Getting aircraft in sub-assembly

[DeepSpaceDutch]

So after playing with rockets the last year I am now focusing my R&D efforts on aircraft. Now I have this cute, beautifully flying, little jet that I want to send to Laythe. I remember the 0.23 features video where they showed sub-assembly loader being able to get aircraft from the SPH to the VAB to be attached to a booster. But for the life of me I cannot figure out how to do this. Sub-assembly doesn't accept the complete craft and I have tried other approaches which all failed.

Am I missing the obvious?

Also, with big boosters sub-assembly still seems to forget a lot of struts and fuel lines, is there any thing I can do to solve this?

Thanks!

Edited December 28, 2013 by DeepSpaceDutch

[Murph]

I deal with that situation by manually copying the craft file from saves/<name>/Ships/SPH to saves/<name>/Ships/VAB, then editing the VAB copy to have "type = VAB" instead of "type = SPH". I then load it in the VAB, rotate it vertical, strap on whatever boosters and launch clamps I need, save, and I'm good to go. Do not edit a SPH design copied across to the VAB (other than slapping boosters and clamps onto it), as the VAB engineers eat SPH struts and symmetry as snacks when you do that.

I suspect that the warranty is probably void with that procedure.

[Tex_NL]

I can confirm Murph's method of transferring .craft. And he is also correct about weird things happening when you try to edit a craft with different symmetry.

The second method of transferring craft is indeed through sub-assemblies. Important to remember when doing this is that a sub-assembly can NEVER include a root part.

e.g. If you build a plane in the SPH starting with a cockpit you can take off the entire fuselage and wings (everything without the cockpit) and safe this as a sub-assembly. Once in the VAB you add the sub-assembly to a new cockpit to 'rebuild' your plane.

A third option is to use Editor Extensions. It allows, among other things, for easy switching between SPH and VAB symmetry in both SPH and VAB.

[biohazard15]

Transferring subassemblies from SPH to VAB and vice versa is totally possible - I'm designing all my rovers in SPH. The tricky part here is the "tree" part structure - you have to keep it in mind all the time. Basically speaking: the root part of a subassemly must have a free attachment node.

Here, to illustrate:

You can see a mobile lab with lander for Mun and Minmus, designed in SPH. It was designed "backwards" - first came the batteries and RTGs (engine), then lab, then wheels, then lander. The lab is attached to lander via radial attachment point on the top.

Note two things:

- Two girder segments at the back - those are "root" part, which isn't a part of design, they are here just for my convenience (so I can edit rlatively freely)

- The mouse cursor (not shown) is on last battery - this battery will be a "root" part of subassembly. To save my rover, I need to open Subassemblies tab, click on the last battery (and grab all my craft, except two girders), and save it.

Then in VAB, I load my launcher, take the saved rover from Subassemblies and attach it:

Some additional struts, fairings - and it's ready to go.

This particular craft was somewhat tricky to fly - it was important to watch where your control point is. But in the end, mission was accomplished.

[Markus Reese]

same as biohazard, When I design a vehicle to be transferred, I build it in VAB starting where I want my mounting point for the craft to be in SPH. If starting the build in VAB using the space plane, I simply detach it from the cockpit, place a new cockpit in VAB then attach.

If it is something else like my aerial drone launcher where they must attach at the back, I place a useless cockpit then begin building at the rear of the craft so it becomes my subassembly attachment point.

Where you detach it from your construction order is how it will attach.

[Taki117]

Sub-assemblies CAN include the root part of the vessel, but that root part must have an open attach node. like with my Mun Lander for my Apollo style mission I built it starting with the docking port ont he top then took the whole thing and dropped it into the sub-assembly tab to be used with my launch vehicle.

[Kasuha]

Subassemblies are supposed to get attached to something so it's best idea to build them attached to some placeholder, then detach them from that placeholder and save as subassembly. After that you'll be able to attach them again the same way they were originally attached. Including radially attachable subassemblies with no free attach points.

If you just build a craft and want to save it as subassembly you need its root part to have at least one free attach point and you'll then be only able to attach it by that point.

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Edited December 24, 2013 by Kasuha

[DeepSpaceDutch]

Thanks guys!! With your help I got it working. Hopefully Squad will make this a bit easier!