Saturbo V [Version 2.0] -- Detailed Apollo Replica (NEW RELEASE - Only 381 parts!)

[zombiphylax]

This looks incredible! Great work!

[GusTurbo]

New version on the way:

[Majorjim!]

New version on the way:

http://i.imgur.com/gEPd0Wr.png

you're a tease Gus. Moar pics please.

[GusTurbo]

I've made it a bit narrower to get those 4 black stripes just right. I'm not sure yet how that narrowing will affect the overall proportions, so things aren't quite ready for a fuller showing yet! I had to redo the S-I and S-II stages, which was surprisingly tricky. I'm pleased with how the engine fairings turned out. The real reason I made them like that was because of how the engines are attached. They're all surface-attached to the bottom fuel tanks, so they're half-embedded into them. In the previous iteration, I just sort of let the top part of the engines clip through the adapters, which you can see here:

I decided I didn't like how that looked, so I moved some things around and created the skirt out of structural panels, which ended up looking more like the real thing and hiding the top of the engine to my satisfaction.

It's hard to explain this stuff in words!

Edited September 7, 2014 by GusTurbo

[GusTurbo]

Here's a more revealing tease:

EDIT:

Shortened the S-I stage, moved the stripes so they're offset just like the real thing!

Edited September 7, 2014 by GusTurbo

[sgt_flyer]

Mmh - how many parts so far ? - and we really need smaller 2 kerbal LEM for 2.5m CSM (so you'll be able to shorten your fairings )

[GusTurbo]

It's currently 557 parts, and I haven't strutted it up yet. I have discovered a really cool way to display the craft though:

Edited September 8, 2014 by GusTurbo

[Icarus II]

Tried this today, had good fun. Works with FAR if you limit atmospheric acceleration to 18m/s and gravity turn at 15km.

Only issue i have is the return home engine doesnt work, the one with a decoupler on it... any ideas? It fires up, it uses its fuel but doesnt move anywhere. Otherwise great work, enjoyed it! Going to get more familiar with the craft to better optimise my experience, will let you know.

[benzman]

Tried this today, had good fun. Works with FAR if you limit atmospheric acceleration to 18m/s and gravity turn at 15km.

Only issue i have is the return home engine doesnt work, the one with a decoupler on it... any ideas? It fires up, it uses its fuel but doesnt move anywhere. Otherwise great work, enjoyed it! Going to get more familiar with the craft to better optimise my experience, will let you know.

You MIGHT be getting the problem I had that is described and answered on page 2 of this post.

[GusTurbo]

Yeah sorry about any issues! I need to release the new version, which has solved the problems and looks better.

[GusTurbo]

OP updated with new release for .90!

Edited January 15, 2015 by GusTurbo

[inigma]

Good job Turbo. This one is at the top of the stack for .90 SV replicas.

[Majorjim!]

YAY its finally here!

She looks epic mate, and that faring is one of a kind!

[Woopert]

Looks really good, Gus. Great work I would always lose patience trying to build a Saturn V replica

[GusTurbo]

Here's a fun idea using Rune's shuttle as a mockup. Saturn-Shuttle!

This design would have used the S-IC as a booster instead of SRBs, with the possibility of the S-IC as a flyback booster. Pretty crazy stuff! Anyway, my optimized Saturn V allows for all sorts of flexibility.

http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/satuttle.htm

[Majorjim!]

Here's a fun idea using Rune's shuttle as a mockup. Saturn-Shuttle!

http://i.imgur.com/CiqXKgx.png

This design would have used the S-IC as a booster instead of SRBs, with the possibility of the S-IC as a flyback booster. Pretty crazy stuff! Anyway, my optimized Saturn V allows for all sorts of flexibility.

http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/satuttle.htm

Holy Mary!

I don't envy you making that badboy fly! But if you do, have ALL the rep!

I look forward to seeing it.

