How to cluster engines in staging?

[Arugela]

How do you make engines that are listed as single or double into larger clusters. I keep having my large 16 clusters of engines(from when I made it with 8 and applied 2 of them) declustering into a long list of engines. How do I put them back together. Or better yet customize them into groups how I wish... Is there a shortcut for this? and if not why is this not a feature(like a hundred other things we would need to make even remotely complex aircraft, or control any aircraft in a remotely complex way...).

[Mr Tegu]

Um, I'm not sure how to put them back together again (try launching and reverting your ship, I find that can help debug the staging order) but I know how to get them into customized groups.

If you click on a stack of engines in the staging order it will expand to show all of them. You can then hover over the module you want and it will become highlighted on the ship itself, you can then click on the module (in the staging order, not the ship!) and drag it into a different stage. If you place it back into the same stage it will rejoin its original stack and if you drag more than one (one at a time) into the same stage they will form together into one stack.

Hope this helps.

[Arugela]

I will try that right after my test flight ends. Thank you!

Is there a way to do that with other items like air intakes etc. I could use the ability to put them as one big item as far as selecting them for shortcuts etc. 8)

Edited January 20, 2015 by Arugela

[Pecan]

Use action groups. If necessary install Action Groups Extended (AGX) for 250 different action groups.

...if not why is this not a feature(like a hundred other things we would need to make even remotely complex aircraft, or control any aircraft in a remotely complex way...).

This is not (more of) a feature because Kerbal Space Program was never really designed for complex aircraft. It has been, and is, becoming more of a flight-simulator all the time, but not realistically or flexibly enough for most 'plane fans.

[Arugela]

I tried dragging them and I could never get them to condense back into larger cluster. I'm doing this from the Hangers btw and not in flight or anything. I also can't use any alt commands... Not sure if that matters though.

[Pecan]

I tried dragging them and I could never get them to condense back into larger cluster. I'm doing this from the Hangers btw and not in flight or anything. I also can't use any alt commands... Not sure if that matters though.

No, it doesn't matter, and nor does whether they appear as a single consolidated icon or a list of them. This has no effect on your ability to control or select anything.

Perhaps if you tell us what you're actually trying to achieve we could help more.