How to lift 14400 tanks into the orbit?

[Cannon]

What's the most efficient and economical way to put full 14400 tank into the orbit (100km)?

Anything i try is too expensive, the lowest i could get was 300k.

Feel free to post pictures or craft files.

Thanks in advance!

Edited August 17, 2015 by Cannon

[Gaarst]

Most economical is to launch them empty and fill them using your Minmus mining operation. Though that requires some kind of previous setup.

As shown in the posts below, the following is kinda very far from truth, I apologise for saying utter BS :

[Anyway, for lifting a 80 ton payload to LKO, you're not going to make it for much under 300k Kredits.]

Edited August 16, 2015 by Gaarst
Corrected Post

[GoSlash27]

"economical" would be launching it empty and filling it in orbit using SSTO spaceplanes.

But you're asking about a full tank in one go, so let me consult the mighty trash heap...

80t, 2 stages. 1/2 atmospheric first stage at 1.4G, .5G second stage at vacuum.

*inserts quarter and pulls lever*

Upper stage: Mainsail with 96.6t full tank. 183t mass and $30,600

Lower stage: Mammoth with 228t full tank. 426t mass and $78,000 ($108,600 total)

Will need some SRBs to get it moving, as a single Mammoth will only generate .9G loaded to this weight.

The trash heap has spoken!

-Slashy

Edited August 16, 2015 by GoSlash27

[Tex_NL]

...

Anyway, for lifting a 80 ton payload to LKO, you're not going to make it for much under 300k Kredits.

Oh yes you can!

Check out my largest shuttle design. It can lift 90 tons to a 100*100km orbit. http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/29533-What-did-you-do-in-KSP-today?p=2125604#post2125604

Sure, on the launchpad it will cost you much more than 300k but with a little practice the most of it (all except the SRB's and nose-tank) can be landed on the runway for 100% recovery.

Edited August 16, 2015 by Tex_NL

[Sharpy]

Economical is NOT launching it empty, but launching it full and depleting on ascent.

Also: you can go with lower initial investment or higher recovery value.

Anyway, here's a plain old-fashioned disposable-stages launchpad rocket for 125,672 that lifts the tank into orbit full.

If you want to do better than that, you'll have to start recovering. Warzouz's Cygnus RR-75 does what you want, and if you can land it semi-precisely, the launch will cost you under 30,000 plus cost of the tank and some aerodynamic cap. Initial investment: around 160,000.

And if you go with orbital refueling, and have the infrastructure in place, you'll get it done for the cost of one mainsail and one probe core.

Seriously, part count: 3, cost 26,450 out of which 13,000 is the tank. There's an asteroid some 300m/s away, with a base on the surface and a drone with the klaw that can dock the tank to it and refill it for free.

Would you mind telling us what is it you're doing that you're running your costs so high?

Edited August 16, 2015 by Sharpy

[Jouni]

The Twin-Boar is probably the most cost-effective engine for launching large payloads.

This rocket delivers the fuel tank (and a few other parts) to a 120 km orbit for 107,484 (including the payload) without resorting to silly things, such as refueling or recovery.

[RexKramer]

Economical is NOT launching it empty, but launching it full and depleting on ascent.

Bingo. I don't bother with trying to recover the engine, but basically that's your cost. Slap the cheapest engine on the bottom that will give you a TWR>1, using SRBs if needed.

The tanks aren't launched empty, but they are nearly empty by the time I reach the mining operation.

[GoSlash27]

Economical is NOT launching it empty, but launching it full and depleting on ascent.

Sharpy,

Yeah, you're correct. That's how I did my orbital tank.

http://s52.photobucket.com/user/GoSlash27/slideshow/KSP/OrbitalTank

But all this is different from what the OP is trying to accomplish.

Best,

-Slashy

[KerikBalm]

I've sure that tank would fit in here:

And its well under 125 tons, so my SSTO would launch it confortably.. fuel costs <15k

[Cannon]

thanks for the responses, i've managed to do it with 200k.

btw the tank is full in orbit now .

[Sharpy]

Still a lot for this kind of job. You're doing something seriously wrong. Either too few, too weak engines resulting in poor TWR, or you're not doing the gravity turn.