New player here with issues

[marcu]

Hi all. Just picked up KSP seeing that KSP2 is in making so I wanted to try what can I expect. I have some good fun with the game but this fun keeps to be overshadowed by insane bugs and inaccuracies:
- Launch keeps resetting personal equipment. no matter how I change parachute to for example repair packs, after launch the kerbal again have a parachute. i have no use of parachutes on the Mun
- Crafts keep wobbling, yeah its hilarious when they explode out of funny reasons but its annoying when you are trying to do an actual more complex mission
- I have not found a simple way to balance rockets. like real world missions launch asymmetric crafts, their computer automatically balance the output needed from the rockets to fly straight. I know I can limit thrusters but that is nearly impossible manually
- rovers are insanely irrealistic and a major part of the game. while I know gravities are different and on low gravity planets wheels are not working like on earth, they aren't working like in ksp either, its near impossible to control them
- eva construction is nearly useless on planets. not only that crafts being built are being launched into the sky all the time, even the other crafts nearby are. There is a mission I've got couple of times to finish a prebuilt rover on minmus and move it to a target area. as soon as i attach a wheel to it, it gets launched into the sky and then falling back to get destroyed... solution would be so simple, after part attachment just get a new bounding box for the object, move it to above the surface and then release physics. this also happen to some external modules if they touch the surface they intersect and then keep jumping and sometimes launching the craft into the sky (linear rcs port for example)

questions:
is there any "unofficial patch" like fallout games always have. these are not mods but unofficial fixes by the modder community
if no, can we expect any fixes from the devs?
can I expect ksp 2 to be in the same condition after this many years in development?

thank you for all the hopefully helpful answers

(PS: unmodded new install from steam)

[The Aziz]

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

Crafts keep wobbling, yeah its hilarious when they explode out of funny reasons but its annoying when you are trying to do an actual more complex mission

Advanced tweakables in game settings unlock autostruts and believe they help a lot if applied correctly.

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

I have not found a simple way to balance rockets. like real world missions launch asymmetric crafts, their computer automatically balance the output needed from the rockets to fly straight. I know I can limit thrusters but that is nearly impossible manually

That's the trick. We're flying manually here. I mean there are overlays in VAB showing thrust direction and center of mass, but you can only do so much with their help.

Side note, aside from space shuttle, how many spaceships are really that asymmetrical?

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

rovers are insanely irrealistic and a major part of the game. while I know gravities are different and on low gravity planets wheels are not working like on earth, they aren't working like in ksp either, its near impossible to control them

Yeah, see, the problem is, all surfaces are the same. There's no rock, grass, regolith, sand, ice. So the only difference is gravity, and the only thing that can at the moment counteract it is traction control. But then on low gravity bodies your acceleration is minimal to prevent the wheels from spinning.

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

Launch keeps resetting personal equipment. no matter how I change parachute to for example repair packs, after launch the kerbal again have a parachute. i have no use of parachutes on the Mun
- eva construction is nearly useless on planets. not only that crafts being built are being launched into the sky all the time, even the other crafts nearby are. There is a mission I've got couple of times to finish a prebuilt rover on minmus and move it to a target area. as soon as i attach a wheel to it, it gets launched into the sky and then falling back to get destroyed... solution would be so simple, after part attachment just get a new bounding box for the object, move it to above the surface and then release physics. this also happen to some external modules if they touch the surface they intersect and then keep jumping and sometimes launching the craft into the sky (linear rcs port for example)

Well, thing is, the "final update" and few before it, introduced quite a lot of features but also quite a lot of bugs - and very little have been fixed, and chances for it to happen are minimal, as the team moved to help working with KSP2. And the final update was basically left unfinished, or rather, largely unpolished. So I wouldn't count on it. Unfortunate, but then the franchise was hit by a lot of unfortunaties over the last few years. So expect bugs. But:

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

is there any "unofficial patch" like fallout games always have. these are not mods but unofficial fixes by the modder community
if no, can we expect any fixes from the devs?
can I expect ksp 2 to be in the same condition after this many years in development?

To answer those, yes, you can search for community fixes here on the forum; no, don't think so as I explained above; also don't think so, Intercept is a team made of very skilled, and very passionate people. It looks like they know what they're doing. Repeating old mistakes would be a financial and PR disaster, and I bet, after at least 5 years of development, nobody wants that. Especially since the publisher wants to turn it into a profit. If the early reviews point out that the game is in sorry state, then a lot of expected profit would be gone.

