[WIP][1.8.x] SSTULabs - Low Part Count Solutions (Orbiters, Landers, Lifters) - Dev Thread [11-18-18]

[Jimbodiah]

Wow, looks nice! 

[astro_119]

Oh and whenever I try to click the SSTU parts together, they suddenly lose their connection nodes and I'm unable to press some stuff. 

(Using 1.2.2 versions of the mod, and playing in 1.2.2)

EDIT: It also does the same thing when I play in 1.3.1

 

Edited November 19, 2017 by BlaZe119

[Temeter]

Slightly OT, but I found this picture interesting:

Spoiler

Steel rockets can be quite reflective, even without a clear blue sky. Modern rockets are IIRC all plastics/composite. Looks like an older version of the Soyuz rocket, though. Newer one has silver parts at booster+2nd stage, and the upper seems longer.

 

edit: Okay, standard Steel preset might be a bit too shiny. Soyuz metall is really weird to judge; reflects like metal, but is quite dark and a bit dull as if there is some coating or so. Tried myself on what are the Soyuz and Progress variants:

I wonder if the manned variant has that white paint as an isolator for the LOX tanks, so they can keep it longer on the pad for the extensive manned procedures.

edit2: This is much better. Lower the metallic value, which was in the extreme region, and balanced out the brighter (if less mirrorlike) color by making the whole thing just darker. Specular could maybe get a slight bit lower, but I really like how this looks:

Spoiler

 

Edited November 19, 2017 by Temeter

[Temeter]

Sorry, doublepost^^

Edited November 19, 2017 by Temeter

[tater]

2 hours ago, BlaZe119 said:

Oh and whenever I try to click the SSTU parts together, they suddenly lose their connection nodes and I'm unable to press some stuff. 

(Using 1.2.2 versions of the mod, and playing in 1.2.2)

EDIT: It also does the same thing when I play in 1.3.1

Any other mods installed?

[Temeter]

The lighting looks so gooooooooooood, and I didn't even visit other planets!

[astro_119]

33 minutes ago, tater said:

Any other mods installed?

Nothing else.

[Temeter]

1 minute ago, BlaZe119 said:

Nothing else.

Weird, I got no such issue. Maybe you installed an newer over and older version of SSTU and there are superfluous files. Did you try removing/reinstalling the full mod?

[astro_119]

3 minutes ago, Temeter said:

Weird, I got no such issue. Maybe you installed an newer over and older version of SSTU and there are superfluous files. Did you try removing/reinstalling the full mod?

...

 

I didn't have ModuleManager installed

 

...all fixed...

Edited November 19, 2017 by BlaZe119

[Temeter]

Just now, BlaZe119 said:

...

 

I didn't have ModuleManager installed

 

...all fixed...

lul

[RedParadize]

Just now, BlaZe119 said:

I didn't have ModuleManager installed

Human error is human.

On the other side. When you said you had no other mod installed it was literally true! (do not forget CommunityResourcePack)

[astro_119]

Yeah, I have it.

[Temeter]

We all made those mistakes at some point.^^

Hence the remove/install thing is pretty useful.

[astro_119]

Does the mod come with new fuel tanks?
 

[vossiewulf]

6 hours ago, Shadowmage said:

Yes.  (It consists of SSTU code that was moved to an external plugin, to allow easier adoption of that code by other mods)

Edit: Minor adjustments to height/nrm..

 

Looks great and love the subtle mesh pattern, just right, more roughness than height.

BTW I saw a very good quality Apollo Quarterly Report video on Youtube the other day that had several minutes on the heat shield manufacture and if anything it was redder than the one I posted above.

Any interest in a redo of the recolor UI? I'd be happy to put a design together.

4 hours ago, Temeter said:

Steel rockets can be quite reflective, even without a clear blue sky. Modern rockets are IIRC all plastics/composite. Looks like an older version of the Soyuz rocket, though. Newer one has silver parts at booster+2nd stage, and the upper seems longer.

 

edit: Okay, standard Steel preset might be a bit too shiny. Soyuz metall is really weird to judge; reflects like metal, but is quite dark and a bit dull as if there is some coating or so. Tried myself on what are the Soyuz and Progress variants:

 

I wonder if the manned variant has that white paint as an isolator for the LOX tanks, so they can keep it longer on the pad for the extensive manned procedures.

edit2: This is much better. Lower the metallic value, which was in the extreme region, and balanced out the brighter (if less mirrorlike) color by making the whole thing just darker. Specular could maybe get a slight bit lower, but I really like how this looks:

Actually I think the first one is closer, it's just too blue. Steel, unless you're simulating tempering effects, is pretty much a more neutral gray like you have in the second, but the second one is too dark. So either lighten the value of the gray on the second one, or desaturate the first one and maybe a tinge darker. Just my two cents, your mileage may vary.

Edited November 19, 2017 by vossiewulf

[Temeter]

1 hour ago, BlaZe119 said:

Does the mod come with new fuel tanks?
 

