turn it around, it only cost us time, replacement unit works well.
That's good to hear. Spin master is great about replacing the product. something also to note is that you can buy a set of the antennas on the head incase the current ones bend or break.
Mike! I desperately need a service that can replace a battery on a BB 8 hero. Prefer replacement of both body and head. Any idea where one could get a service like this? Any ideas what kind of repair I could contact or ship my droid into?
Does anyone know why my son's BB8 will not move at all? If so, then can you please tell me how to fix it? I already have the body apart but not sure what I need to be checking in order to fix the issue?
Hello, Nice demonstration indeed, have one also & would have never take such risks ;) I'm much more interested in the bigger RC model, which one is it, will check your channel for eventual details but if you can please hint me, it looks & feels awesome. cheers!
One more question, sorry. Is there a way to intensify the red and blue lights coming from the head? There are no body lights, sadly. But If I can make the head lights brighter that would make up the difference.
Before booting him up, twist his head around yourself. The head should lock in the upright position, it should not easily turn when you push it, nor should it be leaning over. If the head isn't locked in correctly, chances are you only have one of the magnets locked in. There are two magnets that need to be attached, one on the front or BB-8's head, and one in the back. If only one of them is locked in, it is not strong enough to hold itself on.
i bought one from goodwill and followed your video on how to take the body apart. i noticed that the black and red wires were detached from the power area. is there a way to take that apart so i can reconnect them. thanks
Honestly I took that apart to long ago to remember what it looks like. My advice though is to loo for any way to take it apart and try. Even if you have to cut away pieces to get to the connectors, give it a try if you see it’s not a structural or mechanical part. It don’t work now so you haven’t muchto loose.
Amazing demo of BB-8's inner workings, thanks Mike! Just curious though, I've seen footage of the SpinMaster Hero BB-8 spinning on the spot, but didn't see any kinda fly-wheel on the tech you showed. How do you think he spins?
Anybody know whether it's possible to replace the internal battery? My unit hasn't been charged in a while and it seems no longer to hold charge. Any help would be great!
It's possible. I just did mine and it's not too bad. Just have to be careful removing those two round discs. That was the by far the most challenging part of the job. ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
Hey Mike. Great informative video. I have a question. How does one replace the rechargeable batteries? The impression that I have gotten from Spin Master is that once the rechargeable batteries are no longer accepting a charge, there goes your $229.00 in the garbage. So in another words, don't expect to sell it on ebay thirty years from now. LOL
Hi Mike!, I opened up my bb-8 because it stopped working, I found the motor that moves the weight at to bottom is bad, maybe got stuck and burned, do you know where can I find one? or a model number so I can find one with the same specs, I'm having a hard time finding any specs for the motor, thanks for your time
Hi Jorge, Sorry I do not know the model number or specs for that motor. Spin Master has a tech support number on their website, but I'm not even sure they can help as I don't think they go that deep into it.
Mike, thanks for posting this video. I was able to disassemble my BB-8 and found that one of the two yellow wires connected to the home position sensor was broken off. I was getting the 'system error' blink. Hopefully fixing that will cure it. I was thinking about changing the battery, but it looks a little risky to get that out and I am not yet having battery issues.
That'd definitely do it, There was another person out there on UA-cam who fixed the system error. It looks like the wires can occasionally get caught in the gears that run the head, and get yanked out. I wish my droid had it that easy, haha. I believe mine has an issue with the encoder in the pendulum motor that tells it where it is rotated in relation to the rest of the droid. The motor spins in the same direction each time, regardless of the pendulum location, and it makes 3 small pauses inebtween turns. I'd assume this is just the droid trying to righten itself, and since it can't tell where the pendulum is located, it has no way of determining where to move the mass. Fingers crossed that this isn't fatal, but we'll see.
@@lanewright7341 (If your BB-8 moves one of its motors 3 times in a row on startup, this fix is probably for you.) Inside, BB-8 has a small button sensor that the pendulum presses up against, which tells the robot when it is centered. That sensor was pressed so many times that the copped contact inside broke. If you switch it out with the one that detects the head, it powers up and works perfectly. When the robot can't find its center point, (when one of the buttons isn't getting pressed or is damaged and), it will rock the motor 3 times to try and find it, then give the system error. My first BB-8 had this issue happen several years ago, but recently I was able to get it to boot by switching the sensors. If anyone is able to find a suitable replacement sensor for the board, let me know. I'm struggling to find the part online, and it appears to be a common fault on this BB-8. I'd love to put together a video documenting the repair.