So I say, tolerate the annoyances, and keep an eye on the horizon when the sequel arrives. And while I'm here, down in my signature there's a link to everything you can expect to see in KSP2.

Edited July 18, 2022 by The Aziz

[marcu]

On 7/18/2022 at 1:20 AM, The Aziz said:

Advanced tweakables in game settings unlock autostruts and believe they help a lot if applied correctly.

That's the trick. We're flying manually here. I mean there are overlays in VAB showing thrust direction and center of mass, but you can only do so much with their help.

Side note, aside from space shuttle, how many spaceships are really that asymmetrical?

Yeah, see, the problem is, all surfaces are the same. There's no rock, grass, regolith, sand, ice. So the only difference is gravity, and the only thing that can at the moment counteract it is traction control. But then on low gravity bodies your acceleration is minimal to prevent the wheels from spinning.

Well, thing is, the "final update" and few before it, introduced quite a lot of features but also quite a lot of bugs - and very little have been fixed, and chances for it to happen are minimal, as the team moved to help working with KSP2. And the final update was basically left unfinished, or rather, largely unpolished. So I wouldn't count on it. Unfortunate, but then the franchise was hit by a lot of unfortunaties over the last few years. So expect bugs. But:

To answer those, yes, you can search for community fixes here on the forum; no, don't think so as I explained above; also don't think so, Intercept is a team made of very skilled, and very passionate people. It looks like they know what they're doing. Repeating old mistakes would be a financial and PR disaster, and I bet, after at least 5 years of development, nobody wants that. Especially since the publisher wants to turn it into a profit. If the early reviews point out that the game is in sorry state, then a lot of expected profit would be gone.

So I say, tolerate the annoyances, and keep an eye on the horizon when the sequel arrives. And while I'm here, down in my signature there's a link to everything you can expect to see in KSP2.

I see, thanks for your honest reply. I understand what you are saying about making profit, but based on its state, as many other, even big developers do, they can simply hope the fanbase will be strong enough to look over the faults and still buy ksp2 hoping it will be fixed, and if, as you said they just abandoned the final update without really finishing it, what stops them to also abandon that without properly finishing it?
Sadly, it looks like a no from me. sad, its such a cute nonaggressive game, but I already gave up trying. Found the autostruts too, but it just kept blowing up my rockets so did not look very useful, rigid attachment was somewhat better, but then there were other problems i have found since, like airplanes are generally unflyable as the aerodynamics is totally bogus, the only surface seem to be ice on any planet so now I'm playing ark instead. Im not very patient with gamebreaking bugs.

[Bej Kerman]

On 7/16/2022 at 5:29 PM, marcu said:

Crafts keep wobbling

On 7/16/2022 at 5:29 PM, marcu said:

rovers [...] near impossible to control them

Blaming the game on issues with crafts you built will not lead towards you improving at the game. Reinforce your crafts using struts, check to make sure the TWR, CoM and CoT are all within safe limits and ensure your rovers have the correct types of wheels. KSP is a game about engineering, piloting and trial-and-error - if a rocket explodes, chances are it's the guy behind the rocket that led to its destruction, and they must learn from their mistakes.

[N_Danger]

For a PC user. 

https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/forum/34-add-on-releases/

It is advisable to play the base game for a bit before going for mods. And do not try too many at once. 

That said they can really enrich your game. But there are things to keep in mind. 

For example there are auto pilots. but they are not prefect so having some piloting experience is important.

Some of the informational mods are helpful, they just show information you can use to improve your play. KER for example.

But they are a firehose of info that can overwhelm a new player.

So play for a bit more and think how you want to play the game before diving in. 

The tutorial and gameplay forum is extremely helpful from personal experience.

https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/forum/16-gameplay-questions-and-tutorials/

 

Edited July 23, 2022 by N_Danger
Added link to gameplay forum

[Pouicpouic]

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

I have not found a simple way to balance rockets. like real world missions launch asymmetric crafts

They are many ways to balance rockets, and therefore to launch asymmetric craft without any mods

Spoiler

Some examples all launched from the KSC

landed this on laythe sea

Hanging this in the Dres canyon

This on Duna

This masterpiece on Vall (300t totally asymmetrical)

This madness on eeloo (There were 3 different thrust centres on this craft, each for a phase of flight)

Like The Aziz said :

On 7/18/2022 at 2:20 AM, The Aziz said:

there are overlays in VAB showing thrust direction and center of mass

You should use these guidelines to build your project:
- align the COT (centre of thrust) with the COM (and do not try to do the opposite...)
- have an aerodynamic vector under the COM (or at the back if it's a plane)
- Plan for each phase of flight where your COM will be and therefore plan either a different thruster setting or a dedicated stage with other thrusters

Note: indications are also visible in EVA construction mode.

