Newcomer / Intro What are you up to?

Simon Templar · May 21, 2020

I FINALLY got around to trying mining last night. Took my Python out, just a single jump from Colonia, and literally mined the first ringed planet I came to. So it's safe to say that I wasn't exactly prioritising income. I was inevitably chaotically bad at first, any passing Commander would have laughed, but I did end up with 192 refined tonnes of a mix of things in my hold. Average value ranged from 721cr to 15,000cr, so I'm not troubling those Borann stats just yet, but as a first sortie I am chalking it up as a success. I enjoyed it, can absolutely see how it will fit in to my career. Tonight's mission is to seek out a more lucrative planet I know I bookmarked previously at Colonia and try for some void opals or something.

But I'd like once again to say a big thank you to those of you who have, at various points, answered my daft mining-related questions. I'm up and running!

o7

Ant hill · May 21, 2020

Codger said:
Did a mission in my Sidey, just for a change of pace. I haven't flown her in quite a while. I still love that little ship.

You have to remember not to rest anything on that exposed cooling pipe on the starboard side of the cockpit. I burnt myself on that one time. Without it the cockpit would be terribly cold mind.

NorthernDevo · May 22, 2020

Ant hill said:
You have to remember not to rest anything on that exposed cooling pipe on the starboard side of the cockpit. I burnt myself on that one time. Without it the cockpit would be terribly cold mind.

Heats up boil-in-bag stew a treat, though.

NorthernDevo · May 22, 2020

Simon Templar said:
I FINALLY got around to trying mining last night. Took my Python out, just a single jump from Colonia, and literally mined the first ringed planet I came to. So it's safe to say that I wasn't exactly prioritising income. I was inevitably chaotically bad at first, any passing Commander would have laughed, but I did end up with 192 refined tonnes of a mix of things in my hold. Average value ranged from 721cr to 15,000cr, so I'm not troubling those Borann stats just yet, but as a first sortie I am chalking it up as a success. I enjoyed it, can absolutely see how it will fit in to my career. Tonight's mission is to seek out a more lucrative planet I know I bookmarked previously at Colonia and try for some void opals or something.

But I'd like once again to say a big thank you to those of you who have, at various points, answered my daft mining-related questions. I'm up and running!

o7

Awesome!
Yes, after the first run which is ALWAYS disastrous, you'll refine your technique and get better.

Core mining is a lovely relaxing exercise, with enough excitement to keep you busy hunting new cores.

Simon Templar · May 22, 2020

NorthernDevo said:
Awesome!
Yes, after the first run which is ALWAYS disastrous, you'll refine your technique and get better. Core mining is a lovely relaxing exercise, with enough excitement to keep you busy hunting new cores.

Thank you yes - found a system with some better rings, ended last night with another mixed hold but including 80T of Low Temperature Diamonds. Am not rich, yet, but it was a definite step in the right direction! Will be back tonight, but already contemplating taking the Cutter rather than the Python. Why oh why must we always run before we can walk?

o7

aRJay · May 22, 2020

Simon Templar said:
Thank you yes - found a system with some better rings, ended last night with another mixed hold but including 80T of Low Temperature Diamonds. Am not rich, yet, but it was a definite step in the right direction! Will be back tonight, but already contemplating taking the Cutter rather than the Python. Why oh why must we always run before we can walk?

o7

Please note that hard points significantly away from the centre line of your ship can be a pain when core mining.

Simon Templar · May 22, 2020

aRJay said:
Please note that hard points significantly away from the centre line of your ship can be a pain when core mining.

Absolutely, thank you - always fun, the hardpoint placement on an Imperial ship! Went through a period with seeker missiles on my Clipper just as I couldn't be bothered with it! But yes, the idea with the Cutter would be a pair of mining lasers on the middle, top medium hard points, and keep the nacelle, uppermost and chin hard points for pirate-dissuasion, which I imagine would work. But thank you for the thought.

o7

aRJay · May 22, 2020

Simon Templar said:
Absolutely, thank you - always fun, the hardpoint placement on an Imperial ship! Went through a period with seeker missiles on my Clipper just as I couldn't be bothered with it! But yes, the idea with the Cutter would be a pair of mining lasers on the middle, top medium hard points, and keep the nacelle, uppermost and chin hard points for pirate-dissuasion, which I imagine would work. But thank you for the thought.

o7

Laser mining isn’t much of an issue after all all you need to do is hit the rock but all the Core mining tools require a precise hit on a small target made more tricky as there are flight times involved.