Yep! Semi-procedural fuel tanks thank can take a lot of shapes and sizes, but are much more detailed and equipped with additional extensions compared to procedural parts.

Main types are a cylindrical and one (or a series of) circular basetank. Also got a slightly more limited upper stage, lander tank and soyuz style droppable booster. Also a procedural SRB. Maybe I forgot something; this mod has a lot of stuff.

 

16 minutes ago, vossiewulf said:

Actually I think the first one is closer, it's just too blue. Steel, unless you're simulating tempering effects, is pretty much a more neutral gray like you have in the second, but the second one is too dark. So either lighten the value of the gray on the second one, or desaturate the first one and maybe a tinge darker. Just my two cents, your mileage may vary.

Thanks, that is good advice. Probably a bit less specular and brighter color it is.

It is a bit hard to tell, because pictures are varying, different types of Soyuz' use different colors. Soyuz 2.1 ad the progress variants even seems structurally modified, not to mention different paint schemes.

 

Edited November 19, 2017 by Temeter

[astro_119]

17 minutes ago, Temeter said:

Yep! Semi-procedural fuel tanks thank can take a lot of shapes and sizes, but are much more detailed and equipped with additional extensions compared to procedural parts.

Main types are a cylindrical and one (or a series of) circular basetank. Also got a slightly more limited upper stage, lander tank and soyuz style droppable booster. Also a procedural SRB. Maybe I forgot something; this mod has a lot of stuff.

2

welp, I don't appear to have any fuel tanks

EDIT: are there only 6 fuel tanks?

Edited November 19, 2017 by BlaZe119

[vossiewulf]

Bah, found the video. Command module heatshield section starts at 11:15 but I recommend watching the whole thing, interesting stuff. Almost all of the Saturn and Apollo quarterly reports are on youtube, I found a couple playlists with them and stream them to my TV for several hours of intense rocketry geekdom.

Another example of the interesting things you can find on youtube these days is General Dynamic's LEM proposal from 1962, that of course eventually went to Grumman. One might even say it would make an interesting addition to a mod

 

Edited November 19, 2017 by vossiewulf

[RedParadize]

@BlaZe119I can assure you that there is. 

First off, if you are using 1.2.2, what version of SSTU are you using? At least as far as I am aware of the last version prior to 1.3.0 is 0.5.34.134. 

So no PBR for you. Why don't you update to 1.3.1? 
 

Edited November 19, 2017 by RedParadize

[Nightside]

16 minutes ago, BlaZe119 said:

welp, I don't appear to have any fuel tanks

EDIT: are there only 6 fuel tanks?

There are only about 6 tanks that show up in the sidebar of the editor. However, once you place the tank (try the MFT-A) and right click on it you will see that you have nearly infinite set of combinations, including different nosecones and mounts and even recoloring. 

[Temeter]

Hm, is this better? Looks a bit brownish, which might either come from the blue reflection, or the way colors are set up.

Spoiler

Btw Shadowmage, the Soyuz capsule textures work surprisingly well:

Spoiler

Compared to the real thing:

Spoiler

Of course the real one looks a lot rougher and a lot less streamlined, but the metal fabric textures hold up better than I expected.

Edited November 19, 2017 by Temeter

[vossiewulf]

35 minutes ago, Temeter said:

Thanks, that is good advice. Probably a bit less specular and brighter color it is.

It is a bit hard to tell, because pictures are varying, different types of Soyuz' use different colors. Soyuz 2.1 ad the progress variants even seems structurally modified, not to mention different paint schemes.

This is a pretty good reference. And yes, various alloys can be brighter or a bit darker, but they won't stray too far from the below.

Don't get me started on steel, I'm a tools geek also to the point that I buy steel from special sources and grind them to special shapes and make my own carving/modeling tools. Below is a screenshot of a matching pair of L/R single-bevel knives I made with Japanese steel and Amboyna burl (from Australia) wood, with my favorite finish of solid super glue.  Brass end balances were made on my small metal lathe, they're sized to make them balance just a bit forward of center, it makes a difference (to me)

If you're wondering, yes, if you bounce one into your finger it won't stop until it hits bone.

Spoiler

 

Edited November 19, 2017 by vossiewulf

[Temeter]

Haha, to me steel is just all weird silvery reflections and stuff.

It's just weird to me that soyuz rockets always look so dark and a bit dull on pictures to me. Seems like more than just steel.

Spoiler

 

Edited November 19, 2017 by Temeter

[vossiewulf]

1 minute ago, Temeter said:

Haha, to me steel is just all weird silvery reflections and stuff.

It's just weird to me that soyuz rockets always look so dark and a bit dull on pictures to me.

  Hide contents

 

 

That can't be plain steel. It looks like it has some kind of finish on it, that looks more like gray paint than steel, the reflectivity looks like a non-conductive surface.

[CatastrophicFailure]

12 minutes ago, vossiewulf said:

If you're wondering, yes, if you bounce one into your finger it won't stop until it hits bone.

 Not to wander off topic but what do you use those for, surgery??