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

but that is nearly impossible manually

It's possible but I advise it as a last resort because it's the most hazardous choice

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

rovers are insanely irrealistic and a major part of the game. while I know gravities are different and on low gravity planets wheels are not working like on earth, they aren't working like in ksp either, its near impossible to control them

I just finished an Elcano Grand Tour with a single rover, witch means i circumnavigated all body in the kerbol system (28 000km with a single rover at 50m/s average speed)

I bet all my money that you don't respect the essential rules of construction for a rover.
I bet 1 trillion kerbucks that your navball is looking skyward, that your SAS is not in "SAS only" mode and that your wheels are in the default setting.

Page 6 (i think) I have left all the tips I use for rovers.

On 7/16/2022 at 6:29 PM, marcu said:

but its annoying when you are trying to do an actual more complex mission

Yes KSP is a difficult game, you have to learn from your mistakes and persevere to end up doing everything you want.

[QF9E]

As to asymmetric rockets: there's a really simple solution to the problem: don't use them if it can be avoided. A side-mounted Space Shuttle should really be considered an advanced type of craft, much more difficult to design than an inline design. Here's an example of an inline Space Shuttle that I built:

That said, it is possible to fly an asymmetric design. Some of the things you can to to alleviate the problem:

• The problem is much worse for Buran type shuttles (which do not have rocket engines on the orbiter) than for US Space Shuttles which have their main engines on the orbiter. Better not to build a Buran type until you know how to build the US type
• You can rotate your engines such that their thrust goes through the center of mass. The KER mod can help with this, as it can show the torque an engine exerts on the craft in the VAB
• You should use engines with a high gimbal range becasue the center of mass will shift during flight as propellant is consumed. Basically the only choice for this is the Vector engine
• Include a hefty RCS system. I found that the monoprop RCS thrusters simply do not cut it; My suggestion is to use Vernors instead.
• And of course you should be using SAS to help you keep your Shuttle in a stable attitude

With these pointers it is perfectly possible to fly a Buran type shuttle to orbit by hand. See, e.g., this video of mine:

[Rutabaga22]

On 7/16/2022 at 12:29 PM, marcu said:

- Launch keeps resetting personal equipment. no matter how I change parachute to for example repair packs, after launch the kerbal again have a parachute. i have no use of parachutes on the Mun

Ther is a fix for this! In difficulty settings there is a setting called "Persist Kerbal Inventory loadout" That makes it so their inventory doesn't change

[marcu]

13 hours ago, Rutabaga22 said:

Ther is a fix for this! In difficulty settings there is a setting called "Persist Kerbal Inventory loadout" That makes it so their inventory doesn't change

ahh, thanks a lot, finally a really helpful answer

you're king!

[marcu]

20 hours ago, Pouicpouic said:

I bet all my money that you don't respect the essential rules of construction for a rover.

good, you can transfer all your money... I was talking about the DEVELOPERS MADE rovers. but I bet they don't respect their own rules

20 hours ago, Pouicpouic said:

You should use these guidelines

yep, I asked for a SIMPLE way. all you said is "keep eyeballing". I knew it without you...

20 hours ago, Pouicpouic said:

Yes KSP is a difficult game, you have to learn from your mistakes and persevere to end up doing everything you want.

No, it is not a difficult game, its a fairly poorly made game. Its actually very simple to learn... ]snip]

Edited August 18, 2022 by Vanamonde

[marcu]

18 hours ago, QF9E said:

That said, it is possible to fly

yes it is but exactly this brute force is what I wanted to avoid. I can launch just about anything and get it to any planets, it just needs lots of eyeballing and rcs, and imo, it shouldn't be the case

[Vanamonde]

Some comments removed. Please remember that KSP can be pretty frustrating, not just for new players, and that people are trying to help, even if it doesn't always come in a form that's helpful. 

