Engine plates!

[Rutabaga22]

I feel that the negine plates are underused. I watch a lot of kerbal space program content and I don't see people using engine plates enough. I think people forgot that engine plates exist. The best part is that engine plates allow you to make mammoth upper stages! 

[Geonovast]

I use them all the time.  Pretty much every design.

Remember, though, that they're not in the base game.  Not everyone has the Making History DLC.

[GuessingEveryDay]

3 minutes ago, Geonovast said:

Remember, though, that they're not in the base game.  Not everyone has the Making History DLC.

However, ReStock Plus provides them for free!

[Rutabaga22]

4 minutes ago, Geonovast said:

Not everyone has the Making History DLC.

That's a good point. I really hope engine plates are included in ksp 2.

 

[modus]

51 minutes ago, Geonovast said:

I use them all the time.  Pretty much every design.

Remember, though, that they're not in the base game.  Not everyone has the Making History DLC.

Can you explain what you use them for or maybe share a screenshot? I feel like I don't really understand their use.

[Snark]

16 hours ago, modus said:

Can you explain what you use them for or maybe share a screenshot? I feel like I don't really understand their use.

An example usage:

Note that it's a 1.25m stack, but the upper stage has 0.625m engines on it.

The engine plate allows you to use a smaller-diameter engine in the middle of your stack, while keeping your craft as a smooth cylinder for aerodynamics (and keeping the wide-diameter attachment node size, so that your rocket stays nice and rigid) .  So it greatly improves your choice of engines, since you can use any (smaller) size you want, and don't have to be constrained to the size of your stack.

You can also select how many engine attachment nodes you want to have, which allows you to use multiple smaller engines if you like. The above example, for instance, has two ion engines.

As icing on the cake, the engine plate also functions as a decoupler, so you don't need to add a decoupler below it.

[Fenris]

49 minutes ago, Snark said:

An example usage:

Note that it's a 1.25m stack, but the upper stage has 0.625m engines on it.

The engine plate allows you to use a smaller-diameter engine in the middle of your stack, while keeping your craft as a smooth cylinder for aerodynamics (and keeping the wide-diameter attachment node size, so that your rocket stays nice and rigid) .  So it greatly improves your choice of engines, since you can use any (smaller) size you want, and don't have to be constrained to the size of your stack.

You can also select how many engine attachment nodes you want to have, which allows you to use multiple smaller engines if you like. The above example, for instance, has two ion engines.

As icing on the cake, the engine plate also functions as a decoupler, so you don't need to add a decoupler below it.

Oh nice! I wondered what they were for lol

[modus]

Thx @Snark!

If I use a small engine in a big stack I use 

 so maybe that's why I haven't really used engine plates. If I want multiple engines I tend to use adapters. 
The engine plates are much more versatile it seems so thanks for the explanation!

[king of nowhere]

I find them useless, unfortunately. they weight a lot, and there are more effective ways to get the same result.

to get your example rocket, i would use two octagonal trusses, that can be attached anywhere and only weight 1 kg, and bind the engines to them.

[The Aziz]

Yeah and then you still have to put something longer than the engine in the middle to support the decoupler and pray that the shroud will match the diameter of the stage. And you'd be left with the thing sticking out at the end forever.

Edited June 14, 2022 by The Aziz

[Geonovast]

Here's my current Falcon9 ripoff.

Three main reasons the plate is handy:

• I can attach all kinds of little bits in there without worrying about the entire stack being structurally sound for the sake of the whole rocket.  It keeps the attachment point between the top of the first stage and the bottom of the second stage to as few nodes as possible.
• It has a built-in decoupler, which makes the weight issue not as much of an issue as it appears (although I will concede that they are heavier than their decoupler counterparts
• In this particular case, I'm not using the shroud with the plate, but a structural tube under it.  This is strictly for looks, so take it how you will.  This keeps the black part on the booster while keeping the second stage all white.  It also allows me to simply use the part variant switcher to swap to a longer length for any adjustments.  This would normally be handled by simply toggling the shroud on and off.  Normally this wouldn't be needed, but it looks better this way, especially when using FMRS to recover the booster.

 

That said, the plates aren't really necessary, as pointed out.  Everything they provide can be done other ways, but they are convenient.

I used to use fairings for interstages, but a couple versions ago huge changes were done to the fairings, and now using them as interstages without deploying them is basically impossible.

[Rutabaga22]

Extra use! If you have a command pod with a 1.25m parachute attachment point, Attach an engine plate and use 3 size 0 parachutes! then, you can attach a lauch escape system to the engine plate node,  and you have a perfect way to get rid of the launch escape system!

[Nazalassa]

Engine plates can be used as 3.75m cargo bays; whatever is fixed inside is protected from drag, but the shroud can be traversed by everything (it has no collision)...

So, in terms of drag, the shroud is solid, but in terms of collision, it isn't.

* examples coming... *