How do you build your ships?

[Borsek]

Simple question, really. How do you build your ships?

Once you have an idea of what you want to do, how do you make it into reality - do you build the return pod first, do you start with the capsule or a fuel tank, or do you build the booster first and then slap on whatever you can manage to bring into orbit?

Once I get an idea, I build the 'return pod' with all necessary heatshields and science apparati first, then I design the 'space stage' for inter-planetary travel and only once I've got all of that done do I design a booster to get the damn thing into orbit. after the ship is generally done, I check it for missing chutes, science equipment, throw kerbals in or out of pods, add struts, etc.

I don't use pre-built, or rather, standardized lifters, I tend to design every rocket from scratch, and that includes the booster part (no 100t to orbit, 20t to orbit shenanigan sub-assemblies).

I'm interested if some people go for the lower stages first, and then slap on a space stage on that, or maybe build a skeleton structure and flesh that out with moar boosters and equipment.

The same goes for spaceplanes: How do you build them (if you build them at all)?

I tend to start with the cockpit and science stuff (if there is any), and then the fuel tanks and engines, while I add wings last, to make sure I place them correctly - so the CoL and CoM intersect in the right way.

The most fun I've had was building spaceplane tugs - a nuklear-engine powered tug, usually shaped like the letter H, that a spaceplane docks on and gets pulled by to other planets (mostly laythe). To do this, I first design the spaceplane, test it, then I make the whole plane into a sub-assembly in order to have a reference for the tug - how big it has to be and the dV it can provide. Launching an H-shaped 3000t monstrosity into orbit is another thing entirely though (thank you KW rocketry for those amazing boosters and engines).

[The_Rocketeer]

Rockets, usually start with the return stage and work down.

Orbital payload, e.g. station modules, I build the payload first and then work out a lifter around it - it's unusual for me to use a pre-fab lifts, I tend to design bespoke for the payload, unless I'm sending it up by spaceplane.

Spaceplanes, I usually build a central fuselage with the cabin, docking ports, monoprop etc, keeping it fuel balanced around a CoM in the centre of a cargo bay. Then any radial tanks are attached parallel to the CoM to keep wet and dry CoM on top of each other. Then wings last.

[Admiral Regulus]

I build the payload first, whatever it is. This could be a vessel designed to land/return from Duna, a refinery/refueling ship, a science probe, or any number of things, really. Depending on the mass of the payload, I adjust the lower booster stage to LKO, so that I only use rockets as big as necessary. If I'm going somewhere like Eeloo or Moho with high delta-V requirements, I add a middle interplanetary stage with LV-N's, too.

Since 1.0, I no longer return any vessels directly to Kerbin. When I want my Kebals to come back home, I return their vessel to LKO and launch a (mostly reusable) space shuttle to transfer everything back to the surface. I don't think this is the most efficient way to do things, honestly, but I think it's more fun. It was one heck of a challenge to get a space shuttle to work, but that's one of my favorite things to use now.

[RizzoTheRat]

Payload first and then see what I need to get it in to space. I do have some fairly standard first stage designs that I tend to use but I build from scratch each time.

[Red Iron Crown]

Depends.

Generally, I do the "build the last stage first" thing and work backwards with rockets. It is just easier, if you do first stage first then changes to upper stages ripple down through the craft.

Sometimes I'm trying for a particular aesthetic look or a quasi-replica, then I build the most difficult part first and work the rest around it (difficult part varies with what I'm trying to make).

With spaceplanes, I make the main fuselage, add a dummy payload (if required), add propulsion, add wings, add landing gear. (May not be a great method, my success rate with 1st iteration planes is incredibly low.)

[Trann]

Payload first, be it crew or equipment, then the appropriate lifter beneath it. This usually means "build the last stage first" for standard rockets or simpler interplanetary ships.

For more complex ships (those usually assembled in orbit), I tend to launch the drive portion first. Subsequent launches build on top of it. Finally, I top up the fuel. If the delta-v looks suspicious, I have a chance to build some interstage fuel rack to bring things up to spec.

Since 1.0.4, I've yet to build a successful spaceplane, even with Rapiers. I am soooooo bad at spaceplanes. Again.

[Cairol]

I first build the deploy/return vehicle stage if I have orbital payload to deliver. Then I build the payload on top, then I balance the vessel (RCS...),

then I build the interplanetary transfer stage followed by the lifter stage. SRBs last if needed. (I usually use them whether or not I do need them, just because I love 'em )

If it's a non-mobile lander at the top, I start with the lander and work my way down.

For one-way rovers, I follow the first mentioned schema.