[marcu]

On 7/23/2022 at 12:18 PM, Bej Kerman said:

Blaming the game on issues with crafts you built will not lead towards you improving at the game. Reinforce your crafts using struts, check to make sure the TWR, CoM and CoT are all within safe limits and ensure your rovers have the correct types of wheels. KSP is a game about engineering, piloting and trial-and-error - if a rocket explodes, chances are it's the guy behind the rocket that led to its destruction, and they must learn from their mistakes.

seriously?   improving? keep strutting everything? [snip] Im an actual engineer and let me tell you this is not how we do it. this is exactly why things are annoying when i just put 3 fuel canisters in series, attach a rocket, launch it and it goes up space like a drunken snake,

as per rovers, i can set all friction and traction to max and there is no problem for me in game but thats not more realistic than leaving them on basic settings

[snip]

Edited August 18, 2022 by Vanamonde

[Entropian]

1 hour ago, marcu said:

goes up space like a drunken snake

Thank you for one of the best summaries of spaghettification I've ever seen (no, seriously I love it).  The mod Kerbal Joint Reinforcement should fix many of your drunken part-snake problems.  Also, if you end up continuing to play KSP for a while and get some experience, you might want to turn to the Real Solar System / Realism Overhaul set of mods, as they make the game significantly more difficult and realistic.

[DA299]

3 hours ago, marcu said:

yes it is but exactly this brute force is what I wanted to avoid. I can launch just about anything and get it to any planets, it just needs lots of eyeballing and rcs, and imo, it shouldn't be the case

If you want more realism while still keeping it gamey, I would suggest the following mods. 

1) Any 2.5X scale planet pack. Or you can go full-scale with RSS.

2) Kerbal Joint Reinforcement.

3) Kerbal Engineer, has a lot of overlays in the editor to make designing craft easier.

4) This last level is really if you're willing to go all the way. But RO, ROKerbalism, and Principia, all make the game so realistic that it is basically a simulator at that point. Do keep in mind, that it becomes extremely hard to do any sort of manned mission beyond Mars (as it is IRL right now). 

When you say how do you balance rockets, well I'd give you the advice of using some aerodynamic fins at the bottom, as well as making sure that the Thrust is not too out of line of the COM(w.r.t control authority and all). It is perfectly possible to build asymmetric rockets in KSP(I do them all the time.) 

2 hours ago, marcu said:

seriously?   improving? keep strutting everything? [

KSP joints are far too weak as compared to IRL. Using autostruts and KJR is the only solution. However I should remind you, that rockets and airplanes aren't exactly rigid IRL, They flex and bend during flight, being as rockets are basically large soda cans, if you look at the mas/volume ratio. 

Edited August 18, 2022 by DA299

[Curveball Anders]

Can you all trim your language a bit please.

 

[king of nowhere]

11 hours ago, marcu said:

seriously?   improving? keep strutting everything? [snip] Im an actual engineer and let me tell you this is not how we do it. this is exactly why things are annoying when i just put 3 fuel canisters in series, attach a rocket, launch it and it goes up space like a drunken snake,

as per rovers, i can set all friction and traction to max and there is no problem for me in game but thats not more realistic than leaving them on basic settings

[snip]

wait. maybe this is your problem. you are an engineer, so you expect things to work exactly like in engineering, you do things your way, and get mad when they don't work?

look, there are a tons of bugs with this game (I compiled a list for my latest mission report, and I came up to 28 so far), but most of those you call such, aren't. or they are the innocuous variety that can be avoided easily.

let's start from engineering. this game is exceptionally realistic. except, it's still a game. it's still only realistic up to a certain point. there are some acceptable breaks made for convenience, and some for simplicity, and some because this is still a simulator, with all its limitations. So you can't just say "I am an engineer and this thing should work, if it doesn't it's the game's fault". You must still adapt to the game. And before you complain about realism, find me a game that does this kind of simulation better. If you know one, I may play it instead of ksp.

in particular, if your craft explodes, you can fix it. it doesn't matter how you think it should work; I successfully made 1500-parts, 50000-tons ships, and while it took a lot of effort, they did not explode in the end. In any case, "three fuel canisters in a series" should never be a problem. if you get wobbling with three canisters, you may be more skilled than I am, because I'd be at a loss on how to replicate such a feat. really, the exploding ships is not really an issue until you start making big stuff - which, as a self-proclaimed new player, you probably are not.

as for launching asymmetric crafts, there are ways.

here I'm flying a plane with asymmetric thrust, simulating a broken engine

and here I'm flying an asymmetric rocket after a booster got hit by debris and exploded, but engine gimbaling is correcting for that, and I completed the launch sucessfully

regarding aerodinamics, indeed the aerodinamic model used by the game is not very accurate. probably because it's primarily meant to replicate space rockets. the game was made by a relatively small company, which probably had limited resurces and decided a more realistic aerodinamic model would not worth the effort. anyay, there is a mod that makes aerodinamic more realistic, I don't know its name but if you ask, you can find it.

