totm june 2018 Work-in-Progress [WIP] Design Thread

[Gman_builder]

20 hours ago, EvenFlow said:

Little update: Sadly the development of the 777 is encountering more and more problems. Not only is editor getting extremely laggy when alot of fairings are present (I wish i could turn off these dumb fairing animations) but the landing gear is turning out to be a major issue too. Working on it is extremely frustrating due to editor lag. I'm currently trying to come up with some way to model the landing gear.

I ran into the same problem with the landing gear. The only way i could make my plane support its own weight was to offset the gear far bellow the fuselage just so that it would clear the engines

[Kronus_Aerospace]

@EvenFlow As someone who works a lot with fairings I feel your pain. One way I dealt with this issue while building my 747-8 is that I saved the wings as a sub-assembly and removed them while I worked on other parts of the craft. That does however introduce the problem of the fairings not rebuilding reliably upon reattaching the wings to the craft. However, this does cut down on a lot of lag, so I think it's worth it. 

I build my craft in a modular fashion so this technique is very easy to do, but if you don't build that way then it might be more difficult. At worst you can just remove the engines and add them back later.

[Kronus_Aerospace]

Been doing quite a bit of work here and there on my PTV. At this point I'm just working to make this thing as pretty and maneuverable as possible. I decided to add more detail to the cockpit by adding some structural bracing using a whole bunch of barometers. Considering the sheer size of the cockpit it seemed to make sense, but really I just thought that it would look nice.

I've also completely redone the back section. I replaced the Goliaths with custom engines that are meant to resemble giant Panthers, each engine is rather fittingly stuffed with 8 Panthers. These new engines ended up being a colossal boon for the craft's maneuverability thanks to the gimballing of the Panthers. The craft is now so maneuverable that it can stall itself in hard maneuvers, and once again thanks to the gimballing it can maintain control. The craft has finally reached @Servo levels of maneuverability. Although the part count is now over 700 so... lag is obviously an issue.

The redesigned rear section is also substantially smaller than the mess of spikes that the original was, which has the bonus of allowing the craft to rotate earlier. The craft now only requires about 75 meters of runway to take off. Not bad considering that the craft itself is 31 meters long.

Replacing the Goliaths with Panthers had other benefits to the craft's performance as well. Even with afterburners on the craft's TWR is less than before, and yet it now easily breaks mach 1 at sea level. It's performance only increases with altitude, and incredibly the craft is able to achieve mach 2.4 at 11000 meters. This surprised me as I had thought that the craft had rather poor aerodynamics.

This is probably the last I will work on this craft, as I have done pretty much all I've could with it. That said, I love this craft to bits and it has been a massive learning experience.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Kronus_Aerospace

[HB Stratos]

@EvenFlow what is your main body diameter?

I could design a fitting gear for that then

 

Edited June 21, 2018 by HB Stratos

[kapteenipirk]

@Kronus_Aerospace@EvenFlow Couldn't help but take some notes from your stock engine builds and create some of my own for the Fouglas FC-80. Their definitely not as flashy but i thing they look fine enough for me.

 

Id say they look better than the old "Super Wheesleys" (4 "Wheesleys" and 6 circular intakes per engine) that it used before, but im not too happy about the lack of intakes problem created by the fairings.

You can probably see the long line of ramp intakes on the leading edge of the wing, their is a whole host other intakes hidden all over as-well, and those can barely support the 12 "Wheesleys" that the aircraft has now.

 

Here's some closeups of the engine. I wanted it to look like an engine-type from the era of the DC-8 and the old 707 types, basically longer and thinner than the newer engines.

Spoiler

 

And here's the old one.

 

The other changes i did to the aircraft is basically just adding of radiator-panels and sciency bits to represent passenger and luggage-compartment doors and their hinges and handles.

I did also try to bridge the gap between the fuselage stripe and the F on the tail a little better.

Beyond that, there is really not much that can be done as far as improvements go, other than maby adding a custom cockpit, but considering the huge amount of lag i get in the editor because of the boat load of build nodes, i don't think that's gonna happen...Tough i could always make it as a separate thing and add it later as a subassembly...yea, i think i might do that, not now tough, as i will be away from my main PC for the next 2 weeks. Should give me enough time to think that what kind of a cockpit should i make.

[Kronus_Aerospace]

@kapteenipirk I actually really like the engines! They look very sleek and sophisticated. It is true that Wheesleys need a LOT of intake air, however there are some solutions. One thing you can do is use the offset tool to clip the intakes into the fuselage of the plane itself, thus improving asthetics. This also means you can use much bigger intakes to reduce part count.

