How long have you kept a vehicle design?

[Wolfos31]

[quote name='Red Iron Crown']I have a standard plane and rocket that I use in every version, they're my "control" to see changes in the aero model.[/QUOTE]

This is a really brilliant idea and I'm a bit disappointed I've never thought of it. Have either of those designs ever been affected by part changes? For example when they made the incline reaction wheel smaller.

Myself I try to standardize but I'm not often very good at it. There are a few exceptions, I have a little one seater VTOL plane I call the WASP that I recreate each new version. The different versions have minor changes but for the most part it's the same as it's always been. This career save I've been better than usual about using sub-assemblies, I have a 15 ton launcher to LKO that is an orange tank, a skipper, and a couple of SRBs that I've used a few dozen times. I definitely appreciate saving a bit of time in the VAB when I can.

Landers, rovers, and stations I almost always custom design though. I feel like they can always use a bit of improvement.

[Red Iron Crown]

[quote name='Wolfos31']This is a really brilliant idea and I'm a bit disappointed I've never thought of it. Have either of those designs ever been affected by part changes? For example when they made the incline reaction wheel smaller. [/QUOTE]
I've been lucky so far that the only changes have been cosmetic (post 1.0 anyway).

[theend3r]

I have usually two launchers that I use, with slight modifications if necessary, throughout my whole game each version, one medium, one (super)heavy.
The only major redesign to most of my launchers was with the ARM update so I could lower the part count.

As for SSTOs, I've had the same SSTOs untile the Mk2 redesign and since the redesign, I have the same SSTOs till now. They take so much time to develop to be of any use, that redesigning them is out of the question.
I have about 4 of them and each took me a few days of tinkering to get them right and get them to be stable in FAR that I dread the next time I'll have to redesign them again.

TL;DR yes, I keep my designs for as long as possible.

[Captain Vlad]

Once I design a Mun lander, for instance, I usually keep using the basic design but make small improvements to it based on mission performance until I can't think of anything else to make it better. And then I'll keep using it as long as I keep needing a vehicle that does what it was designed to do, or if it can accomplish something different with some small tweaks. I'll also do variants of older craft modified with new stuff I've unlocked.

I do build some 'one-off' craft. Some are those that just don't work the way I wanted. Some were meant to accomplish something I then found a better way to do. And some were meant to do a very specific thing that I didn't have to do again (a long-duration Mun lab paired with a rover to sample the last few biomes I hadn't gotten in my previous career is a good example).

There is also this great little category of craft that I like so much I will find ways to use them just as an excuse to fly them. I'm the most prone to that with jets, but I currently have a LKO rocket I'm very proud of. Fully recoverable except for the SRBs, and can work as a crew transfer vehicle, an LKO rescue rocket, a tourist hauler, etc. I love that thing. Edited November 25, 2015 by Captain Vlad

[Itsdavyjones]

I have always custom built my rockets depending on the mission, but for the first time, I will be making dedicated launchers, once I get past the, can only just make it to orbit, darn part count restrictions.

[Draconiator]

I have some dedicated launchers in my Subassemblies, depending on what size my payload is. For small sattlites, to big pieces of stations. I upgrade them from time to time, but usually I use them as is.