Best wheels

[locustgate]

So what are the best wheels for locations, i.e. What is the best for Minumus, Mun, Duna. I tried the smallest wheels on Mun, and it handled safely, I then tried them on Minimus and well it was like trying to drive on the icy bodies of my dead kerbalnaughts. I tried the 2nd smallest wheels on Mun and most of the time the wheels just sit there spinning.

P.S. I have the drive keys bound to the numpad.

[Vanamonde]

I rarely use anything other than the "ruggedized" TR-2L, as all the others have a tendency to slide around on worlds with gravity lighter than Kerbin's. On worlds Kerbin-sized, though, the M1s are the fastest. The very large and very small ones, of course, are best for very large or very small vehicles.

[Starwhip]

Personally I like these wheels.

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But being serious: You are too light. The sliding is not sliding, really, rather, it is flying. You get shot into the air and stay there, so your wheels don't touch the ground.

For Minmus, I'd suggest no wheels, and just use RCS or small engines and hop around. For the Mun, the big black ones. Other planets are great with the beige ones.

[KerrMü]

like Vanamonde said, for low gravity environments the best wheels in my opinion are the TR-2Ls. Those got really good grip. With the other ones you get wheelspin most of the time.

When you wanna drive around on heavier planets it`s a bit more tricky. IMO the RoveMax Model M1s are good for light rovers like dunebuggys etc on rough terrain, because they are a bit more forgiving when you jump and land a bit sideways.

On heavier rovers or on more even terrain I prefer the TR-2Ls.

[magnemoe]

The M1 has an bonus that they give some extra wheelbase and height but the TR-2L are overall good.

The tiny ones are for unmanned rovers or light stuff who might have to move some. So light you can put on any probe lander to get some mobility but slow for longer trips.

The big one is for heavy stuff.

[zekes]

I personally like the baloon tyres on other planets, but for the most part the Ruggedized wheels are your best choice for carrying some real cargo.

[locustgate]

Personally I like these wheels.

http://imgur.com/a/fQlgj

http://imgur.com/a/4XIOq

But being serious: You are too light. The sliding is not sliding, really, rather, it is flying. You get shot into the air and stay there, so your wheels don't touch the ground.

For Minmus, I'd suggest no wheels, and just use RCS or small engines and hop around. For the Mun, the big black ones. Other planets are great with the beige ones.

Soooo giant rolling wheels of death, just like my cousin.

[cantab]

Bear in mind that when you hold W to drive forward, that's also trying to pitch down using any reaction wheels, including any probe cores, on board. On low-gravity worlds this matters. You can avoid this by remapping the rover controls, failing that driving in docking mode, failing that disabling the torque.

[locustgate]

Bear in mind that when you hold W to drive forward, that's also trying to pitch down using any reaction wheels, including any probe cores, on board. On low-gravity worlds this matters. You can avoid this by remapping the rover controls, failing that driving in docking mode, failing that disabling the torque.

Like I said the wheel controls are routed to the number pad.

[zekes]

Bear in mind that when you hold W to drive forward, that's also trying to pitch down using any reaction wheels, including any probe cores, on board. On low-gravity worlds this matters. You can avoid this by remapping the rover controls, failing that driving in docking mode, failing that disabling the torque.

I just remap the wheel control to the IJKL keys.

[cantab]

Derp. I fail at reading.

[locustgate]

So I got the l2 wheels changed and now I flip.

[DrMonte]

I didn't find the use for "RoveMax M1". In all cases "TR-2L" are better.

So:

RoveMax Model S2 - Extremely tiny unmanned rovers.

RoveMax Model XL3 - To slowly move extremely huge structures. Like 50t or more in one piece.

TR-2L Ruggedized Vehicular Wheel - Everywhere else.

[Wanderfound]

I didn't find the use for "RoveMax M1". In all cases "TR-2L" are better.

So:

RoveMax Model S2 - Extremely tiny unmanned rovers.

RoveMax Model XL3 - To slowly move extremely huge structures. Like 50t or more in one piece.

TR-2L Ruggedized Vehicular Wheel - Everywhere else.

The S2's also work nicely on tiny manned rovers. Surprisingly stable.

[Geschosskopf]

The eternal question: M1 vs TR-2L It really depends on the purpose of the rover. They cost about the same, they go about the same speed, neither uses THAT much electricity, and you can build around their differences in shape. So the main differences are:

• Traction
  
• Durability, which affects vehicle gross weight
  

NOTE: The below assumes you've remapped your rover controls to keys other than WASD. I myself use KP8, KP4, KP5, and KP6 to avoid confusion with the RCS translation keys. Anyway...

The TR-2L has far and away more traction than the M1. This is both a blessing and a curse. A rover with TR-2L can climb much steeper hills in rather lower gravity than a rover with M1. Yay. But OTOH, the "grippiness" of the TR-2L gives too much braking force on the front wheels, resulting in endos unless you remember to remove the front wheels from the Brake action group. Also, when turning, especially at high speed, the outboard TR-2L wheels will dig in and cause the rover to roll towards the outside of the turn, even with SAS on. This can be solved by not turning as sharply, or not at as high a speed, or by disabling the steering for the back wheels. Furthermore, on low-gravity worlds, the TR-2L has a tendency to snag on slight irregularities in the mesh of the ground, which will cause the rover to flip for no apparent reason. Plus, of course, it's pretty much impossible to drift if you've got TR-2Ls.

