CptRichardson

You know, Charon seems oddly elongated...

Huh, pretty sure I suggested that a while back. Hmm. Well, there are a couple of big issues with the idea: One, you would need a better retrothrust system, and a rocket VTOL system in order to land the Mk2 hull. Two, you'd run into some other issues with the typical targets of an ISRU system, since they're mostly airless rocks. It'd take a lot of thought... Well, maybe a set of super-gimbaled engines you could use alongside the quad-junction... Or...*ponders.*

It's mostly not doing so well because he hasn't had time to properly update the engines. He put out an emergency patch to fix the worst bugs, but it's mostly untouched. Of course, my big problem with the designs is that while WIDE, they lack the height to make use of that wideness, as they couldn't fit proper 3.75 meter parts in.

I'm completely fine with an endgame 'everything else is tonka toys comparatively' engine. Another thing I just thought of: The Mk 3 inverter could have intakes on it. It's big enough to have at least two intakes the size of 1.25 meter rams.

"Keep Calm and Call Manley."

OPT plane expansion provides one in one of its proprietary fuselage designs.

What, like another dwarf planet hit it and made Charon?

Like a wing. With a linear aerospike poking out the back. That shoots flames 50 feet back, scorching the sides of your aircraft black. Come to think of it, there's a lot you could do with Mk3 wings, come to think of it. But that's after the Mk3 expansion.

Something that might be really freaking awesome, and really freaking hard to make at the same time: Aerospike wings. Control surface and engine at the same time, designed to match the stock shuttle wings, but with the control surface section replaced with a linear aerospike that doubles as a flap/elevator.

Because every starship needs a captain.

I might also suggest a Mk3 to Mk3 inverter as well. Actually, for the chines, it might be good for leading-edge chines to be designed to be intakes as well.

Oh hey! That's pretty freaking awesome. Now we just need an IVA artist... Well, I could fitz with the files to see if I could come up with a RPM module for it. I'd have NO IDEA WHAT I'M DOING, but I'd Jeb the crap out of the project. Maybe put in a bunch of little camera holes to suggest that the cockpit view is in fact a great big LED screen that's all inside the hypersonic nosecone.

Actually, I'd say to turn it into a 'High Acceleration Cockpit' where the pilot is strapped in standing up to better withstand the G-force of being strapped to the front of a super-powerful engine, with lots of windows and a fancy IVA. Or maybe some kind of 'High Thermal Protection Cockpit', which in the description is lawyer-speak for 'we were too cheap to engineer windows that could handle getting punched in the face with atmosphere, so we're leaving this poor sucker to run this thing on instruments and cameras'. And then just put in the advanced Mk 1 IVA without the window.

Make them the same width as the stock probe core, or maybe twice as thick. The legs fold flush into the hull when retracted, hinging at either the apex of the bottom or at the sides depending on how you want to orient them. The feet swing around from where they're locked into place to adjust for landing, and a spreader/shock adsorber section extends to stabilize the craft. You could also use this design for hull-integrated wheels. Other things that might help would be to potentially include a compact form-factor Mk2 VTOL rocket for the theoretical landngs on airless bodies that would use them, and a retro-rocket nosecone (could probably already be designed with existing parts, but would be easier with an aerodynamic part that could expose retro-rockets.

Porkjet, just before he abandoned them to modify his original Mk 2 parts for stock. He never released them despite pleading due to the formfactor being changed for the stock compilation.

There's always the option of more POOOOWAH! I just use a 4-rapier cluster to punch the sound barrier until it gives me its lunch money and I POWAH climb into orbit that way.

I mean 'vertical Mk2 vertically adapted to standard oriented Mk 3'.

How about a Mk 2 to Mk 3 adaptor based on a vertical Mk 2 orientation?

You know, would you be willing to branch into Mk 3 parts? I've got an idea for flipping the Mk 3 system on its side...

Jebidiah has a father. His name is Manley.

Idea: Literally expanded Mark 2. Split vertically down the centerline length so as to insert a flat across 1.25 meter section in between with a variety of different fillings. Shielded Engine Mount, double width cargo bay, retro engine system for landing, drill bay system that lowers the drill down from inside the hold, etc. Might also provide a much higher lift rating, like one of the large wings.

What about a Mark 2 end-cap that merges flat with a surface, like the angled aerocones? The idea being to create an endpiece that radially attaches to a Mark 3 fuselage, or to a rocket (so you can radially mount the nuke engines on)

Two things I'd like to see (one of which I requested previously) are: A command module with the bay omitted in favor of a living module in the bay space for long-term habitation of a small crew, with forward airlock. A massive cargo bay for transporting modules in the warp field to deep range stations or places like Laythe or Duna with the old reactor somewhere aboard somehow. (Like say, almost to the diameter of the rings wide, opens up in sections or something). Basically, a way to make a cargo Manley instead of an explorer Manley.

I dunno, I think you could get away with a lot of teeny nozzles shifting back and forth on the model to crudely shift back and forth.

The US literally has people PAYING to hold its debt. Like, all of the country's debt is making money rather than costing money from the stupidly low interest rates. And, the only reason the debt is so high is because of a certain president who's name starts with a 'B' and ends with an 'H' deciding to go on ill-advised land war in asia while... cutting the taxes that are supposed to pay for it. Turns out, cutting government services is the worst possible thing you can do in a recession/economic crisis, as the government is the only one who has the resources to invest in the market at times. So, no. Not crippling debt, and it's only bad because the government won't pay money to make much, much more money.