Hi Toff, You are not alone. Only just installed Kerbal myself and my I\'m running on high octane enthusiasm rather than finely enigneered experience & knowledge ;D Apart from the obvious playing and exploding - I\'ve downloaded a couple of stock rockets that seem quite stable, but I also mess around adding / removing bits from these and this gives me something of a clue on how various bits interact. I\'ve already found that a rocket where things go wrong - usually indicated by a large explosion and loss of crew - can be made much better (or in some cases worse) by making small changes to the separation of various stages. I actually managed to get off the pad and out into space (notice I don\'t say \'orbit\') just with manual guidance .... without using the S.R.S. Of course my enthusiasm was sort lived when I realised I couldn\'t get back ! The one thing I have learnt so far is ..... .................... Put a big enough engine on it and even a brick can fly! G.