This is one example of a pendulum type drive. The drive that is in this one cannot be transplanted into a life sized one. There is a lot of specialized programming for weight and other considerations. Other BB8s use a similar drive.
Same issue. I have taken mine apart and it seems the motor moves the weight all the way to left or right. The only place it doesn’t go is the center. I replaced the battery, but still having the same issue. Maybe the sensor for the weight is bad any suggestions?
@@claytonstults8319 I keep turning on/off the body while the head is attach, keep rotating the body until the axle is in the right spot. It's also important to know where you plug the charger, I memorize the exact spot, while I switch it on/off. Eventually the axle will latch.I don't take it apart anymore, just keep turning in on/off and rotate the body.
Thank you for your reply. I will try this today and hope for the best. What do you mean remember where you plug the charger? Do you mean remember the position of the weight while the charger is plugged in? If so I would imagine that is difficult once the body is assembled again. Thanks for your reply.
@@claytonstults8319 I mean once you are rotating it, the on/off switch should always be near the bottom of the body, a little bit away the middle align with the two lights on its head, if that makes sense. Once you figure it out, avoid bb8 from running through walls and couches, shoes on floor etc.. that's what's causing the issues. I use to never let my 5 year old daughter control bb8, but now that I figured out a way of fixing the problem I just rotate to fix the issue, keep telling my daughter to control bb8 in a not aggressive way. She is getting better at it. Good luck you can do this..
Great Video Mike! As a robotics and controls engineer I loved watching BB-8 in the movies.. When the toy came out I wondered how it worked... This explains it all very well.. I'm willing to bet that it would not to be too hard to upsize this using larger servos and a larger battery pack probably built into the weight.
So my BB8 powers on and responds to controls left and right but not forward or back. He gives the error lights and beeps. I took him apart but cannot find any obvious physical issues...anyone who could help me out???
The BB-8/R2-D2/Wall-E Builders don't sell full sized units, since that's not what the hobby is about. You can go to Astromech.net and get limited part runs to build a droid, but they are not available to buy assembled. You have to piece it together over time, that's what it's all about!
The motor on mine won’t stop buzzing and whirring! It’s turned off. Not sure how to fix but spinmaster said they can’t do anything. It was charged two weeks ago and working fine. Last night it was in its corner and the motor started up. BB-8 does not move but the noise is loud and won’t stop. It’s essentially bricked and useless now. Rebooting does nothing. Don’t know where to take for repairs. Spin master offered me a 40% discount on an etch a sketch. They said they doing make them anymore and there’s no warranty and nothing they can do.
Vance Martin I don’t think that’s offensive.... I’m pretty sure it was a compliment. Like, mentioning race/ethnicity isn’t inherently offensive, unless you make it so to be used in a derogatory way. It’s not rude to state that this man, is, in fact, Asian.
The way of keeping the charging port static is great. I will have to see if I can integrate that in to my build. Thanks for that Mike.
Didn't skip any ads and watched this entirely. Thank you, Mike.
Thanks for sharing, it's always great to see the engineering behind something like this.
I bought two of these. On one, the charging module (round part) popped out about a half inch the first time I removed the charging cable, and the hatch cover would not close. I was unable to re-seat that part, and had to return the unit. I considered taking it apart (for about 2 seconds), but after watching this video, I'm glad I didn't try. I suspect that it would have ended up as a pile of small broken pieces sitting in a waste bin (especially if I used a BFH to split the halves.) Thanks for confirming my decision. The bonus was that I saved money, as the price dropped $45 in the week between online orders. It was still full price in WalMart.
Gregg North so you used the unit then returned it broken to rebuy at a lower price. Not right
You are the man! Thanks for sharing with us all! I'm surprised they incorporated so many mechanical features to mimic most of the stage droid movement.
And many BB-8s were saved this day from deconstruction :). Thanks for sharing!!
Hey Mike! Big fan of your work. Thank you for making this video. Curiosity satisfied! Spinmaster has done a great job designing this BB-8.
Thanks for the compliments, truly appreciated. They have done a great job!
Thanks so much for posting the video. It's exactly what I was looking for to upgrade my spin master wit lights and other sounds
Thanks for both presentations. They answered a lot of questions.
