Struggling to Make an SSTO using FAR

[cheeseit]

So I recently started using FAR to spice up KSP for myself and I have really been enjoying it it felt like I was relearning how to play

I'm stuck right now making SSTO's though. I can get planes to fly and get up to around 1400 m/s at 20000m but after this the engines start to run out of juice and I can't gain speed. The TWR of the craft starts at 1.3 at the surface. I've been trying to keep intake spam to a minimum because that should cause massive drag right? I can get into orbit barely.

I'm not sure if the nerfs to the jet engines is making me fail or if it's me not understanding aircraft in FAR?

http://cloud-4.steamusercontent.com/ugc/544141213072510117/9C13ED51E27FB7F592BF182DCD2C918C567A6617/

[Vanamonde]

As your question seems to be more about the use of the mod than aircraft design, this thread has been moved to Add-on Affairs.

[WanderingKid]

Are those Jet Engines, or Turbojet Engines? At first glance they look like Jet Engines, which die at 20k.

[cheeseit]

They are RAPIER engines. They still have thrust above 20k just not enough to keep accelerating. On my latest attempt I got up to 28000m and I started to gain a bit of speed in air breathing mode but I was still way short of orbital speeds. I ended up at around 1500m/s before I just switched to oxidizer and boosted up to orbit.

[eddiew]

Yeah, intake spam doesn't work well with FAR. In fact it's worth setting up your rapier mode toggle key to also close the intakes, as this will reduce drag in rocket mode.

And tbh, that altitude and speed is about what most of my spaceplanes kick over to LFO at. Sometimes a design makes 25k, occasionally 28, but I've gone rocket as low as 20 and made orbit before now

[SSR Kermit]

1400 m/s @ 28k is very good. That engine sure has an amazing exhaust velocity for an air-breather; not to mention the super-materials needed to not melt at that (would-be) intake temperature! Makes sense to switch there? If your vertical velocity is at least 300 m/s (or so) of that then you're on your way out of the atmosphere as is! My designs usually linger around 13k and start climbing around 875 m/s to get to at least 300 m/s vertical, my engines lose thrust just above 1000 m/s (when I play with AJE, they rather melt and explode at that point), so I'll switch somewhere in the 20-25 range and pull into at least a 45 degree climb until my apoapsis hits my target altitude (usually 150km).

[Wanderfound]

You've got the speed (1,400m/s is close to top speed for a FAR jet) but not the altitude; take it to 30,000m before switching to rocketry.