How to test grabbing units?

[RedeyePete]

I landed a small rover on Gilly to reconnoiter a landing spot for my refuller but because of the low gravity it bounces all over the place. So I thought I'd better redesign my refuller or it will suffer the same fate.

I put 2 grabbing units on the base but can't confirm that they will work because I can't get them to work on Kerbin. I put on some detachable wheels, rolled off the runway and onto the grass and then tried some small takeoffs and landings but they would not grab. Are they set too high or low? see pic. I don't want to get all the way to Gilly to find out they won't work. Any thoughts?

For the pic I set the camera angle at ground level and drew a Yellow line so that you can easily tell at what height the grabbers are set. I also thought about putting 4 or 6 on and doing away with the legs.

 

[Blaarkies]

Grabbing units won't work, there is no stock way in which to lock onto the surface of any planet/moon.

Gilly has gravity, all you need is patience. Point you base upright, slow down to 1m/s near the surface, then try not to touch the controls too much...just let it settle in/onto the surface, no need for downward pushing rcs thrusters and the like, patience is a much lighter resource

Edited June 21, 2018 by Blaarkies

[RedeyePete]

So does that mean that grabbing units will only work on asteroids and other craft?

If that's the case then I already have a non-grabby refueller in Kerbal orbit and I will return to sending it to Gilly.

[bewing]

9 minutes ago, RedeyePete said:

So does that mean that grabbing units will only work on asteroids and other craft?

That is correct.

 

[Zhetaan]

39 minutes ago, RedeyePete said:

So does that mean that grabbing units will only work on asteroids and other craft?

To expand a bit on @bewing's answer, grabbing units only work on rocket parts, not celestial bodies.  Asteroids, because of the way the game code works, are set up as a kind of rocket part, but Gilly is a celestial body.  The only stock part I know of that grabs the ground is the launch clamp, but good luck getting one to Gilly.