What I like to do is take the part called "Engine Nacelle" and place an intake in front of it, such an assembly gives a total of 7 intake area, this means you only need 8 of such assemblies to supply all the intake air requirements of the Wheesleys, giving a total of 16 parts. Which is actually less than the total number of intakes that you had before you swithed to those new engines

Nice plane by the way!

 

[Triop]

Looks pretty boring so far . . .

Needs more lights, speakers, Kerbals . . .

[kapteenipirk]

1 hour ago, Kronus_Aerospace said:

@kapteenipirk I actually really like the engines! They look very sleek and sophisticated. It is true that Wheesleys need a LOT of intake air, however there are some solutions. One thing you can do is use the offset tool to clip the intakes into the fuselage of the plane itself, thus improving asthetics. This also means you can use much bigger intakes to reduce part count.

What I like to do is take the part called "Engine Nacelle" and place an intake in front of it, such an assembly gives a total of 7 intake area, this means you only need 8 of such assemblies to supply all the intake air requirements of the Wheesleys, giving a total of 16 parts. Which is actually less than the total number of intakes that you had before you swithed to those new engines

Nice plane by the way!

 

Thanks . I already have 4 rounded intakes clipped in the underbelly as "air-con intakes" like the ones you would see in real aircraft (lot smaller tough), then there's the "flap tracks" and engine mounts, so no shortage of hidden and clipped ones.

But i never taught of using the engine-nacelles, definitely have to see about hiding some of those...hmm...i think i could probably replace the flat underbelly between the wings with all engine-nacelles and intakes.

 

It's damn late, but i had to try before i forget about it after those two weeks, and here is the result.

This is what the mess of intakes looked like.

 

And this is what it looks like after the change.

Looks pretty neat and tidy compared to the last solution if you ask me, and works like a charm too. Decided to use pre-coolers instead for their non fatness and cause they start working at a slower speed.

Thanks for the tips buddy .

 

Edited June 22, 2018 by kapteenipirk

[Munbro Kerman]

I'm back.

Though I haven't been around the forums for a while, I've been playing KSP on and off working on some new projects and old. Here's the few that are close to completion (Note: full stock, no dlc):

Soyuz FG - Updated with post-1.4 fuel tanks and fairings, as well as using the new orange tanks for the paint configuration seen on most Soyuz launchers.

Of course, the Saturn V. Also updated with post-1.4 parts. Not shown here but the LEM has also been overhauled - more pics soon. Also - I happened to come across @Kronus_Aerospace's F-1 and J-2 engine on KerbalX while catching up on recent craft posted and I was intrigued with the idea of adding something similar to the first stage, and this is the product, so credit to Kronus for giving me the inspiration and sort of "draft". I'll post some close-ups in the VAB at a later date.

SU-27 - Most probably don't remember my previous Flanker that I released a while ago and decided to completely overhaul this one. Main fuselage has been remodeled as well as the wings. 

Other projects in the works: F-16 Block 50, Mercury program rockets, MiG-21, Falcon 9 / Heavy, and the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft. 

 

[Kronus_Aerospace]

@Munbro Kerman Absolutely fantastic work on that Saturn V and Soyuz. After all those DLC Saturn V builds flooded KerbalX it's really refreshing to see a stock build that blows them all out of the water. I'm also really interested in seeing how you did those F-1 engines.

[Munbro Kerman]

Basically it's an even simpler design of yours since I'm a little over budget on parts - my current Saturn V has 1500 parts (going for visuals and function more than practicality). Anyways, the xenon containers are used to represent the turbine exhaust manifold similar to yours, part of the thrust chamber used the oscar-b tanks, and the heat exchanger used the mono propellant tanks, shown below. 

Inside the fairing are 5 KS-25 engines, producing a total thrust of 4682.54 kN per F-1 engine

All F-1s are mounted and ready for launch (notice that the fairing base is clipped in). Total thrust at launch: 23412 kN or 5263384.36 lbf - roughly a 35% difference compared to the real thing, and KSP is 64% scaled. So this is pretty overpowered even for a Saturn V. 