Mike,Like the rest of the folks here, great video! I am a Mech E. and the engineers at SpinMasters did a beautiful job with the drive system. It is a very elegant concept - nicely packaged! I wish I could work on a project like this as it would be great fun. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Mitzi Madej I totally agree the engineer did a great job!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!
great to see the engineering behind it Mike top video
Thank you so much for a wonderful video. I'm trying to take mine apart to change the battery. If you have any suggestions to help with this project I'd greatly appreciate it. Thanks.
Awesome...good job I need to change the battery on the body on mine any recommendations which batter I buy???
Shida Battery technology NI-MH Battery 1800mAh 7,2v
Same, need to change the internal battery. Any tips?
@@drewguion you have to disassemble everything to get to the battery, I did it and now it works fine
@@gusanocarbonero Is it hard to get to the battery? Do you think I can change it for a bigger mAh?
If anyone has replaced the body battery to a bigger mAh, please make a vid or link for the battery
Interesting to see how this was engineered and the concepts for the turns! Will see it again!!! :) Thanks!!!
Very nice breakdown! Time for me to swap out the battery.
Thanks for sharing Mike!! Love the thumbs up on your BB-8. :)
Awesome video Mike! Now I like my Hero Droid BB8 even more!
So I JUST BOUGHT THIS THING AND ITS GREAT, BUUUUUUUUUUUUUT the battery life is garbage, especially the heads bettery, but i already plan to change it and know how, but i was wondering , since i do not know the full battery life of the bodys battery, can anyone suggest if i should? with what kind? and how? the reason is i plan to bring this to star wars con in chicago and have it walk the floor with me and would love if it didnt die after 20 minutes of using it, ANY HELP AT ALL WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED
It's so much extra space to add more to make it super futuristic on some star wars shit for real.
I wonder how hard it'd be to swap a Brushless motor in it & run LiPo? Great video thanks.
Hey Mike Senna, I just got the, BB-8 sphero for my, Birthday last week, and I love it so much!!!! I play with him every day after school, and he is so hot, I love him, but thank you for for giving us good reviews on the BB-8 toy’s Mike, It means a lot to, me and, BB-8 too
Do you know if there’s a way to calibrate or recenter the weight. I have a BB8 that sits offset.
Can you upgrade the magnet that attaches the head? To lessen the accidental removal ?
I wouldn't recommend it since it uses electronic gyro stabilization. Making the magnets stronger would result in more drag when the head motors run, and it could result in him being generally more unstable. The head shouldn't come off unless it isn't all the way on, or he runs into something. It's pretty stable when it's going around on its own.
My bb8 stopped working yesterday. not sure if it's the remote or the body. The charger for the body indicates it's fully charged but when i turn it on it does a slow flash every 1 second. thoughts?
What kind of glue would you recommend when reassembling the unit?
little late to the party, but i'm curious how hard would it be to replace parts? in particular the battery? i love this little guy and he's great at events, but he only gets about 10-15 minutes of battery life before needing to be charged again. also, how hard would it be to incorporate the IR tracking feature into a life sized model?
Thanks for showing us, Mike! Really nice track mechanism with that bottom mass. If you get a chance, can you weigh the head? It looks light from the way your handling it.
Hello Mike, I have a BB8 droid also with a slow red light flashing on the ball body with a faster red light flashing on the head part. Does it mean the battery is dead? I charged the body for full 3 hours and the charger showed the battery is fully charged. Also fully charged the head unit. Does it mean the main battery needs to be replaced in the body? Thanks!
Very informative. I wanna get one and rebuild it with an AI and tools almost like star wars.
Can you please make a video how to replace the battery/ where to buy battery ? My BB-8 battery drains fast. My little boy wants to play. I tell him BB-8 sleeping :)
Shida Battery technology NI-MH Battery 1800mAh 7,2v
I was watching also curious about the batteries and how replaceable they are to a novice.
Mike, I own a bb-8 hero and replaced both batteries using your deconstructed video…but now it is reassembled I get blinking lights on both pieces. I am assuming it has to do with the leveling device since it’s the only thing I removed. I live in SoCal and am looking for any help…would hate to just throw it out…thanks for the help!
It could be the leveling mechanism was not put back on properly. I talk about it in my video around the 3:03 area.
ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
If you got a remote that doesn’t even turn on- can you still make bb8 work? Ours just keeps blinking system error- not sure if it’s because remote won’t turn on
Great video. I love my bb8. I hadn't turned him on in a couple of years. I also forgot to remove his batteries, so I had a little corrosion on one of the coils. After cleaning, it comes on, but bb8 doesn't respond. Bb8 turns on and moves his head initially, but that's it. So sad.
It's fixable. You can do it:)
ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
That was super fun to watch! Thanks Mike =)
Hi i like the video where did you get that big bb8 in the background?
Hey @TheMikeSenna can you help me? The power and ground wires came off the charger board on the body for my spin master bb8…There are more than 2 solder joints and I want to make sure I get the correct ones when I solder back on…Can you help me?
Interesting that the bigger motor isn't centered, what did they use to counter balance that?
Any idea what frequency BB8 has or where I can get ahold of a new or used remote. Moved and can’t find the remote or chargers anymore.
Very Cool I just got mines
I lost my mind when you showed that bigger BB8 unit, where can you buy one? That one is cool!!!
Jeremy Lester He probably made it himself! There’s a whole community of people who like to create complete replicas of droids from Star Wars, it’s really cool!
Hey Mike! The battery life on mine has been reduced to about 25 minutes of play time. Would you consider that normal? Also it only takes about 50 minutes roughly to fully charge the main body. Thank you!
Also...would you recommend just replacing the battery? I really don't want to return the droid to the shop since I weathered the sucker for a few hours.
I’m not sure what the battery life is, but I think that sounds about right.
Thanks man! Your work is amazing!
Cool regular guy I was able to switch out the battery on the head and with the upgraded head battery the total life span of the regular ball battery is about an hour and 15,
Currently in the process of upgrading the body battery
Hello, I opened the droid and replaced the internal battery that was no longer charging, after that the droid seems to have misconfigured and has all the lights flashing, with the head out of position and does not respond to the control.
Do you happen to have any suggestions to fix this?
Just found one of these in the trash but need the charger. Any idea where to get one?
You'll either have to buy one with a charger or buy a charger alone which sells for over $50. There is no way to charge it without the charger specifically designed for it
How did some of you guys get this so early? Mine's on a preorder. Anyhow, great demo of the inside workings. Very interesting and I'd say Spin Master did a great job of engineering this little guy!
outsider238 The peeps that I talked to ordered just after midnight on Amazon.
Ah, that makes sense. I didn't know they were available for Force Friday II. I'm hoping you guys make a kit version of a "plug and play" full size version from the club. Unless some company, maybe even Sphero will make a full size one. That would be cool!
It is available on the Toys R Us website. The product isn't on the self yet, however you can order BB-8 and receive it within five business days. Free shipping too. :-)
I originally had it on order from Spin Master but I found out Best Buy is going to be selling these also, so I bought it from them since I had a $200 gift card so that worked out great!
Yes mine was ordered just after midnight on Force Friday on Amazon. Amazingly it arrived on Saturday!
good morning my bb-8 spin Does not work the red led of the body turn on and off why? Is it normal or should we charge the battery more? please help me, thank you
gotta charge the body for 3 hours before using it
thanks for the video, i was hoping to see where the battery is in this, mine seems to have battery issues, it sat forever since my son, now 9 stopped playing with it, its in great shape out side of that and my 3 year old loves it.... but battery is shot
I am going to swap my batteries also. I have like 4 of these bb8s so I will chop one up. For the head I might swap it out with 2 batteries and for the body I am thinking add or just upgrade. Not sure how yet.
I just opened mine to check why it doesn’t go forward or backward, I checked the gears set, and they’re locked, I don’t figure it out if it’s the motor or if it’s only the gears set, can you help me please?
Thank you for showing
how do you charge that thing
Update: Disregard message below. I found out where that switch needed to be. Another thing, It's my understanding that some people are regluing the sides. I decided not to. It just makes dismantling process more tedious and the possibility of breaking the plastic panels. Instead, I am using a very sticky braid that is usually used for automobiles. The ball has channels, and that is where I place the braid.
Well, I have taken the challenge. Disassembling BB8 I found relaxing, oddly enough. This replacement battery is due to arrive today. I have accounted for every screw for every part removed. Pictures included. However, there is one switch, and I have no idea where the heck it came from. It is small switch, rectangular in shape, with red and black wires coming from it located at the left hand side bottom of the bezel. I do not recall removing screws for this sensor. There is another sensor that looks just like it and it has yellow wires coming from. I recall removing those screws.