For spaceplanes (which I seldomly do), I usually start with the cockpit and work my way back on the main body.

Then I start the outside stacks/wings basicly from front to back for the rough outline and then it's zigzag until it actually flies decently stable without SAS usage.

Edited September 23, 2015 by Cairol

[Lord Aurelius]

With rockets, I start with the payload and build from there. With spaceplanes, I build the plane first and then see what kind of payload it can carry.

[Dnaha]

I almost always start off with the capsule first. Then I work my way down the different stages. I usually end with the booster stage and adding launchclamps and such.

Occasionally I do start with the first stage but I find it harder to get everything attached properly on my return capsule.

[Mister Kerman]

Top down.

Usually command module with a service module under it. Science gear aint cheap. Everything beyond utilities is just the staging for me generally, and no subassemblies. Every rocket is unique.

CM/SM gets a decoupler under the bay, so the CM and bay/gear survive; nothing else.

...

..Well, except the Kerbals.

Edited September 23, 2015 by Mister Kerman

[Goddess Bhavani]

Rockets:

Read about my favorite historical launch vehicles, replicate the general shape, payload lift capability or idea in KSP. Usually I end up with R7 (Soyuz) with 1.25m parts, and Proton 2.5m in career mode.

I then fabricate payloads based on mass limitations imposed by standard launcher types.

More recently I have had some success in constructing 'wet' payload stages where much of an orbital station is comprised of streamlined fuel tankage, and this fuel is fed down to the 2nd stage of the rocket allowing for the same engine to be used for orbital insertion and transmunar injection after in-orbit refuelling. I haven't gone up to 3.75m stages yet and the largest I've ever sent to orbit is a 30+ ton Minmus VTOL base.

Spaceplanes.

Generally start with a basic idea of the planform desired then get the fuselage right. Recently I've been performing collaborative builds where one forumer supplies the hull design and I build the propulsive and aerodynamic components. This resulted in interestingly diverse craft like the X-Com Skyranger and TXR-3 fictional British strike bomber.

The Skyranger was funny, as it nearly got laughed off the face of the forums in "What did you do in KSP today" before I took over the project and proved it's not too fat to fly. On the contrary it's rather impressive sprinting across continents at Mach 4 on 5 turboramjets!

[xtoro]

Like everyone else said, last stage is first built. I'm big on sending probes first, and they sometimes have multiple miniprobes that I can separate when reaching systems like Jool, Sarnus etc because I use RemoteTech. So the main large probe has the long range antenna which connects to the smaller probes. In that case I build the smaller probe first and save it as a subassembly. Then build the main probe, add the small probe subassemblies and then the launcher. I do the same for motherships that have multiple Landers.

[Kuansenhama]

For rockets, I tend to build my payload and have a lineup of launchers in sub-assemblies. This saves me a lot of time in the long run since I don't have to spend time rigging up seperatrons and parachutes on my boosters. (I play with Stage Recovery). Though this of course means that the launcher has to be efficient and not have a record of exploding during liftoff. Generally anything that constitutes a launcher takes the payload to LKO and no further.

For spaceplanes, I tend to just build a plane that works and see what I can put into it later... I tend not to use them very much...

[mikegarrison]

All-new aerospace vehicles are always designed with payload and range (for airplanes) or payload and dV (for spacecraft) identified first. Nothing else makes any sense, in real life or in KSP.

But.... It's expensive to design an aerospace vehicle, so in real life (and for me, in KSP), if you already have a known working design that is approximately the right payload/range/dV capacity, you work your payload in around the capability of your vehicle.

Edited September 23, 2015 by mikegarrison

[CaelumEtAstra]

I usually build the payload first, like a RemoteTech communications satellite. I put on all of the equipment required, and in this case it would be the high gain dishes, the ground link dishes, an omnidirectional antenna, solar panels, and the amount of batteries required for it to work during the dark times. Then I attach it to a standardized satellite bus. (some might call me crazy on this) Lastly, I put on a fairing and attach it to a pre-built launcher rated to the payload weight and to the orbit it is going to be in, like KTO, which requires more delta-v than just taking it to LKO.

As for spaceplanes, I really don't build them that often, but when I do, I just build them for fun. I get an idea of what I want them to do, e.g., crew transport, payload to LKO, etc. Then I build to get a certain aesthetic, while tweaking various things along the way. I do a test flight, it crashes, and then I give up and build a payload in the VAB that does the same thing reliably.