[ghostbuzzer7]

Where do I begin... September 25, 2017 was my last visit on this forum. I still played the game on occasions but never really put anything out there like I used to do. Well I guess it's about time I come back. As you can imagine, 9 months is plenty of time to create over 30 forum-worthy crafts. Today, I thought it would be nice to show my new formula 1 2018 model! (A significant improvement from this)  FULL ALBUM

146 Parts | 4.7 Tons | 6.5m x 2.3m x 2.1m (Length, Width, Height) | 32 m/s top speed | 5^o degree camber | 6 tires in front | 10 tires in rear | Ugly halo installed

 

Spoiler

 

 

Edited June 25, 2018 by ghostbuzzer7

[Castille7]

 

The Cantilever Bridge Project
K&S Technologies Group
Up Date: 06.24.2018

The Cantilever Bridge was an idea that stared in February of 2017, you can see the first post here The idea was to make a Bridge that would cross over a short distance of water. The only place I could find that would be a short distance and close to the KSC was actually a long way from the KSC and the Bridge Span was longer than I planned. As time went on the challenge was getting very difficult. Many hours of trial and error were done, discouragement and burn outs have been regular. The Project then changed to a land base project to lessen the challenges so a Bridge could be completed. As time went on more ideas came to mind and eventually the Bridge became a challenge not only to be built on land but over the Administration Building. The reason I chose that particular building was the Flag Pole. I recently threw it the towel once again because the challenges that game physics give to Bridge Building get overwhelming. Just a few days ago I collaborated with my partner @klond  once again and he helped solve the physics challenges, helped give the Bridge a cleaner look...etc. We now have reason to celebrate a long term project that is finally coming to a close. We have driven over the first Bridge built over a large building at the KSC. As always a huge thanks to Klond for the help with, motivation and encouragement to complete the Project. More updates to come!

Edited June 25, 2018 by Castille7

[MaianTrey]

21 hours ago, Munbro Kerman said:

Basically it's an even simpler design of yours since I'm a little over budget on parts - my current Saturn V has 1500 parts (going for visuals and function more than practicality). Anyways, the xenon containers are used to represent the turbine exhaust manifold similar to yours, part of the thrust chamber used the oscar-b tanks, and the heat exchanger used the mono propellant tanks, shown below.

And I thought my nearly 800 part replica was heavy...

[Servo]

Working on a new F/A-18 since I haven't really made one I'm happy with. I'm trying to get the looks as clean as possible (possibly sacrificing some accuracy for overall smoothness). Obviously, I have a long way to go. 

I was able to work past a particularly annoying rough spot with the fairings used for the engine nacelles, so now I'm on to the rest of the body. For some reason, vertical stabilizers are always the hardest part for me...

[kapteenipirk]

I mentioned earlier that i was going to be away from home for a while, now it looks like i may end up being away from home for two more weeks.

During this i cant get any crafts uploaded, but i have decided that i will be drawing a new banner for my profile to replace that awful thrown together in two minutes one im using now. I may even end up doing a new profile pick, but that remains to be seen.

 

I don't really have any new projects in mind because i want to get some of the old stuff out of the way first (navy stuff mostly), but i do wanna make a new much larger carrier for my fleet once i get back home, i was planning on doing a 1:1 IJN Akagi, but now i feel like doing a mix-em-up of the Akagi and the Graf Zeppelin, sort of in the same way as the K.S.S Freedom witch was a mix of the U.S.S Independence and the IJN Zuiho. Im planning on making it about 250m long to make sure that pretty much any carrier planes can be landed safely on it.

[Kronus_Aerospace]

I was thinking about @Servo's massive F-14 replica that he was working on, and was inspired to start working on another large jet. Since I'm still learning the ropes of fighter craft I don't feel comfortable enough to start work on a replica craft, so this fighter will be another original.

That said the craft's general look is so far very reminiscent of the f-16, currently my plan is for this aircraft to be kind of a hybrid of the F-16 and the F-14, although I will of course add some original elements of my own. Rather than describing what I plan to do, I decided to create a little sketch of my general plan. Do note that all of this may change as the craft goes through development.

When I said F-14 and F-16 hybrid I meant it. The most questionable areas of the design so far are the stabilators and tail fins. I have a few bonkers Ideas for the stabilators that I will have to try out before I can say anything too conclusive, but I have no idea what I'm gonna do for the tail fins. Although, the tail fins are probably the least consequential part of a fighter so I'm not too worried.

I have also already built the cockpit for this craft. And, I think you'll agree that nothing could describe the scale of this new jet better than comparing its cockpit to the cockpit of my PTV.

The new cockpit also has a more complex shape than the PTV's cockpit. although the difference is difficult to notice, the shape is more realistic.

I will post maybe one more update before the craft is finished, hopefully progress is smooth.   :-P

Please note:

The name of this craft is simply a placeholder.

Edited June 27, 2018 by Kronus_Aerospace

[prgmTrouble]

16 minutes ago, Kronus_Aerospace said:

Please note:

The name of this craft is simply a placeholder.

*accidentally posts craft with placeholder name

[qzgy]

23 minutes ago, Kronus_Aerospace said:

When I said F-14 and F-16 hybrid I meant it. The most questionable areas of the design so far are the canards and tail fins. I have a few bonkers Ideas for the canards that I will have to try out before I can say anything too conclusive, but I have no idea what I'm gonna do for the tail fins. Although, the tail fins are probably the least consequential part of a fighter so I'm not too worried.