The M1 is pretty much the opposite of the TR-2L when it comes to traction. You don't need to disable the front wheel brakes. You usually don't get any tendency to roll during turns. You can drift by using torque to steer instead of or in combination with the rover steering (which are on different keys). You get a smoother ride due to more suspension travel and have higher ground clearance and a wider stance. But you can't just go straight up a steep hill, or even a moderate one if the gravity is low.

The TR-2L is called "ruggedized" for a reason. It can support a MUCH heavier rover than the M1 without popping just under the weight. This makes the TR-2L ideal as a wheel used only temporarily to move massive base modules into position, whether on a crane or the modules themselves. Another good use is for heavy resource/fuel tanker trucks driving between your sources and your consumers. Also, if the TR-2L does pop, because the wheel axis is close to its attachment node, the rover doesn't jump/flip as much as with the M1 when you fix the flat.

So in general, I tend to use the M1 for exploration and long-distance travel and the TR-2L for short distances carrying heavy loads.

[WhiteWeasel]

In my experience the ruggedized wheels are more likely to get ripped off if they pop. The M1s are more forgiving if you get a flat while moving.

[numerobis]

About grippy wheels: is there a way to lift the rover wheels?

I like having powered wheels for my planes, and grippy would be good for taxiing. But on landing it's good to be gentle, and on takeoff I want to minimize friction, so I'd like to lift them out of the way then.

[cantab]

With mods, Infernal Robotics.

In stock you can undock, rotate, and redock them, which is hassle and likely to give alignment issues. Or you can use the claw which is top tier kraken bait.

Or you could try an arrange it so that the aircraft landing gear lift the rover wheels off the ground. That would probably be the best option actually.

[Geschosskopf]

In my experience the ruggedized wheels are more likely to get ripped off if they pop. The M1s are more forgiving if you get a flat while moving.

But OTOH, the TR-2Ls aren't as likely to pop in the 1st place so it's kinda potato-potahto. Besides, I find that any wreck bad enough to pop a TR-2L (unless the rover is approaching maximum vehilce axle weight so ain't going fast anyway) also does fatal damage to the rover in other respects.

About grippy wheels: is there a way to lift the rover wheels?

I like having powered wheels for my planes, and grippy would be good for taxiing. But on landing it's good to be gentle, and on takeoff I want to minimize friction, so I'd like to lift them out of the way then.

There are in genreal 3 solutions:

1. Stock: Make your planes with both Small Gear Bays and whatever rover wheels you want, built so the Small Gear Bays, when deployed, stick down lower than the rover wheels, taking into account suspension travel. So you land and take off on the Small Gear Bays but then retract them and use the rover wheels to taxi.
   
2. Firespitter: Firespitter airplane wheels combine the above in single parts. So, your main landing gear can also have rover power forwards and reverse. By far the best solution.
   
3. Module Manager: Add whatever rover wheel modules you want to the Small Gear Bay. Module Manager is quite literally the best thing since bottled whiskey. It puts the perpetual drunkness of the ruling class into the hands of those who can't afford to buy booze by the barrel or fear John Law too much to make their own . It makes every user a modder, only requiring reading the first few posts of the thread to get the hang of it.
   

Edited November 10, 2014 by Geschosskopf
typos

[numerobis]

OK, no better stock ideas than what I'd come up with. Shoot

Firespitter sounds nice. Proper landing gear and electric propellers *swoon*.

[Wanderfound]

OK, no better stock ideas than what I'd come up with. Shoot

Firespitter sounds nice. Proper landing gear and electric propellers *swoon*.

Wait for .90. Better landing gear are on the way.

[cantab]

Besides, I find that any wreck bad enough to pop a TR-2L (unless the rover is approaching maximum vehilce axle weight so ain't going fast anyway) also does fatal damage to the rover in other respects.

Maybe you build differently but I've had the opposite. A single TR-2L wheel gets punctured - one of ten on one of my rovers mind you - but no other damage immediately occurs. The dragging wheel though leads to severe issues and to further damage if I attempt to drive on.

[Geschosskopf]

Maybe you build differently but I've had the opposite. A single TR-2L wheel gets punctured - one of ten on one of my rovers mind you - but no other damage immediately occurs. The dragging wheel though leads to severe issues and to further damage if I attempt to drive on.

I've never found the need to put 10 TR-2L wheels on anything so, yeah, your experience differs substantiallly from mine. Do I want to move the heaviest MKS lander stack (over 30 tons in my games) from Point A (landing site) to (nearby) Point B (where the rest of the base is)? In such a case, merely 4 TR-2Ls work fine. Do I want to circumnavigate Duna in a rover? Then it's 8x M1s for speed and stability.

Edited November 11, 2014 by Geschosskopf
typos