Open Source Construction Techniques for Craft Aesthetics

[Rath]

I think thats because it counts as 1.25m, but its bigger than that, so if you don't clip into the 1.25m part the game doesn't notice.

[fourfa]

On 10/16/2016 at 2:35 PM, eloquentJane said:

I really want to be able to attach directly to shielded docking ports when they're open in the VAB, it would make things so much simpler.

I know this is a stock-focused thread, but TweakableEverything allows that

[sdj64]

Found out today that you can do 9x symmetry relatively easily in KSP.  Simply place 3x symmetry 3 times, and hold down shift with angle snap on to get the correct angle for the second and third time.  Also, apparently fairings can close on the surface I made using radiators at 9x symmetry.

[Majorjim!]

6 hours ago, sdj64 said:

Found out today that you can do 9x symmetry relatively easily in KSP.  Simply place 3x symmetry 3 times, and hold down shift with angle snap on to get the correct angle for the second and third time.  Also, apparently fairings can close on the surface I made using radiators at 9x symmetry.

Hi there, I highly recommend using editor extensions building mod for extra symmetry and other options. It's great! 

 Also, yup, that's how I have been making my open ended fairings since they where introduced, it's an ace trick for more complex fairings. :-)   

[sdj64]

4 hours ago, Majorjim! said:

Hi there, I highly recommend using editor extensions building mod for extra symmetry and other options. It's great! 

 Also, yup, that's how I have been making my open ended fairings since they where introduced, it's an ace trick for more complex fairings. :-)   

Yeah, I haven't reinstalled editor extensions since the 1.2 update, I should go and get it.

[Wjolcz]

@Sharpy @fourfa @parameciumkid cool stuff! Thanks a lot! I'll try them out.

[__Ultimatum]

Is it normal that when I click the links at the beginning of the thread it doesn't work? 

[Majorjim!]

8 hours ago, __Ultimatum said:

Is it normal that when I click the links at the beginning of the thread it doesn't work? 

Yes.. It's an old thread and the links are from before the forum software change. It's only 43 pages though so make a cup of tea, get comfy and flick through the pages.

[Wjolcz]

Here's something the offset tool is good for:

As you can see I've decided to put a few experiments on the bottom of the lander to save space and then attached the decoupler and used the offset tool + struts jut so it doesn't look like it's magically floating. It also reduces the risk of clipping and colliding with some of that stuff when separated.

I also tend to do this with engines a lot I don't know why:

Edited December 10, 2016 by Veeltch

[Araym]

On 1/8/2016 at 9:44 AM, Gman_builder said:

Here is my test rig. It doesn't work at all. I think the ports are not magnetizing for some reason. When I decouple the levitate-e it immediately reconnects with the port on the other side of the craft. Then if I decouple it again none of the 4 ports are magnetized. Am I missing something?

 

When you decouple a pair of docking ports, their "magnetism" is turned off untill you back up a good amount of meters...
... so if this creation is launched with both pair "connected" (or at least 1 connected and the other one overing in its own magnetims), once one (or the "only one") is "detached", the other one kick in its magnetism and dock. BUT once you detach the second pair, the first is still not magnetized because the moving part never backed up enough, so the "levitation" is not working.

[Wjolcz]

Not sure if this belongs here, because it's more of an engineering than aesthetics tip, but if you are ever going to make an asymmetrical probe always have more than one engine:

This thing has an RTG on one side. By watching the thrust offset angle and adjusting the thrust percentage on one engine it is very easy to keep the probe stable during burns. This is exactly how Cassini's engines work.

Edited December 28, 2016 by Veeltch

[Pixel of Life]

Kerbodyne 2.5m to 3.75m adapters work great as engine shrouds (those are NearFuture Pulsed Inductive Thrusters, tweakscaled to a suitable size and then clipped inside the adapters so only the tip of the nozzle is outside the adapter):

 

You can also do it with an upside-down Procedural Fairings Interstage Fairing Adapter and Fuselage Fairings, although it won't look quite as clean:

[Raptor kerman]

Mk3 double deck cargo bay. The idea is, you put extra essentials in the lower deck or 'equipment baby' as I call it, in this case a mk2 LF tank, lots of monopropellant and a s*it tonne of batteries. Once this is done you make a floor out of the biggest rectangular wing elements. This should be touching the top of the mk2 tank* while still concealing it, giving enough head room for a lot of cargo! 

*This is juts for reference if you want a decently sized upper deck like here.

[Heckspress]

19 minutes ago, Raptor kerman said:

'equipment baby' as I call it,  

sounds adorable 

[septemberWaves]

@Raptor kerman Pretty nice. I'll definitely be using that one.

[Servo]

For sculpting nose cones and tail assemblies, you aren't limited to just NCS adapters and fairings. If you want a slanted nose (like on many Cold War jets), make the nose/tail out of airbrakes! With 4-6x symmetry, they create a smooth shape that can be easily adjusted. Just look at how clean some of these are:

Double layered tail, made using EER. This technique also allows you to put a 1.25m engine inside of it, like the Panther in this model.

The slanted nose of the Sea Dart was really annoying to get right with NCS adapters, but with airbrakes it looks really good.

 

Edited January 25, 2017 by Servo

[NorthAmericanAviation]

Adding on to noses, I have had good luck using landing gear to sculpt round-noses on aircraft with more "fluid" lines, it works really well

just be sure to de-bond them from their respective action group(s)!

My F4D "Skyray," a personal favorite...

[vitekc45c]

Not sure how well known this is: you can hold down shift key in offset mode to move parts waay beyond the usual offset limit.

Edited February 11, 2017 by vitekc45c

[Majorjim!]

5 minutes ago, vitekc45c said:

Not sure how well known this is: you can hold down shift key in offset mode to move parts waay beyond the usual offset limit.

Yup, that's quite a well known thing me thinks. You can also, turn a part 180 degrees and it will offset even further! You are better off just downloading the no offset mod though!

[CastleKSide]

Is it just me or are the links on the first page broken? they don't seem to link to the post they are claiming to

[qzgy]

40 minutes ago, CastleKSide said:

Is it just me or are the links on the first page broken? they don't seem to link to the post they are claiming to

I think the links are broken since they moved with a forum update. Just click through the pages, there's only 43

[TheEpicSquared]

I've noticed that having many engines clustered under a fuel tank can look a bit ugly. To get around this, I use a surprisingly simple solution: Radiators.

For a 2.5m fuel tank, eight of the large radiator panels (these ones) on the side of the tank do wonders at giving a clean look to the bottom of rockets. If you offset the panels to that they align exactly with the tank, they almost look like they're meant to fit on the tanks!

I'm not on KSP now, but I'll try to get screenshots tomorrow.  

Edited April 29, 2017 by TheEpicSquared

[Thor Wotansen]

I was recently having a problem with some nacelle engine clusters for a SSTO I was building, turns out that while you can radially attach stuff to 1.25m batteries, you probably shouldn't.  Every time the craft loaded on the runway the nacelles would spontaneously disassemble within five seconds.  Switching to the shortest 1.25m LFO tank fixed the issue.

[EvenFlow]

Since the main feature of my last bomber was it's engine mechanism I've decided to post some of it's "blueprints" here. Hopefully somebody finds them useful in some way.

[Devan kerman]

Cool, a noice engine I'm trying to design an easier one.