[0.21.1] StretchyTanks v0.2.2 (updated 8-26-13)

[Reddot99]

Ran into a bit of a problem. These tanks don't seem to play nice with struts.

those struts are about 12km long...and its acting as if the whole length is part of the ship.

There was nothing in debug window, I did dump to an output log, lemme know if you want that.

This started at about 7km, was 2nd stage i dropped. The were instantly about 800meters or so ad started streatching. Not sure if they stopped, got to hard to judge with the camers messed up so bad and no spent stages behind me to gauge distance.

Err, I don't think that's the struts, look close at the craft, there's a big hole in the middle where the tank (probably) used to be.

[Starwaster]

I request that the tanks be constructed out of a slightly less stretchier material. I walked out of the office onto the Space Center grounds and discovered that a bored Jeb and Bill Kerman had toilet papered the entire VAB. Except that instead of paper they used the new Stretchy Tanks.

(We didn't find Bob until after we'd unpeeled about 10 layers of Stretchy Tank....)

[Subcidal]

Yeah this is amazing, Just waiting for you to work out the kinks and i'll delete all of my fuel tanks and just use these haha. Dunno how hard it is but if you could release one with a shuttle fuel tank orange texture or a white one would be awesome. The current texture doesn't much look like a fuel tank =P, no offense intended.

[blizzy78]

For now, I would just wait to make any top and bottom surface attachments to the tank until after you've stretched it to the length you want. I'm currently looking into a way to move the surface attached parts with the stretching. However the code on surface attachments is frankly horrible (it doesn't even tell you where they are, which makes it kinda hard to know where to move them lol), but I'll see what I can do.

That actually leaves a bit to be desired when using multiple engines on the same tank, for example when using my online engine configuration calculator. They way you would use it is that you create a tank, attach the suggested engines, then resize the tank to get the delta-v you need. With the bug still in, this would only work for the central engine (attached to the vertical stack node), but not with the outer engines (surface-attached).

Of course one can work around that by putting a small pancake tank between the resized tank and the engines, then later attaching the engines to the big tank again, deleting the pancake. But that's quite tedious after a while.

[AncientGammoner]

So I've been working on the surface attach stuff and a new "stock-looking" texture that actually looks decent when stretched. Since none of the stock textures are tiled this means using the other technique I mentioned before, the "everything vertical so stretching it keeps the same look" method. Luckily some of the stock textures have a texture close to that (like the Rockmax X200-16) and it doesn't look half bad, check it out:

[Letum]

much better

[rasheed]

agreed. Please add in next update

[Zaeo]

I'd add a crimped top and bottom to more closely resemble stock fuel tanks. Is it possible to offset the stretched face? IE: leave the crimped edge unaffected while stretching the body below it?

[Astronut25]

...

And I second the thought of having the fuel tank be adjustable radially. Still keep the different sizes, though, or alternatively have a button/key that snaps it to the size of the part it is attached to (or if that is too hard, snap to the nearest standard radius).

...

I would like to see a snap feature for the height too.

[AncientGammoner]

I'd add a crimped top and bottom to more closely resemble stock fuel tanks. Is it possible to offset the stretched face? IE: leave the crimped edge unaffected while stretching the body below it?

This isn't possible with the way the mod works, the model has to be a perfect cylinder. This is because it scales the whole model and any lips on the top and bottom will be stretched vertically as well and become massive. Also any depressions in the model on the ends of the cylinder (like some fuel tanks in other addons have a dome shape on the top and bottom) will become grotesquely deep when stretched. So yeah, the model needs to be an perfect cylinder and the texture on the side has to be uniform vertically if you don't want everything to turn into a mess when stretched.

I would like to see a snap feature for the height too.

Fuel tank heights are totally arbitrary and should be based only on the vehicle you're designing it for (hence reason this mod exists), so I'm not sure what you would ever want to snap to height-wise

[Astronut25]

...

Fuel tank heights are totally arbitrary and should be based only on the vehicle you're designing it for (hence reason this mod exists), so I'm not sure what you would ever want to snap to height-wise

OCD, Alignment with non-rocketfuel tanks, etc. Almost everything cylinder-shaped in stock KSP appears to be an exact multiple of Oscar-Bs (excluding engines), maybe I want a tank thats a specific length. Plus, it would make it easier to synchronize different spacecraft if length alignment is important.

This isn't possible with the way the mod works, the model has to be a perfect cylinder. This is because it scales the whole model and any lips on the top and bottom will be stretched vertically as well and become massive. Also any depressions in the model on the ends of the cylinder (like some fuel tanks in other addons have a dome shape on the top and bottom) will become grotesquely deep when stretched. So yeah, the model needs to be an perfect cylinder and the texture on the side has to be uniform vertically if you don't want everything to turn into a mess when stretched. ...