[OhioBob]

First step is to decide what the mission objectives are. I then determine a ÃŽâ€v budget and select the payload essentials needed to complete the objectives. I then determine what mission mode/vehicle configuration will allow for the most efficient completion of the mission. I then build essentially "top down" or, more correctly, I design the last surviving part first. For instance, this might be the reentry/recovery capsule at the end of the mission. I make this part as small as possible while including only the essential crew and/or data that I want to recover. I then work backwards by next designing the propulsion needed to bring the capsule back to Kerbin, and so on. The last thing I design is the first stage of the launch vehicle. For the launch vehicle itself I will often reuse a previous design if I'm launching a spacecraft of similar size. However, the spacecraft/payload is usually uniquely designed for the specific mission, though I do borrow ideas from previous designs.

I only use rockets, so I have no design methodology for spaceplanes.

- - - Updated - - -

I don't use pre-built, or rather, standardized lifters, I tend to design every rocket from scratch, and that includes the booster part (no 100t to orbit, 20t to orbit shenanigan sub-assemblies).

Using pre-built subassemblies for my launch vehicles is exactly what I did prior to v1.0. However, those old designs are no longer ideal with the new aero, so I've scrapped them. I now mostly custom build my launch vehicles, though I may eventually design a new fleet of stock launchers. Even though each launcher is custom built, I do follow a set of guidelines in regard to such things as TWR, etc.

[xebx]

I always start with a Steadler remote guidance unit, except for lightprobes (OKTO). All my ships are 99% unmanned control (+MJ), except during atmo ascent (Val or Jeb seems to do a better job)

Then it goes from the return module to the boosters. I have prebuilt boosters (2.5m and 3.75m separate or 3.75m aspargus 5 or 7) it saves a lot of time (i use stage recovery for my boosters), i choose the closest to 3400 m/s deltaV for the job.

If my biggest 3.75m aspargus 7 isn't enough, i had kickback, if it's not enough, i had more and longer lfo booster. My biggest payload in LKO is a 700ton test for Jool-5

The return module will land or stay in LKO, it depends on the weight of added chutes or heat shield on this module (if it's a light lander it will probably wait in LKO for a quick recover mission)

More complicated is the design of a mothership with one or more reusable landers and refuel tanks, and with complicated deltaV requirement. Grand tour or Jool-5 is very interesting for that.

Edited September 23, 2015 by xebx

[Alshain]

At this point, I've been playing long enough that I have multiple lifters saved as assemblies and categorized by payload mass lifting capabilities and tech tree tier, many of them SSTO. So I guess you could say I start with the lifter, except it's already done so I start with the payload. Make sense?

If I had to build a lifter for every payload I send up, I would spend most of my time doing just that I think. Do you guys actually do that?

[Red Iron Crown]

If I had to build a lifter for every payload I send up, I would spend most of my time doing just that I think. Do you guys actually do that?

I usually do, but I enjoy building rockets. And I've made so many of them that it doesn't take me very long.

[mikegarrison]

I usually do, but I enjoy building rockets. And I've made so many of them that it doesn't take me very long.

Me too. I like designing the lifting stages.

Where I reuse designs is usually for common missions. Like "rescue a Kerbal from low Kerbin orbit". I just load "Rescue 1" onto the pad, and away it blasts. Or the nth Mun landing in a career. I just load the by now well-proven Mun2a and maybe make some tweaks (like if I finally unlocked the gravity detector I'll spam some of those onto it and call it the Mun2b). Then launch away.

[gavman420SSJ]

top to bottom, just like the pyramids

[GoSlash27]

Step#1: Figure out the payload and DV budget

Step#2: Go into the VAB and assemble the payload, check it's mass.

Step#3: Plug the values and desired performance into my handy-dandy spreadsheet, which analyzes each engine simultaneously to tell me how many engines and tanks I would need and the projected cost.

Step#4: Pick my preferred option and build it.

Step#5: Revert to Step 2 for the preceding stage.

Step#6: Repeat until I'm all the way back to the pad.

Best,

-Slashy

[nine_iron]

Small, simple and functional.

[Xyrus]

1. Build rocket.

<> Does it explode?

<yes> Go to 1

2. Does it do what it's supposed to do?

<no> Hack it till it works

<kind of> Mission Acomplished

<yes> Gape in surprise

[selfish_meme]

Often different ways, e.g when I built my Ares V I started with the core, then added the boosters from my Ares 1. I built the cargo module seperately in the SPH because there was a lot of mirror symmetry and the rover and other modules I wanted to test were there.

With my Delta II 7925 for pathfinder I built the rocket well before Pathfinder because Pathfinders a ..... ....... ........ .......

Edited September 24, 2015 by selfish_meme