BZ-52 Radial Attachment Point What's it used for?

[rollo1002]

OK so I put the BZ-52 radial attachment point on a science center that I sent to Mun thinking if I needed to add anything I'd be ready. Well as usual with kids about I got distracted and forgot to put on an antenna on. So began the numerous launches of rovers and items to get something to connect to the Radial Attachment Point. No luck with attaching anything yet so my question is does anything attach to this on the surface of planets? If not what's if for?

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/BZ-52_Radial_Attachment_Point

Edited June 19, 2015 by rollo1002

[RapidUnplannedDissasembly]

Oh yeah, this part doesn't act like a docking port, I can see where you're confusion arises- the part is just for making a neat radial in the VAB or SPH connection onto 1.25 meter parts. It is massless and dragless, despite what it's part description says- its just a nicer looking alternative to a cubic octagonal strut. If you want to attach crafts together, you should use docking ports.

Edited June 18, 2015 by RapidUnplannedDissasembly

[rollo1002]

That's what I was afraid of. So I guess at this point I'm pretty much screwed and unable to attach any kind of communications to the science center?

Edited June 18, 2015 by rollo1002
added image

[A35K]

I'm afraid you can't attach anything to that in flight. It basically just offers a radial attachment point only during building in VAB/SPH, but most use cubic octagonal struts instead.

[RapidUnplannedDissasembly]

That's what I was afraid of. So I guess at this point I'm pretty much screwed and unable to attach any kind of communications to the science center?

Well, I don't know much about it, but there is a mod called Kerbal Attachment System which I think would allow you to attach things to your science centre via winches and pipes and things, and it then counts both the crafts as one, but it is quite hard to get to grips to, I think. But I don't know really, I haven't used it.

Edited June 18, 2015 by RapidUnplannedDissasembly

[jkool702]

You send something up that could attach to it with a claw (i.e. advanced grabbing unit), however you could just as well attach to any part of the craft (not just the radial attachment point). I believe that once attached it has all the same properties as a docking port (although I'm not 100% sure on that point).

[capi3101]

Well, I don't know much about it, but there is a mod called Kerbal Attachment System which I think would allow you to attach things to your science centre via winches and pipes and things, and it then counts both the crafts as one, but it is quite hard to get to grips to, I think. But I don't know really, I haven't used it.

Kerbal Attachment System - and to make it work you also need the new Kerbal Inventory System as well (KIS is a requirement of KAS in 1.0.x, as the two mods now share the same inventory system) = Highly Recommended. I use it and I've done this kind of work in 1.0.x my own self recently (in my case I used it to remove a Clamp-O-Tron Jr. and replace it with a full sized Clamp-O-Tron on an orbiting space station). OP, you should check out those mods if you want to save your mission - just send up Bill or whatever engineer you've got available with the antenna part you want to attach, have him attach it, profit.

BZ-52s were some of my favorite parts from the olden days - they were useful for building clusters of powerful engines (better than Mainsails) in the days before the Mk3 parts showed up, and they're still useful for that same purpose today (I built myself a craft just last night had an engine cluster in the core - career game without Mk3 rocket parts unlocked yet).

Observe their usefulness (this album is OLD - back when nukes still required oxidizer - but it still demonstrates the point methinks):

Javascript is disabled. View full album

The reason why Cubic Octagonals are more popular - they have less of a footprint, and (according to the stats anyway) the BZ-52s add more mass to a craft. BZ-52s also have a higher price point. Me, I always thought they looked cleaner. Plus in the olden days the Cubic Octagonals were at the far end of the tech tree, so you got BZ-52s first.

Edited June 18, 2015 by capi3101

[rollo1002]

Thanks everyone for the help to a solution. I was able to somehow make "The Claw" work. It's not pretty but now have a science station on Mun that I can use.

[MaverickSawyer]

I only use the BZ-52 for mounting shielded docking ports in oddball spots on the sides of things.

[Snark]

I used to love good ol' BZ-52 in the pre-1.0 days, was handy for making contraptions (e.g. for a "build a new station supporting N kerbals", could put these on the side of a fuel tank so I could attach Mk2 passenger modules, which are lighter than a Hitchhiker). Never used the cubic octagonal struts for that purpose, because it just jarred on me, felt really wrong and "exploity".

However, post-1.0, I find I use the BZ-52 much less often, mainly because any ship design that requires it is likely to be very non-aerodynamic and therefore harder to launch.

[Kryxal]

About the only thing I might use the BZ-52 for is surface-attaching reaction wheels or OKTO2s so I can send that final launch stage back into atmosphere.

[Starhawk]

Perhaps its purpose is to generate forum threads asking this very question.

Happy landings!

[Michael R]

Thanks everyone for the help to a solution. I was able to somehow make "The Claw" work. It's not pretty but now have a science station on Mun that I can use.

http://i.imgur.com/dizkH9x.png?1

This is a properly Kerbal solution to an otherwise catastrophic spacecraft design oversight.

[FancyMouse]

I use it for mounting radial senior docking port to my space station.

[Skorpychan]

Thanks everyone for the help to a solution. I was able to somehow make "The Claw" work. It's not pretty but now have a science station on Mun that I can use.

http://i.imgur.com/dizkH9x.png?1

That's the spirit. Probably better than docking ports for expanding bases.