Liquid Fuel SSTOs

[Thinking Potato Gamer]

This challenge is simple yet tricky. Recently, as of posting this challenge, I created an SSTO based ONLY on liquid fuel. I want you to do something similar, create an SSTO based only on liquid fuel.

[sevenperforce]

18 minutes ago, Thinking Potato Gamer said:

This challenge is simple yet tricky. Recently, as of posting this challenge, I created an SSTO based ONLY on liquid fuel. I want you to do something similar, create an SSTO based only on liquid fuel.

Not too terribly hard, but sure, it's somewhat of a challenge. Why don't you add scoring of some kind? Like "lowest launch mass wins" or "highest payload fraction wins"?

[sevenperforce]

Or hey, how about this -- lowest part count to get at least one Kerbal into LKO with an LF-only HTOL SSTO?

[DrLicor]

 

[Pro100kerbonaut]

Scoring can be Kerbals to orbit / Mass

[sevenperforce]

I have a fifteen-part LF-only SSTO that can put two Kerbals in LKO with 2.6 km/s of dV remaining.

Can probably get it down to 11 or 12 parts but it would require some overly-creative part-clipping. Roll-out mass is 18.93 tonnes. This drops to 14.8 tonnes if I drain everything but what I need to reach orbit.

[Rocket In My Pocket]

Here I'll kick things off for ya.

Just whipped this up in a few minutes, very simple; takes one Kerbal to orbit with about 1200ish m/s of Dv left. "The MantaRay1" ...didn't try to bring it back down, since it wasn't part of the challenge. I assume she'd be alright though despite her weak wings.

If we're doing Kerbals per tonne, it weighs 21.581 tonnes; so...1 Kerbal per 21 and a 1/2 tonnes...should be easy to beat! (Although I guess I could take fuel out since I don't need the extra Dv in orbit...maybe later.)

Edited December 14, 2017 by Rocket In My Pocket

[Scarecrow]

I took a recent flying wing design of mine, changed the engines from Wheesleys to something that operates a bit better in the higher atmosphere, and added a couple of those radiation filled things to the back.  Made it to orbit quite easily.

[sevenperforce]

All right, I'm tired of seeing all these monstrosities, so here's my minimalist entry.

Ten parts. 10.1 tonnes. One kerbal. Makes orbit easily, once you get it off the ground. You can pack enough fuel into it to reach Munar orbit, though I haven't tested landing yet. 

As you can see, the ramjet is attached to the rear node of the LV-N, then clipped inside it. Which feels cheaty, but oh well. Really cuts down on drag nicely, though! The wing is also clipped across the intake-cum-fuselage, and the single elevon is clipped through both engines. This is only possible because the large wing's center of lift is exactly at the same point as its center of mass, and its center of mass does not shift as its fuel is drained. 

Together, the single elevon and rear-mounted canard provide a surprising amount of pitch and yaw authority, though the only source of roll authority is the reaction wheel inside the cockpit (which is drained of monoprop, for obvious reasons).

[Laie]

@DrLicor: oh, pipe down. "Build a spaceplane that works on fuel only" is a valid challenge. Actually, quite hard when doing it for the first time. @Thinking Potato Gamer probably didn't expect that there'd be so many people with pre-existing craft up their sleeves.

As for myself, I'm a bit suprised at the amount of flying wings.

@Scarecrow: that's a pretty. Mine may go to Duna and back, but yours looks like I wish mine would.

[sevenperforce]

Final entry. I challenge anyone to beat this.

Reaches orbit with no trouble at all. Not going to place bets on coming down in one piece, though.

[Rocket In My Pocket]

5 minutes ago, Laie said:

@Thinking Potato Gamer probably didn't expect that there'd be so many people with pre-existing craft up their sleeves.

As for myself, I'm a bit suprised at the amount of flying wings.

Hey! I made mine custom for this challenge lol. Although I had no clue what the scoring was yet.

I actually like the big airliner wing in general, but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say the 600 units of liquid fuel wrapped up in a bunch of lift was the deciding factor.

[AeroGav]

2 hours ago, Scarecrow said:

I took a recent flying wing design of mine, changed the engines from Wheesleys to something that operates a bit better in the higher atmosphere, and added a couple of those radiation filled things to the back.  Made it to orbit quite easily.

That thing is very pretty.   But, the mk1 bicoupler is a horribly draggy part,  don't use it !  I prefer to attach nervs using type b nosecones or ncs adapters instead.    Also,  i reckon it only needs one Whiplash.

 

I have a large number of pre-existing designs that are liquid fuel only.

