now, that we really have stock cargo bays...

[JtPB]

i wonder for what a spaceplane or a shuttle is useful for in vanilla. i mean, we dont have remote transmission satellites network to maintain, space telescopes to treat, and the fuel those planes can carry is very small amount to bring to a space station(we all uses the orange jumbo tank to hold fuel in space, right?). every science experiment around kerbin is soon to be expired & will not bring any profit at all. even landers we could launch to anywhere out of kerbin are pretty clamsy to put there & we have to do many cuts and compromises to build one which will fit inner.

so... what do we nonetheless can(or must) do with those new spaceplane\shuttle parts? i seek for a reason to use them but i really dont need them at all...

[SkyRender]

They make decent rover shells, having 50m/s impact tolerance. You can cage your Kerbals and/or experiments safely inside, not having to worry about them getting damaged from a nasty tumble that way.

[Franklin]

You concern isn't one with cargo bays and more with the lack of things to explore/study/maintain in KSP in general.

[MartGonzo]

Isn't Fine Print becoming stock in 0.26?

That adds satellite contracts.

[Beachernaut]

I use them to launch small ships and probes. The completionist in me deplores transmitting science, so I launch a lot of science probes. Using spaceplanes cuts launch costs drastically.

[zxczxczbfg]

I like them because my supersonic research jet can fit a fairly comprehensive science module inside one of the short bays, allowing it to maintain its sleek aerodynamics.

[Axelord FTW]

I don't have a working shuttle yet (FAR) but I very much like the idea. They're great for those playing on hard because of the low cost (if you also use Debrefund, like you should).

With Fineprint getting aboard the train soon, I'm sure that type of ships will see more use.

[RocketPilot573]

Isn't Fine Print becoming stock in 0.26?

That adds satellite contracts.

Yea, I haven't really done much of anything with these cargo bays yet. But .90 should fix that.

[babaton]

I used the bay last night to deliver an advanced grabbing unit to my station.I'd only just unlocked it.... It was literally just the claw with a docking port attached.Took it up where it was attached to one of my little nuke tug modules.

The tugs are just nuke engines with rcs, sas for increased torque, some lights and an unmanned command module. Quite a satisfying mission especially as I always forget rcs or reaction control from my ships.

[Red Iron Crown]

I've been working on a modular interplanetary ship system to fit in a Mk2 cargo bay (well, a large bay and a small bay combined). I like the design constraint as it is an interesting design challenge. Manned landers are tough though as there's not a good lander can that fits into the bay. The Mk1 pod has only a 0.625m upper node, the Mk1 lander can is too big, and the Mk1 Inline cockpit barely fits but is heavy and has poor ladder orientation for a lander.

That said, the bigger bays that are apparently in the pipeline will be quite a welcome addition.

[KerikBalm]

Go into the cargo bay folders.

Duplicate and rename the .cfg files

set rescale factor to 4.

Adjust mass and cost to your taste of what is "balanced"

Profit

[Claw]

That looks pretty nice actually. Good work.

-Claw

[Wanderfound]

Bulk orbital fuel delivery for less than √1/unit: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/90337-Economic-Fuel-to-Oribit/page5?p=1361984#post1361984

Also good for deep space exploration: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/90747-Kerbodyne-SSTO-Division-Omnibus-Thread?p=1491566&viewfull=1#post1491566

And bulk Kerbal transport: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/90747-Kerbodyne-SSTO-Division-Omnibus-Thread?p=1384576&viewfull=1#post1384576

Etc. etc.

With Fine Print contracts, a single spaceplane mission may include an aerial survey on the way up, followed by deploying a couple of satellites, before dropping any surplus fuel at the orbital refuelling station and rescuing a stranded Kerbonaut on the way back down. All for about √5,000 per mission.

[KBluey]

Yeah, I can't think of a use for the cargo bays, except in conjunction with aerodynamic mods NEAR and FAR, in which case you can put your probes and other small items inside a cargo bay to reduce aerodynamic drag during a Kerbin ascent. Oh, and why can't you deliver an orange tank into orbit with a spaceplane...? It took me a while to refine the design, but I use a cargo plane to deliver orange tanks, landers etc to LKO to resupply expedition vessels. If you attach a fuselage section to the back of the cockpit, put a docking port on the back of it, and then use two girders or truss sections to split the plane in two (i.e. fuel tanks and wings on each side, with a big gap in the middle for the payload) it works pretty well as long as it's suitably strutted.

Edited October 23, 2014 by KBluey