Couple of notes:
- About the RocktCo Munar Lander: I've discovered that all the parts are about 1/10th the weight of their equivalent stock components, and the thrust of the engines is that much weaker in proportion. Also each fuel tank in that set carries less fuel capacity than something of equivalent size from the regular game components.
There's good and bad points to this. You can utilize this disparity in weights in combination with other standard parts to your advantage in some designs. It also makes landing on the Mun very easy. Because you only need a feather light touch on the throttle during final descent. It also makes for a great trainer. Particularly since it is SO light that you can practice with just the lander component for an extended period of time on Kearth itself. Where other Munar landers have very limited engine strength and fuel capacity in Kearth normal gravity. Most other designs available for downloading are impossible to test properly from the launching pad on Kearth.
On the other hand, if you get too used to using this to go to the Mun, I think it might cause problems in piloting other, more standard weight designs. I've realized this and I'm trying to build and land a more standard design using closer to stock components.
- Also - that Space 1999 Eagle I made? I've been trying like hell to get that thing to work right and I've just about given up. The problem is that the only way to make the thing look right is to build it vertically. But I want to LAND it horizontally, like the classic Eagle. And... It just can't be done right. I don't know if it's doable to make ANY design that can VTOL horizontally. I've tried making standard rockets with strong RCS thrusters for horizontal VTOL for testing purposes. Even the simplest of designs has a marked tendency to break up, even if it doesn't explode. I don't think any of the parts are built with horizontal stress in mind. Or there's very little. It might be a limitation of the game engine.
My last hope is that if I can get it to the Mun, I can try landing it in the Mun's gravity and see if it will work there. But I've been having trouble designing a booster that will get it there - which I think goes back to what I was saying above in regards to learning how to use standard parts to land on the Mun. I can orbit the Mun just fine with standard designs. I've yet to properly land one there. I need more practice. I think I'll try a mostly standard lander first, then one with strong RCS thrusters to see if I can land -that- horizontally on the Mun. Then I'll try the Eagle.
- About the RocktCo Munar Lander: I've discovered that all the parts are about 1/10th the weight of their equivalent stock components, and the thrust of the engines is that much weaker in proportion. Also each fuel tank in that set carries less fuel capacity than something of equivalent size from the regular game components.
There's good and bad points to this. You can utilize this disparity in weights in combination with other standard parts to your advantage in some designs. It also makes landing on the Mun very easy. Because you only need a feather light touch on the throttle during final descent. It also makes for a great trainer. Particularly since it is SO light that you can practice with just the lander component for an extended period of time on Kearth itself. Where other Munar landers have very limited engine strength and fuel capacity in Kearth normal gravity. Most other designs available for downloading are impossible to test properly from the launching pad on Kearth.
On the other hand, if you get too used to using this to go to the Mun, I think it might cause problems in piloting other, more standard weight designs. I've realized this and I'm trying to build and land a more standard design using closer to stock components.
- Also - that Space 1999 Eagle I made? I've been trying like hell to get that thing to work right and I've just about given up. The problem is that the only way to make the thing look right is to build it vertically. But I want to LAND it horizontally, like the classic Eagle. And... It just can't be done right. I don't know if it's doable to make ANY design that can VTOL horizontally. I've tried making standard rockets with strong RCS thrusters for horizontal VTOL for testing purposes. Even the simplest of designs has a marked tendency to break up, even if it doesn't explode. I don't think any of the parts are built with horizontal stress in mind. Or there's very little. It might be a limitation of the game engine.
My last hope is that if I can get it to the Mun, I can try landing it in the Mun's gravity and see if it will work there. But I've been having trouble designing a booster that will get it there - which I think goes back to what I was saying above in regards to learning how to use standard parts to land on the Mun. I can orbit the Mun just fine with standard designs. I've yet to properly land one there. I need more practice. I think I'll try a mostly standard lander first, then one with strong RCS thrusters to see if I can land -that- horizontally on the Mun. Then I'll try the Eagle.