Any idea where this sensor is supposed to go?
Jonathan
Trying to decide if I'm going to open up the defective one we just received so we have it for Xmas morning, or if I will do a return and have a disappointed kiddo. The issue is that BB-8 won't move forward or backward. Could be a bad motor, but maybe it's just slipped off the gear/tooth track being jostled in shipping?
Just purchased one yesterday, turns out have the exact same issue you describe. I have been in contact with Spinmaster this morning and have arranged to ship the unit back to them for repair/replacement. They are covering the shipping costs. This looks like a well engineered toy. I don't know what the QA process is like, or if it received some minor damage on the long voyage from China to Ohio, USA.
You have recieved one of the "bad batch" BB-8s, which indeed have burnt out drive motors.You can contact Spin Master to get a replacement.
XxxRedrocker95xxX spinmaster replaced the whole unit. Took about a month for them to turn it around, it only cost us time, replacement unit works well.
That's good to hear. Spin master is great about replacing the product. something also to note is that you can buy a set of the antennas on the head incase the current ones bend or break.
Mike! I desperately need a service that can replace a battery on a BB 8 hero. Prefer replacement of both body and head. Any idea where one could get a service like this? Any ideas what kind of repair I could contact or ship my droid into?
Hello, I'm willing to help you if you are wanting any help.
ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
Hi, I have a question.
How can I reassemble my BB-8?
anyone in the comments?
Thank you very much!!!
Can you please explain how to change the battery?
Nice! Thanks for sharing!
Great video, thank you Mike.
P.S, Love the real life sized BB-8.
Thanks, much appreciated!
Does anyone know why my son's BB8 will not move at all? If so, then can you please tell me how to fix it? I already have the body apart but not sure what I need to be checking in order to fix the issue?
Hello,
Nice demonstration indeed, have one also & would have never take such risks ;)
I'm much more interested in the bigger RC model, which one is it, will check your channel for eventual details but if you can please hint me, it looks & feels awesome.
cheers!
Do u think this could be put into a full scale one with minor modifications?
Thats what im gonna try.
The question is how can this be modified to fit a actual sized bb8
...11:26
Anyone have a link of where to get a new battery for the ball? I have it opened and the old one is out. Big pain in the butt
One more question, sorry. Is there a way to intensify the red and blue lights coming from the head? There are no body lights, sadly. But If I can make the head lights brighter that would make up the difference.
I haven't tried. It all depends on the specs of the LEDs. I haven't messed with it so I have no idea what, if any can be substituted or added.
If you stomach can handle it, dismantle it down to it's constituent parts and use photogrammetry to scale up the parts.
Hi I would like to know if you can help me. I have one of these and his head falls off when he turns.
Do you know what can happen?
Before booting him up, twist his head around yourself. The head should lock in the upright position, it should not easily turn when you push it, nor should it be leaning over. If the head isn't locked in correctly, chances are you only have one of the magnets locked in. There are two magnets that need to be attached, one on the front or BB-8's head, and one in the back. If only one of them is locked in, it is not strong enough to hold itself on.
i bought one from goodwill and followed your video on how to take the body apart. i noticed that the black and red wires were detached from the power area. is there a way to take that apart so i can reconnect them. thanks
Honestly I took that apart to long ago to remember what it looks like. My advice though is to loo for any way to take it apart and try. Even if you have to cut away pieces to get to the connectors, give it a try if you see it’s not a structural or mechanical part. It don’t work now so you haven’t muchto loose.
Can you make a video on why my bb8 dies so quickly after charging
I know the 2 bigger fingers on top are the magnets, but what are the two smaller fingers?
They are also stabilizing Magnets. they keep the head from twisting to the left or right while driving.
Amazing demo of BB-8's inner workings, thanks Mike! Just curious though, I've seen footage of the SpinMaster Hero BB-8 spinning on the spot, but didn't see any kinda fly-wheel on the tech you showed. How do you think he spins?
Ryan Jenkyns There are no mechs in him that will make him spin.
The video yo usaw, was the demonstration back in 2017 for the prototype, as the tech used to make him spin was removed in the final product.
Hey, so you'd have to take him apart to replace the internal battery, yes? If so, that is a shame.