[Rune]

Here's a fun idea using Rune's shuttle as a mockup. Saturn-Shuttle!

http://i.imgur.com/CiqXKgx.png

This design would have used the S-IC as a booster instead of SRBs, with the possibility of the S-IC as a flyback booster. Pretty crazy stuff! Anyway, my optimized Saturn V allows for all sorts of flexibility.

http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/satuttle.htm

Wow! I know my shuttle is on the light side, but still... How much did you tilt the "F-1s"? Anyhow, you know now you HAVE to at least make the recoverable-at-sea version of the S-I stage. The flyback booster would just be icing on the cake.

Rune. Astronautix is an awesome source of inspiration. Lots of crazy ideas that actually were seriously considered!

[GusTurbo]

Wow! I know my shuttle is on the light side, but still... How much did you tilt the "F-1s"? Anyhow, you know now you HAVE to at least make the recoverable-at-sea version of the S-I stage. The flyback booster would just be icing on the cake.

Rune. Astronautix is an awesome source of inspiration. Lots of crazy ideas that actually were seriously considered!

Sadly, I haven't been able to get it working very well so far, but I'll keep at it. It's mostly stable after launch, but if you try to control it too much, it flips out. The biggest problem comes after separation of the S-I stage, because the CoT and CoM are really out of whack. Definitely interesting challenges to attempt to overcome.

[FishInferno]

Hey there Gus. I really like this ship, But I just can't get it into orbit. What ascent path do you follow?

[GusTurbo]

Hey there Gus. I really like this ship, But I just can't get it into orbit. What ascent path do you follow?

My ascent path is pretty steep because the S-II stage has a lower TWR, just like the real thing. If I recall, you will want to keep the apoapsis about 50 seconds ahead of you until apoapsis reaches about 100,000m. What's the main problem with your ascent attempts?

- - - Updated - - -

Also there's a way to convert craft files into 3d models in Blender. That allows them to be converted and shown on SketchFab. More details on the link below:

http://www.reddit.com/r/KerbalSpaceProgram/comments/2qfye6/wip_ksp_in_blender/

Here's the 3d model of the craft, but no textures. I can't upload the textured version into SketchFab because the file is too big. Maybe I can figure out a way around it, but for now, it's still pretty cool.

Saturbo V Model by gusturbo on Sketchfab

[Yukon0009]

Here's a fun idea using Rune's shuttle as a mockup. Saturn-Shuttle!

http://i.imgur.com/CiqXKgx.png

This design would have used the S-IC as a booster instead of SRBs, with the possibility of the S-IC as a flyback booster. Pretty crazy stuff! Anyway, my optimized Saturn V allows for all sorts of flexibility.

http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/satuttle.htm

I could help you with this.

[GusTurbo]

New render:

[GusTurbo]

Updated the OP with a slightly fixed version of the craft file. The fairings surrounding the LEM would sometimes get stuck, so I had to move them a little bit.

Also, I've been messing around with Procedural Fairings to try to get a feel for what might be possible in the next version, since fairings will be stock, and they will be procedural. This craft has about 240 parts.

[Majorjim!]

Updated the OP with a slightly fixed version of the craft file. The fairings surrounding the LEM would sometimes get stuck, so I had to move them a little bit.

Also, I've been messing around with Procedural Fairings to try to get a feel for what might be possible in the next version, since fairings will be stock, and they will be procedural. This craft has about 240 parts.

http://i.imgur.com/t47pbfw.png

The low part count is awesome. But I have to say, craft are going to start looking the same now.. Its a shame really. Making your own farings was a real sign of a good builder.

Ho hum.

We just have to make the contents all the better for it.

[GusTurbo]

The low part count is awesome. But I have to say, craft are going to start looking the same now.. Its a shame really. Making your own farings was a real sign of a good builder.

Ho hum.

We just have to make the contents all the better for it.

I definitely see where you're coming from. Using the ProcFairings mod is harder than it looks though, so builder skill should still make a huge difference. Everything I did on this was manual, so I had to do a lot of tweaking to get it right. It was just about as fiddly as the traditional building process. Also, aesthetics still play a part. Those black stripes aren't part of the fairing texture, after all.