Most Kerbals per Mass is probably this thing -

https://kerbalx.com/AeroGav/Lusitania

80 Kerbals for 88.81 Tons 

Heaviest payload fraction - 50%

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1qa991p3trpa2qm/Thanksgiving Partridge.craft?dl=0

ag 1 - nose up trim   ag 2 - neutral trim ag 3 - nose down trim ag 4 - strong nose down trim ag 5 - nukes ag 9 afterburners off

Good combo of delta v and crew capacity on this thing - 

https://kerbalx.com/AeroGav/MK1-Griffon-Deep-Space-Crew-Shuttle

 

Lowest tech / simplest (by my standards)

https://kerbalx.com/AeroGav/Voodoo-Ray

 

[linuxgurugamer]

My very first SSTO, not stock, Tweakscale was used to make engines smaller.  Extra unnecessary parts are there for looks, I was taking some pics of it.  It gets to orbit, and can even reenter and land.  KerbalX says 49 parts, but if you remove the fluff,  it's less than 38 parts

https://kerbalx.com/linuxgurugamer/Spacetuxs-SSTO

 

 

Edited December 14, 2017 by linuxgurugamer

[Rocket In My Pocket]

7 minutes ago, linuxgurugamer said:

My very first SSTO, not stock, Tweakscale was used to make engines smaller.  Extra unnecessary parts are there for looks, I was taking some pics of it.

https://imgur.com/a/iYMlt

 

Nice! I like the open cockpit lol. Feel that solar wind in your hair.

Edited December 14, 2017 by Rocket In My Pocket

[linuxgurugamer]

Just now, Rocket In My Pocket said:

Nice! I like the open cockpit lol. Feel that solar wind in your hair.

  Reveal hidden contents

Imgur is kind of a pain; if you want the screenshot to show a preview here you have to right click it and open it in a new window. The copy paste that link from your address bar and use it here.

 

I know, and if you look, you can see that I was in the process of updating it.  Kind of Ninja'd me.

[Rocket In My Pocket]

So...all these SSTO's and we have no clue what anyone's score is lol.

I declare us all winners!

 

Edited December 14, 2017 by Rocket In My Pocket

[XLjedi]

https://kerbalx.com/XLjedi/SR-13-Venom

"Venom" as in "Liquid"

[sevenperforce]

2 hours ago, sevenperforce said:

Final entry. I challenge anyone to beat this.

Reaches orbit with no trouble at all. Not going to place bets on coming down in one piece, though.

Just reflew this with a full tank (launch mass: 8.18 tonnes) and it reaches LKO with 721 m/s of dV to spare. Or 595 kg of payload, if you had a place to put it.

Edited December 14, 2017 by sevenperforce

[Rocket In My Pocket]

1 minute ago, sevenperforce said:

Just reflew this with a full tank (launch mass: 8.18 tonnes) and it reaches LKO with 721 m/s of dV to spare. Or 595 kg of payload, if you had a place to put it.

Put a couple ladders on the side and have some more Kerbals hang on!

[zolotiyeruki]

I don't think the game allows you to run engines while kerbals are on ladders.

[Rocket In My Pocket]

1 hour ago, zolotiyeruki said:

I don't think the game allows you to run engines while kerbals are on ladders.

Oh, it does! Lol.

Doing it in Atmo isn't advisable though, the Aero forces will blow them off.

In space or roving it's totally doable as well though; I use ladders as emergency "seats" on quite a few vehicles. I even have a heatshield with a ladder on it a Kerbal can ride down through re-entry! Time-warping is dangerous though.

[*MajorTom*]

sometimes i like to do apart flight SSTO.... it is usually have 4-5 km dV to distant flight return back redock and landing... so... here for this challenge

and peoples i really hate R.A.P.I.E.R.s ...so no rapiers... hypersonic flight on "Whiplash" is better for me...

there is no real reason to move atm.engines...intaKes and wings to another planet isn't it? maybe this is the one od good design to ssto (because nothing else but pure fuel/nuKe engine/sol panel) on main mission

ps: @sevenperforce :)-    

Edited December 15, 2017 by *MajorTom*

[NSEP]

I tried it once and although im very inefficient with SSTO. I reached orbit with 3km/s of DV left.

I think i should try again.

[Rocket In My Pocket]

2 hours ago, NSEP said:

I tried it once and although im very inefficient with SSTO. I reached orbit with 3km/s of DV left.

I think i should try again.

I think the challenge is most Kerbals to orbit for lowest mass, but I'm not 100% sure on that yet lol.

The OP never specified anything past "make an all liquid SSTO."

Edited December 18, 2017 by Rocket In My Pocket