How to deorbit a "module" for a contract?

[gslarmour]

So, I picked up a module recovery contract. I am playing a modified Career: all science unlocked and about 90M funds (I want the sandbox experience, but would like contracts for some sense of progression.) I digress. The module in question, Module HDFKT, is the size of an SRB. I've deorbited asteroids in 23.5, but nothing this ungainly. Does this just require a grabber unit and a lot of parachutes?

[MisterFister]

So, I picked up a module recovery contract. I am playing a modified Career: all science unlocked and about 90M funds (I want the sandbox experience, but would like contracts for some sense of progression.) I digress. The module in question, Module HDFKT, is the size of an SRB. I've deorbited asteroids in 23.5, but nothing this ungainly. Does this just require a grabber unit and a lot of parachutes?

Not sure what mods you're running, but you need something live-payload-return capable, which is NOT a standard design feature in most craft. Since you're in sandbox-ish, I advise an SSTO plane.

And as an aside, that's how I think SSTOs SHOULD be designed. They should be able to takeoff from the runway with full payload (whatever the payload rating is for your design class) achieve LKO, meet up with some stopoff orbital facility, detach payload, and land empty without refueling itself at the station, and ALSO be able to takeoff empty, get to the same orbital facility, take on that SAME payload, and then deorbit and land safely with the payload undamaged. (Note that this often requires re-strutting the payload within the payload bay, and that essentially means you need KAS, which is not up to snuff yet for v1.0.)

[impyre]

If you're using realchutes, a drag-chute setup can be engineered which will mitigate or eliminate damage due to reentry heating. Last night I deorbited a fully-fuelled 2.5m vessel, including skipper and half-size rockomax tank. No reentry effects were observed and exterior attachments were undamaged. So it's not inconceivable that a small claw-equipped vessel with drag-chute/main-chute combo could perform such a task. Also, it's worth noting that since my design used high-drag high-altitude chutes, I opened drag chutes at 69km. I set target altitude to 35km and target velocity to 1000m/s. Predeployment altitude of 69km, deployment altitude of 40km. Not only were there no reentry effects, but g-forces never went above 3g's. It's also doable in RSS, but you might want to use multiple drag-chute stages, and cut away higher drag stages as you get lower to keep g's from getting out of control and tearing your ship apart / liquifying your kerbals.