Using the Clamp O Tron Sr to Make HUGE Interplanetary Yachts

[ComradeGoat]

"Don't overbuild your deep space missions", they said.

"Where's the hot tub on this ship?", I said.

So just messing about in my "skunkworks" second save game, I built this over the course of six launches:

From front to back, we have a 3 Kerbal command pod/senior Clamp o Tron orbital assembly/reassembly tug, hitchhiker storage module, 4 single kerbal landers, each with around 4K delta V and enough TWR for any atmosphere-less body in the game, large orange refuelling/docking module, main engine section, 2 kerbal launch with 6-7K delta V by itself, solar array, 1 kerbal lifeboat/standard Clamp o Tron orbital assembly/reassembly tug.

Crew is 4, they have a lander each and enough space to stretch out in style. The idea is that the ship can go anywhere in the system, reconfigure itself, leave a mini space station there, do some landings, use the launch to explore nearby bodies (e.g. moons of Jool), return to Kerbin, leaving the station in situ, and then land all 4 kerbals in the 2 orbital assembly tugs, both of which have 'chutes and have enough monoprop delta v to deorbit.

Before the Sr, this would have been all but impossible in the stock game because, the moment I turned on ASAS, or put it under thrust, it would have shaken itself apart. This one holds together very well, and will even hold a heading with pretty low wobble.

I'm thinking of taking it to Vall and using it, or Tylo, as the base of operations for some Joolian moon exploration before returning, but after all that effort and fun building it, part of me wants to not sully the "showroom" feel by ever turning the engines on!

So who else is building silly huge ships for going places in style?

[Shuttle]

I am bad at docking so I build powerful rockets. Here is the vessel I am planning to send to Jool and return back to Kerbin:

[csiler2]

Verry nice, how much?

Do you have struts holding together the standard clamp-o-tron joint that joins the 2-Kerbal excursion unit to the rest of the ship? How's stability after those go away?

[ComradeGoat]

Verry nice, how much?

Do you have struts holding together the standard clamp-o-tron joint that joins the 2-Kerbal excursion unit to the rest of the ship? How's stability after those go away?

Removing those struts obviously has a negative impact on stability. The vessel never needs to thrust as a unit when those have been severed though: I'm planning to just take the two command modules, the hitchhiker storage module, and the main engine unit back, leaving the rest in orbit round Vall, or wherever, possibly as the basis of a future larger station.

[ComradeGoat]

I am bad at docking so I build powerful rockets. Here is the vessel I am planning to send to Jool and return back to Kerbin:

Wow! Do you have a picture of the launch vehicle for that beast?

[llamatoes]

I love the new ports, moho misssion, nil wobble

[TMS]

Nice-looking mothership.

I find that the burn times are too tedious with large ships, though. Especially as timewarp and monster vehicle don't like each other.

I ended up designing fleets and sending them out in batches.

[Xaiier]

I've been working on a series of interplanetary "yachts" lately. I'm at work so no pictures now. The first one was largely designed with aesthetics in mind (think the Discovery from 2001) and took Jeb to Duna orbit and back (barely). The second one took function over form and turned into a massive monster too long to fit on the screen. Sadly my engine requirements were a bit low so it didn't have the TWR to leave orbit. I'm in the process of a third one now that should actually work.

[ComradeGoat]

Nice-looking mothership.

I find that the burn times are too tedious with large ships, though. Especially as timewarp and monster vehicle don't like each other.

I ended up designing fleets and sending them out in batches.

That's what I was doing before, and in my other save game which still has missions ongoing from 0.18. Having to do 6 separate injection burns, 6 plane corrections and 12 aerobrakes followed by 5 rendezvous and dock operations in Laythe orbit was getting old fast, though.

[ComradeGoat]

Sadly my engine requirements were a bit low so it didn't have the TWR to leave orbit. I'm in the process of a third one now that should actually work.

Well I haven't actually *tried* to break orbit yet.

6 NERVAs should get there eventually though. Might take a few goes round.

[Elemental]

How have you found the turning on it? I found the flaw in my first vessel was the RCS could not move it at all... then with the springy of the old docks the only way I could get it to do anything was infinite RCS fuel.

I do not see your RCS nozzles on the yacht so wondering how out drives....

[Xaiier]

Well I haven't actually *tried* to break orbit yet.

6 NERVAs should get there eventually though. Might take a few goes round.

I had 6 nervas on a 200+ ton vehicle...It was going to take awhile to get even past the Mun. New design has a planned 18.

[AustralianFries]

I am bad at docking so I build powerful rockets. Here is the vessel I am planning to send to Jool and return back to Kerbin:

Good heavens! You must post the launch vehicle for that monster.

[ComradeGoat]

How have you found the turning on it? I found the flaw in my first vessel was the RCS could not move it at all... then with the springy of the old docks the only way I could get it to do anything was infinite RCS fuel.

I do not see your RCS nozzles on the yacht so wondering how out drives....

I'm using command pod torque to turn it, not RCS. Realistically, you don't need to turn in a hurry for interplanetary travel.

[ComradeGoat]

I had 6 nervas on a 200+ ton vehicle...It was going to take awhile to get even past the Mun. New design has a planned 18.

LOL. Once past the Mün, you're most of the way there though.

Engineer redux says I can burn those engines for over an hour. Disturbing.

[TMS]

Sounds about right.