regarding rovers, every surface behaves like ice and that's not particularly realistic, but your traction problems absolutely are. low gravity interferes with driving. low gravity means your rover is not pushed against the ground, so the wheels skid more. and you have less stability, you bounce more and a small bump may send you flying. absolutely normal in low gravity. you accelerate more slowly, and you brake even more slowly. I did drive rovers long distances on every planetary body, and I never had any problem that could not be reasonably pinned to gravity and terrain. mosty, accept that you'll go slower. (EDIT: actually, perhaps rovers were messed up by the latest update. i don't know if the current issues I have are caused by that, or by the mods I'm using)

12 hours ago, marcu said:

yes it is but exactly this brute force is what I wanted to avoid. I can launch just about anything and get it to any planets, it just needs lots of eyeballing and rcs, and imo, it shouldn't be the case

that is not the case. I can get to any planet without any eyeballing and without rcs - there is need for small correction manuevers, but real space missions need those too, so I see no problem here.

 

Summing it up, look at this from an outside perspective. You are a self-proclaimed new player, and you came here stating that the game is all wrong because you can't do X. Then we told you that yes, you can actually do X if you do it in a certain way, and you claim that the game is wrong because it should work like you want. You further reinforce this attitude by claiming that you don't need to learn anything, you already know how things should work and refuse to try it any other way.  because you are an engineer. unless you specifically are a senior rocket engineer working for nasa or spacex, i don't know how relevant your engineering experience is. you seem like you want the game to behave like you want all the time, because you are calling "bug" every instance of the game not doing exactly that. I hope you can see this is not making you look good.

furtermore, engineering does not work like you claim. most of us here are engineers or scientists too. actual engineering does entail trial and error. I've never seen any kind of science/tech project that didn't have some surprises along the way, some things not working exactly like expected. And then you figure out what is the issue and find ways to fix it. which is a large part of how this game works.

 

a final word on mods: yes, some mods improve on issues you may have. but all mods can have compatibility issues, and can have their own bugs and glitches. generally, mods destabilize the game.

 

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by king of nowhere

[miklkit]

About rovers, play with friction control and traction control to get a reasonable balance that keeps it from sliding while stopped and still lets it do fun stuff without flipping.  Sometimes it only takes a little bit of friction to let the rover work well.

[Bej Kerman]

10 hours ago, marcu said:

On 7/23/2022 at 8:18 PM, Bej Kerman said:

Blaming the game on issues with crafts you built will not lead towards you improving at the game. Reinforce your crafts using struts, check to make sure the TWR, CoM and CoT are all within safe limits and ensure your rovers have the correct types of wheels. KSP is a game about engineering, piloting and trial-and-error - if a rocket explodes, chances are it's the guy behind the rocket that led to its destruction, and they must learn from their mistakes.

seriously?   improving? keep strutting everything? [snip] Im an actual engineer and let me tell you this is not how we do it.

It's the way we do it in KSP   ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Vanamonde]

If someone asks for help, either offer help or move on. Lingering to lecture the person about the error of his/her ways wastes your time and annoys the other party. Nobody benefits from that but it does make the forum a less pleasant place to visit. 

Some comments have been removed. 

[QF9E]

15 hours ago, marcu said:

yes it is but exactly this brute force is what I wanted to avoid.

Please indicate which of my suggestions amount to brute force. It is entirely possible to build and fly a Space Shuttle without using excessive RCS, if that is what you mean. That said, you need the RCS system anyway if you want to be able to maneuver your shuttle accurately in space.

Quote

I can launch just about anything and get it to any planets

If I may offer you some personal advice: please refrain from posting stuff like this. It's no use boasting about your achievements, and it may well result in unnecessary friction with other forum members.

Quote

, it just needs lots of eyeballing and rcs, and imo, it shouldn't be the case

Real life space missions also require RCS and mid course correction burns (MCC). Of course, these are usually planned meticulously, but occasionally there has been some eyeballing in real life. Apollo 13 comes to mind, where they performed an MCC entirely by hand, because the flight computers were offline to save on electricity. Another, less successful example is Gemini 4: it attempted a rendez-vous with its own upper stage after launch, but failed to do so as the astronauts tried to eyeball the maneuvers and wasted most of their fuel. A more recent example is the Nauka docking with the ISS, which was "eventful", for lack of a better word.