Anybody know whether it's possible to replace the internal battery? My unit hasn't been charged in a while and it seems no longer to hold charge. Any help would be great!
It's possible. I just did mine and it's not too bad. Just have to be careful removing those two round discs. That was the by far the most challenging part of the job.
ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
@@rickmoore2055 thanks! I've reached out to you on your video. Hopefully you can help!
Good video thanks
Hey Mike. Great informative video. I have a question. How does one replace the rechargeable batteries? The impression that I have gotten from Spin Master is that once the rechargeable batteries are no longer accepting a charge, there goes your $229.00 in the garbage. So in another words, don't expect to sell it on ebay thirty years from now. LOL
Jay Thomas Well you would crack it open and replace the battery. No other way.
It was a lot of fun to take it apart and to see it come back to life:)
ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
Hi Mike!, I opened up my bb-8 because it stopped working, I found the motor that moves the weight at to bottom is bad, maybe got stuck and burned, do you know where can I find one? or a model number so I can find one with the same specs, I'm having a hard time finding any specs for the motor, thanks for your time
Hi Jorge, Sorry I do not know the model number or specs for that motor. Spin Master has a tech support number on their website, but I'm not even sure they can help as I don't think they go that deep into it.
@@TheMikeSenna Thanks for the fast response, I'll contact them to see if they do have any idea, or if I can buy one from them.
Find an electrical engineer. Have it fixed right
I wonder how can this be modified to fit a actual sized bb8
Mike, thanks for posting this video. I was able to disassemble my BB-8 and found that one of the two yellow wires connected to the home position sensor was broken off. I was getting the 'system error' blink. Hopefully fixing that will cure it. I was thinking about changing the battery, but it looks a little risky to get that out and I am not yet having battery issues.
That'd definitely do it, There was another person out there on UA-cam who fixed the system error. It looks like the wires can occasionally get caught in the gears that run the head, and get yanked out. I wish my droid had it that easy, haha. I believe mine has an issue with the encoder in the pendulum motor that tells it where it is rotated in relation to the rest of the droid. The motor spins in the same direction each time, regardless of the pendulum location, and it makes 3 small pauses inebtween turns. I'd assume this is just the droid trying to righten itself, and since it can't tell where the pendulum is located, it has no way of determining where to move the mass. Fingers crossed that this isn't fatal, but we'll see.
@@corellioncrusaderproductio4679 what did it end up being
@@lanewright7341 (If your BB-8 moves one of its motors 3 times in a row on startup, this fix is probably for you.) Inside, BB-8 has a small button sensor that the pendulum presses up against, which tells the robot when it is centered. That sensor was pressed so many times that the copped contact inside broke. If you switch it out with the one that detects the head, it powers up and works perfectly. When the robot can't find its center point, (when one of the buttons isn't getting pressed or is damaged and), it will rock the motor 3 times to try and find it, then give the system error. My first BB-8 had this issue happen several years ago, but recently I was able to get it to boot by switching the sensors.
If anyone is able to find a suitable replacement sensor for the board, let me know. I'm struggling to find the part online, and it appears to be a common fault on this BB-8. I'd love to put together a video documenting the repair.
@@corellioncrusaderproductio4679 so I just swapped out the sensors via soldering iron and no luck. Same error
@@lanewright7341 Does your BB-8 run any of the motors when it boots up?
Mike, I'm a big fan and a 501st Legion member. My question is, is this the same for the life size version of bb8?
Thanks!
TK/TB-41066, OUT.
This is one example of a pendulum type drive. The drive that is in this one cannot be transplanted into a life sized one. There is a lot of specialized programming for weight and other considerations. Other BB8s use a similar drive.
Mine makes that last sound, does that means it's out of balance?? 17:34
Same issue. I have taken mine apart and it seems the motor moves the weight all the way to left or right. The only place it doesn’t go is the center. I replaced the battery, but still having the same issue. Maybe the sensor for the weight is bad any suggestions?
@@claytonstults8319 I keep turning on/off the body while the head is attach, keep rotating the body until the axle is in the right spot. It's also important to know where you plug the charger, I memorize the exact spot, while I switch it on/off. Eventually the axle will latch.I don't take it apart anymore, just keep turning in on/off and rotate the body.
Thank you for your reply. I will try this today and hope for the best. What do you mean remember where you plug the charger? Do you mean remember the position of the weight while the charger is plugged in? If so I would imagine that is difficult once the body is assembled again. Thanks for your reply.