[Johnno]

Not sure how 'huge' this qualifies as, but here's my latest interplanetary ship. Three launches off the ground, one launch from Kerbin orbit to Jool. Manned Laythe landing (and ascent) then manned Vall landing (am still on Laythe though, waiting for a friend as we're playing together). Return home with the midsection (2 mk1 pods, fuel + 2 LV-N). Interplanetary drivestage has 13 LV-N.

Crew: 2

Mass before leaving Kerbin system: 255 tons

[Shuttle]

Good heavens! You must post the launch vehicle for that monster.

Wow! Do you have a picture of the launch vehicle for that beast?

I didn't expect people would want to see a launch vehicle. I can't post screenshots right now but I'll create a thread with .craft, screenshots and description in the exchange forum tomorrow and will post a link here

Part count is ~400 parts without payload, no asparagus staging. And I have to say this rocket is good looking as well, it reminds me of N1

[ComradeGoat]

Not sure how 'huge' this qualifies as, but here's my latest interplanetary ship. Three launches off the ground, one launch from Kerbin orbit to Jool. Manned Laythe landing (and ascent) then manned Vall landing (am still on Laythe though, waiting for a friend as we're playing together). Return home with the midsection (2 mk1 pods, fuel + 2 LV-N). Interplanetary drivestage has 13 LV-N.

Crew: 2

Mass before leaving Kerbin system: 255 tons

Looking highly badass as well!

[ComradeGoat]

Update:

I broke orbit and set sail for the Joolian system. Used about half the fuel in the propulsion system (left the orange tank alone). The burn wasn't too painfully long: I compromised on the Oberth Effect by starting from an orbit of around 300K and managed to hit escape velocity on only my second orbit, burning between 20º either side of the launch point.

The burn took about 25 minutes. It would have been less, but the fuel available to the excursion vehicle's NERVAs ran out after about 15 minutes and I couldn't be bothered to stop and rebalance it so they had more available. Got a nice Jool intercept and will fix up my approach when I do my plane correction in a few weeks.

It behaves impeccably under thrust with ASAS on; not a hint of wobble. Very impressed.

[Rune]

This was my most impressive docking by far, a pentadock with Sr. and a SAS-less ship:

To build the mothership for my Grand Tour:

10 orange tanks, 12 nuclear engines, more than 900 parts with the two SSTO shuttles and the Tylo-class lander, with more ports and probes than I will know what to do with. A beast worthy of the name Argos, ready for the deep. I will make the post after the lunar shakedown cruise is done.

Rune. Go big or go home!

Edited June 28, 2013 by Rune

[zekes]

ill put in my two cents.....

[ioftd]

I have two large ships to share.

First is the Odyssey class, made for the first mission to the Jool system, and transported a space station, kethane miner and a reusable lander to Vall.

Odyssey class drive core with Vall Exploration Package (VEP) in tow.

VEP in orbit over Val, with the 2 landers getting ready to decend.

The Odyssey class was effective, but barely had enough fuel to return to Kerbin after dropping its payload, let alone continue to other destinations. Thus the Sojourner class drive core was born. This thing is MASSIVE, and launched empty so it took me a days worth of playing just to mine/transport/refine enough fuel to fill it for its mission.

Testing fuel flow/structural strength of the drive core at KSC

Sojourner drive core, command core, 2 landers and Duna Colony Package (DCP) assmbled in orbit.

Closeup of the drive core, I ended up editing the nuclear engines to have more thrust as my duna transfer burn was slated to take almost an hour and physical time acceleration is out of the question.

Closeup of command pod & landers. The home modules were (stupidly) connected with smalller clamp-o-trons and struts which ended up causing a ton of wobble.

One of the landers on Duna's polar cap. These landers are probably the most successful part of this whole ship, they are capable of carrying cargo down to the surface, mining and refueling with kethane, very well balanced (unless you forget to empty the kethane tanks before getting back to space) and sturdy as hell (also I think they look awesome).

Finally, the deployed Duna base. I had no idea that the HOME radial aerospikes were complete ****, so this took many many attempts to land properly.

The Sojourner was a nightmare to pilot with all of its cargo attached. I was hoping to suffer though it on the way to duna, then be able to ditch the base and continue merrily on. Unfortunately even after leaving the base and one of the landers (which was not part of the plan) on Duna, it still had too many parts to make it really enjoyable to play. Its currently on a long transfer to the jool system and I am developing another lighter drive core with fewer parts, try to strike a balance between functionality, aesthetics, part count and ease of use. All of my funtional ships are ugly, and all of my pretty ships are borderline unusable...

[ComradeGoat]

This was my most impressive docking by far, a pentadock with Sr. and a SAS-less ship:

Respect. Most I've ever done is a tri-dock.

[Blue]

My first mission to Jool I actually completed the initial transfer burn this morning. Not intending to waste the 270 days it'll take until it arrives, I'm going to continue various other space ventures, letting them travel in the background.

The mission consists of two lander vehicles and 12 kerbals, carried by three ships:

Philadelphia A (Habitation, Intercessor Bop/Pol/Vall lander)

And the Philadelphia TLT (Tylo/Laythe Lander Transport).

Since I couldn't figger a good way of attaching the Tylo Lander to my interplanetary spacecraft efficiently and in a stable manner that I was happy with, I had to launch the thing attached from the ground.

Right proper nailbiter that launch was.

Edited June 28, 2013 by Blue