That said, if you use the maneuver planner to plan your MCCs in KSP, you don't need any eyeballing beyond switching the engines on and off at the appropriate times.

Moreover, if you own the Breaking Ground DLC you can use the KAL-1000 to perform a very precise and entirely computer-controlled launch:

While this is not a Space Shuttle, I don't see why you couldn't use a KAL-1000 to balance the thrust of an asymmetric craft. However, it does take a bit of patience to program the KAL-1000 just right. Which, given the amount of man hours spent on real-life spaceflight avionics, is quite realistic.

If you want even more computing power to control your craft, I can recommend the kOS mod. That mod offers a fully programmable flight computer inside KSP.

[marcu]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:00 PM, miklkit said:

About rovers, play with friction control and traction control to get a reasonable balance that keeps it from sliding while stopped and still lets it do fun stuff without flipping.  Sometimes it only takes a little bit of friction to let the rover work well.

yes I know that, but it shouldnt be me finding out how to set friction and traction to both work but still be fun  we've got that tool but all it does is we can make it absolutely safe... especially that rovers seem to be the most stable on the SIDE of the wheels  

but really, how could I solve this, for example?: 

and this is happening to everything i try to edit on ground. sure, its not a problem in space. but even worse when i don even try to modify anything just  some parts clip into the terrain and keep jumping like this endlessly until it lands upside down or on its side...

[marcu]

On 8/18/2022 at 9:48 PM, QF9E said:

Please indicate which of my suggestions amount to brute force. It is entirely possible to build and fly a Space Shuttle without using excessive RCS

your entire space jester video was about brute forcing that craft to space it runs nonstop on rcs and that's the only thing makes it fly
 

On 8/18/2022 at 9:48 PM, QF9E said:

It's no use boasting about your achievements

where did i boast about achievements? its the explanation that the problem is not launching things but launching without excessive rcs. sure fully symmetric crafts can all go to space with no rcs at all, but as soon as it gets a bit interesting, it wont work. Here is a VERY asymmetric craft just quickly put together, after some eyeballing it goes up, the problem is that its not consistent, as the fuel empties, the balance goes off and i have to keep adjusting the thrusters manually and even then, because of the poor transformation/rotation matrices its entirely unstable, any kind of turning is near impossible without masses of rcs... in real life those would be automatically adjusted to the thrust needed at each end...  even now, with this light craft, most balancing is done by the sas, but it shouldnt be necessary. a craft like this would in real life fly without any added torque 

 

On 8/18/2022 at 9:48 PM, QF9E said:

Real life space missions also require RCS

sure they need, for transitioning and course adjustment, not to keep the craft flying straight

[QF9E]

On 8/23/2022 at 6:31 AM, marcu said:

even then, because of the poor transformation/rotation matrices its entirely unstable, any kind of turning is near impossible

That's not what is going on:

1. The gimbals of your engines are not balanced. This induces roll when you give pitch input when you initiate the gravity turn, which makes your craft hard to control.

2. Flying with a non-zero angle of attack on the wing panels inside the atmosphere induces lift. And since the center of lift is a long way away from the center of mass, this lift induces so much roll torque that SAS is unable to compensate. Your craft ends up with the wing oriented vertically because of this. You also end up no longer flying to the East, and trying to compensate by giving yaw input again results in a non-zero angle of attack and uncontrollable roll.

3. During your circularization burn the craft was clearly out of balance. Note that the pitch indicator at the bottom left of your screen is way off-center, which means SAS must work overtime to keep the craft on course. Also note that once the pitch indicator is fully at the top or bottom of its range it cannot control pitch anymore, as your engine torque is by then more than the reaction wheels in your craft can handle.

 

If you fly the same rocket model 90 degrees rotated on the pad to what you have been doing, you can avoid 1 and 2, and you can even control your gravity turn using differential thrust. I got a close copy of your craft into a 75 x 75 km orbit with over 600 m/s dv to spare without too much effort and without ever losing control.

[miklkit]

There is no such thing as "absolutely safe"  in KSP.   This game is all about experimentation.  You take the time to build lots of rockets, so take the time when building your rovers so they work well. 

As for that video, you took a rover that needed repairs and then added a lot of stuff to it.  This made it have a high center of gravity so it flips easily.  Then you tried to mess with the wheels without lifting them off the ground first.  Much hilarity ensued.     I use hinges to lift a rover that needs work off the ground to prevent flipping.