@@claytonstults8319 I mean once you are rotating it, the on/off switch should always be near the bottom of the body, a little bit away the middle align with the two lights on its head, if that makes sense. Once you figure it out, avoid bb8 from running through walls and couches, shoes on floor etc.. that's what's causing the issues. I use to never let my 5 year old daughter control bb8, but now that I figured out a way of fixing the problem I just rotate to fix the issue, keep telling my daughter to control bb8 in a not aggressive way. She is getting better at it. Good luck you can do this..
Great Video Mike! As a robotics and controls engineer I loved watching BB-8 in the movies.. When the toy came out I wondered how it worked... This explains it all very well.. I'm willing to bet that it would not to be too hard to upsize this using larger servos and a larger battery pack probably built into the weight.
I am sorry but do you sell your 1 to 1 scale bb8?
Nice!! So... I didn't see the battery, but it looks like is should be fairly easily replaceable once the time comes, unlike the sphero.
Hello, this video I made shows the battery replacement in the body and the head.
ua-cam.com/video/AuewrxMWJCc/v-deo.html
Where can I get a life size one? That is awesome!
Steve B this is life size!!!
Where is the Battery Pack?
Help please , head not turning on, get a green light , no lights , no sound , help please
So my BB8 powers on and responds to controls left and right but not forward or back. He gives the error lights and beeps. I took him apart but cannot find any obvious physical issues...anyone who could help me out???
Hi Mike my bb8 is having system error. Three LEDs are blinking non stop. How do I resolve ?
Hello. I might be able to assist you with your BB-8'S Hardware error through email. Do you happen to have an email I could talk to you by?
TheBackStabGaming yes lorettatay@gmail.com
I will respond to you there to help with any difficulties you are having. Thank you.
I have sent you an email, and I will await your response.
loose wires
Would you ever consider making life size bb8’s for people to buy? Because i would buy in a heart beat 😩
happy b it pretty much is life size lol
The BB-8/R2-D2/Wall-E Builders don't sell full sized units, since that's not what the hobby is about. You can go to Astromech.net and get limited part runs to build a droid, but they are not available to buy assembled. You have to piece it together over time, that's what it's all about!
This is great!!!!!!
How can I fix when this BB8 have a "system error" signal ？？Please answer, I need to fix my droid!!!
Sorry I do not know.
loose wires inside.
Has anyone reprogrammed or modified one of these?
That's what I want to know too
Can you send me the structure details so that I could design on cad for 3d printing
Great video, keep up the great work Thanks you, I like to add body lights to mine, is that possible ? Your bb8 is Awesome
The motor on mine won’t stop buzzing and whirring! It’s turned off. Not sure how to fix but spinmaster said they can’t do anything. It was charged two weeks ago and working fine. Last night it was in its corner and the motor started up. BB-8 does not move but the noise is loud and won’t stop. It’s essentially bricked and useless now. Rebooting does nothing. Don’t know where to take for repairs. Spin master offered me a 40% discount on an etch a sketch. They said they doing make them anymore and there’s no warranty and nothing they can do.
S B locate an electrical engineer. I had to do something similar for an iPhone. Apple couldn’t fix but the engineer replaced a chip
Does anyone know how to fix BB8 after taking it apart?
It can't be fixed without knowing what the problem is, what's wrong with your BB-8?
Thanks for the video because I have the same Bb8 but it won’t charge but now
You're like an Asian Mr. Rogers! I approve.
Henry Lam you don't realize how offensive that was do you...
Vance Martin I don’t think that’s offensive.... I’m pretty sure it was a compliment. Like, mentioning race/ethnicity isn’t inherently offensive, unless you make it so to be used in a derogatory way. It’s not rude to state that this man, is, in fact, Asian.
YOURE KILLING BB-8
What type of battery does the body carry, is it easy to change?
I need to build a full size!
Revvek dude why? it’s only off by a few inches.
Hey, where can I get a life size BB-8 ? Did you build it yourself from scratch ? Thanks!
Matrix u stupid
Hey mike still working well? Read a lot of people errors and stop working
I guess it’s hit and miss. Mine was working the last time I used it.
@@TheMikeSenna ah thanks for replying, I'm thinking of getting it but live in UK haha might just get a think way toys one dunno lol