Hmm. I saw more F-35 in that tail design personally before looking it up. Granted though, they are very similar. That wing and intake though are very tomcat like.

Also... canards where? And why?

Also any plans on making the wings move too? You have so much space within that fairing it seems for fun bits. Partcount would be a different question.

26 minutes ago, Kronus_Aerospace said:

The name of this craft is simply a placeholder.

I think its fine. Nothing to worry about.

 

Interested to see how it turns out though. Good luck!

[Kronus_Aerospace]

@qzgyWay to make me feel like I've been living a lie. I've been calling stabilators canards for months. And NO ONE has pointed out that I was wrong until now. I don't know how I got those mixed up but I am shocked that no one noticed.

I just feel stupid now.

Also moving wings. Maybe, I feel like at that point it's a bit too F-14-ish, you are correct that it would be very easy though.

Edited June 27, 2018 by Kronus_Aerospace

[Servo]

1 hour ago, Kronus_Aerospace said:

I was thinking about @Servo's massive F-14 replica that he was working on, and was inspired to start working on another large jet. Since I'm still learning the ropes of fighter craft I don't feel comfortable enough to start work on a replica craft, so this fighter will be another original.

I have also already built the cockpit for this craft. And, I think you'll agree that nothing could describe the scale of this new jet better than comparing its cockpit to the cockpit of my PTV.

The new cockpit also has a more complex shape than the PTV's cockpit. although the difference is difficult to notice, the shape is more realistic.

Ho-lee-mackerel that cockpit though. You're definitely pushing the boundaries of the solar panel cockpit. Doesn't hurt that it has a part count equivalent to many lesser planes...

In that vein, I nailed down my issue with my F/A-18A (F/A-18 E/F have a larger cockpit, and the parallelogram intakes), though some issues remain. I'll probably reinstall KVV and look at overlays to find out why it just doesn't look right to me, but it's getting there. As another craft to add to the neverending docket, this one seems like it would be a good contender for the 200% treatment, due to the relatively small wing area + simple curves. I wound up abandoning the 200% F-14 once it got unwieldy.

Additionally, someone on reddit gave me an idea. @HB Stratos made one of these already (complete with custom landing gear, to boot), but I may have to take a crack at it myself.

[prgmTrouble]

Just finished building the wings & fuselage on my Airbus A330-200 to scale. I am using the height of the mk3 parts to scale everything to kerbal parts.

Spoiler

I forgot the 5° dihedral the first time around, had to redo the wings entirely. I still have to figure out the fowler flaps and leading edge slats to figure out, if possible...

Edited June 27, 2018 by prgmTrouble

[qzgy]

10 hours ago, Kronus_Aerospace said:

Way to make me feel like I've been living a lie. I've been calling stabilators canards for months. And NO ONE has pointed out that I was wrong until now. I don't know how I got those mixed up but I am shocked that no one noticed.

I just feel stupid now.

that was not the original intention... 

But hey least you know now. And it shouldn't detract from the work.

[ghostbuzzer7]

Just a picture. Getting back to my usual stuff and changing systems to work with the new game. These new bearings hold a lot more compared to the previous models. That's all, continue with your day. 

 

[Kronus_Aerospace]

After quite a bit of work, my newest fightercraft is well on the way to completion. The fuselage has been completed, the cockpit is added, and the stabilators are finished. And best of all, the craft is already capable of flight!

While I'm happy with the fuselage overall, I'm not sure about the intakes. I'll have to wait till I've down more work before I can safely say whether or not I'll change them.

One thing I am extremely happy with is the rear section. the geometry ended up being way more complex than I had anticipated. It also ended up much more f-35 inspired than the original design plan, but you can't argue with the results!

The Stabilators are also obviously not actual stabilators. More so a bunch of control surfaces and wing parts in the shape of a typical fighter craft stabilator. They do the job though, the craft can already pull 8g-10g maneuvers.

I've concluded that the craft will have variable sweep wings in a similar style as the f-14. There is plenty of room to add a strong enough mechanism so it shouldn't be a terribly complex job.

The craft is also capable of rotating in only 2 of it's own body lengths. That said, it is 60 meters long so that's not TOO impressive.

This craft is turning out well! Work has also been quick surprisingly. The part count is currently 950 though, so the final part count is definitely going to be over 1000 by the time it's finished.

EDIT:

Bonus shot of the craft compared to my PTV!

Edited June 28, 2018 by Kronus_Aerospace