Space Station rendezvous

[DiamondExcavater]

i find it very hard to dock with my own builds, i don't know how to time the launch to intercept my build, any tips or places where i can learn the best efficient way?

[Alshain]

i find it very hard to dock with my own builds, i don't know how to time the launch to intercept my build, any tips or places where i can learn the best efficient way?

You want to launch when it's just slightly behind the KSC in it's orbit. By the time you get up there it may be slightly in front or behind you. Don't expect to intercept it at launch though, you need to circle the planet. If you are behind the target, make your orbit smaller and you will "catch up" as you orbit. If you are in front, make your orbit larger and the target can "catch up". You need to try and get within 5 to 10km before you adjust your heading so your moving straight toward it. This is a pretty good tutorial right here:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/92480-Illustrated-Tutorial-for-Orbital-Rendezvous

Some tutorials will have you kill all relative motion once you arrive in the 5km range (one in particular from the games most beloved YouTuber gets posted often) but this is unnecessary and a waste of fuel. Instead follow the instructions to push and pull your relative marker in that tutorial. The only time you want to cancel relative velocity entirely is when you get to the target (within 200m)

Edited January 3, 2015 by Alshain

[Mesons]

I found this tutorial video by pebble_garden a great help for my first attempts at orbital rendezvous. The parts I found most helpful were: how far away the target should be at launch (about 400km for a 100km x 100km orbit and the launch strategy pebble_garden suggests); how to exploit the target/anti-target direction indicators on the navball effectively.