I'm not sure how KSP works, but in Orbiter I did something similar by separating the "crimps" into separate groups, scaling the cylinder and translating the ends. I guess KSP must be different in how mesh animations are handled.

[Subcidal]

Those textures look great. Now they look like fuel tanks and less like re-purposed garden hoses =P Well done.

[AncientGammoner]

I'm not sure how KSP works, but in Orbiter I did something similar by separating the "crimps" into separate groups, scaling the cylinder and translating the ends. I guess KSP must be different in how mesh animations are handled.

There might be a way of making it work, but I'm going to be focusing on more important features than spending a bunch of time just to add a lip to the tank. Maybe in the future though.

[Mihara]

So I've been working on the surface attach stuff and a new "stock-looking" texture that actually looks decent when stretched. Since none of the stock textures are tiled this means using the other technique I mentioned before, the "everything vertical so stretching it keeps the same look" method. Luckily some of the stock textures have a texture close to that (like the Rockmax X200-16) and it doesn't look half bad, check it out:

Indeed this is an improvement when you're using it with stock parts...

...but when B9 parts come into the mix the current texture, surprisingly, looks better with them. Please allow us the option of using either texture?

[AncientGammoner]

Sure I'll leave the other texture in a zip in the parts folder where you can just unzip it and change it if you want.

[The Lone Wolfling]

I would like to see a snap feature for the height too.

As would I.

If nothing else, it would allow me (with MFS) to get rid of all existing cylindrical tanks and replace them with... 5? That's a lot less memory use.

[Subcidal]

Is it reasonably safe to assume that further releases wont break compatability/saves? I imagine your not planning any major overhauls as the mod was just released.

[Van Disaster]

Can I make a suggestion of procedural nosecones to go with these? I suggested it elsewhere as a standalone part & the response was that the nosecone has no way of knowing the size of the thing it's attached to - however you have the ability to let it query your tank.

[blizzy78]

I suggested it elsewhere as a standalone part & the response was that the nosecone has no way of knowing the size of the thing it's attached to

Well, Procedural Fairings has a way to know the size of all the parts that a fairing will encase, so it must work somehow.

But anyway, I don't see the relevance of procedural nosecones here in this thread. Maybe make a new thread in the addon requests forum?

[Vertibirdo]

Thank you for the awesome mod, dude!

[HoneyFox]

Can I make a suggestion of procedural nosecones to go with these? I suggested it elsewhere as a standalone part & the response was that the nosecone has no way of knowing the size of the thing it's attached to - however you have the ability to let it query your tank.

See posts above, i've changed some codes on my local plugin and it then supports adjusting radius of fuel tanks / adapters, etc. Thus i think nose cone should also work because there's no actual difference between an adapter and a nose cone.

You can ask the author of the plugin to add that function, I guess he has already been working on that. Just be patient.

Edited August 20, 2013 by HoneyFox

[Van Disaster]

Well, Procedural Fairings has a way to know the size of all the parts that a fairing will encase, so it must work somehow.

But anyway, I don't see the relevance of procedural nosecones here in this thread. Maybe make a new thread in the addon requests forum?

I discussed the idea with some KSP mod authors who said you couldn't do it reliably without the ability to query the model the nosecone is attached to ( which is how pWings works ). pFairings appears to basically create a bounding mesh for parts which it's the parent for & draws the fairing around it. So, as the most likely thing to be attaching nosecones to which could provide size data on request, I dropped the idea in to the most relevant place.

Honeywell: yep, I'm not in any rush, and yes that seems exactly what is wanted.

[Mihara]

@AncientGammoner There's some discrepancy with tank Dry Mass when using Modular Fuels Tanks.

There is no end to discrepancy between stock tanks themselves, mind you. This comes up whenever anyone makes new tanks.

[AncientGammoner]

Is it reasonably safe to assume that further releases wont break compatability/saves? I imagine your not planning any major overhauls as the mod was just released.

I'll be adding features but yes everything will be compatible.

There is no end to discrepancy between stock tanks themselves, mind you. This comes up whenever anyone makes new tanks.

Well there should be no discrepancy in my tanks since they are all standardized in both resources per volume and full mass to dry mass (ie 9:1) no matter how you stretch them. It's just the modular fuel tanks mod (particularly with RealFuels installed) mucks around with the drymass to add "tanks inside your tanks" and mass for insulation.

On a development note, I got my code on surface attachments working so now when you stretch the tank in any direction all the surface attachments stay on the surface of the tank. This will be added in the next update.

[blizzy78]

On a development note, I got my code on surface attachments working so now when you stretch the tank in any direction all the surface attachments stay on the surface of the tank. This will be added in the next update.

That's great news, thank you.