Tyres O'Flaherty · May 22, 2020

Ouch. This one took my shields out on landing... only 2.2G but I overcooked the descent. Still, getting some nice polonium and selenium for my efforts.

Tyres O'Flaherty · May 22, 2020

Gosh... my personal best: 7.2mCR for this system - 9 HMCs and 3 TWWs!

Tyres O'Flaherty · May 23, 2020

Today, I learned a new skill: mining LTD's! Yes, I'm so late to the game, it's obscene. I was doing everything wrong before and now I need a bigger ship. May be time to change the loadout of the Anaconda.

Para Handy · May 23, 2020

Tyres O'Flaherty said:
Today, I learned a new skill: mining LTD's! Yes, I'm so late to the game, it's obscene. I was doing everything wrong before and now I need a bigger ship. May be time to change the loadout of the Anaconda.

I get annoyed at the selling prices when doing this, turning up at a supposed lucrative market (recent data, high demand) only to find I was getting offered substantially lower prices.

Then a couple of days ago on another account I slapped together a quick mining Python but decided to keep a DC fitted and used stuff in my store - so cargo capacity was only 192 - lo and behold, I found I was actually getting the expected price offered. So I assume that 200t is a threshold for this "bulk tax" or whatever they call the price volatility.

[VR] Orodruin · May 23, 2020

Para Handy said:
Then a couple of days ago on another account I slapped together a quick mining Python but decided to keep a DC fitted and used stuff in my store - so cargo capacity was only 192 - lo and behold, I found I was actually getting the expected price offered. So I assume that 200t is a threshold for this "bulk tax" or whatever they call the price volatility.

Bulk tax depends on what is in your cargo hold compared to the station demand. As a rule of thumb, to not get hit by a too significant bulk tax, go to a station that has a demand that is at least 10x what is in your cargo hold, i.e., for your 192 ton Python, go to a station with a demand of at least 2k. Also avoid mining around the daily tick as state changes can affect prices dramatically.

Para Handy · May 23, 2020

Orodruin said:
Bulk tax depends on what is in your cargo hold compared to the station demand. As a rule of thumb, to not get hit by a too significant bulk tax, go to a station that has a demand that is at least 10x what is in your cargo hold, i.e., for your 192 ton Python, go to a station with a demand of at least 2k. Also avoid mining around the daily tick as state changes can affect prices dramatically.

Well, it is a dark art and no mistake as I had already been applying that demand being over 10 times capacity "rule"; in a 208t python, going to stations with over 4K demand I was being offered very much lower prices than miner's tool etc was indicating. I am not one for maxing stats and efficiency (too lazy) so I never investigated further but I found this very noticeable.

Tyres O'Flaherty · May 23, 2020

Tax... markets... oh my. Sounds like the flim-flam man will see me coming then.

[VR] Orodruin · May 23, 2020

Para Handy said:
Well, it is a dark art and no mistake as I had already been applying that demand being over 10 times capacity "rule"; in a 208t python, going to stations with over 4K demand I was being offered very much lower prices than miner's tool etc was indicating. I am not one for maxing stats and efficiency (too lazy) so I never investigated further but I found this very noticeable.

That is weird. This never happened to me except when I happened to mine around the daily tick. Getting bamboozled due to EDDB prizes being quoted from before the daily tick when you are coming in for selling after is a real pain though. You either have to search for a high sell station manually or wait for the new data to be available on EDDB. That is why I stopped doing that. When I go mining I make sure that I will have enough time to fill up and sell before the tick.

NB. You will sometimes lose a little of the price even when at relatively low percentage of the demand. Nothing like "very much lower" though.

Harrowdown · May 23, 2020

VIP passenger contract. It's a tricky one because in addition to going to all the places they also want to touch all the things.

https://imgur.com/tgLHyxz

Tyres O'Flaherty · May 23, 2020

Repurposed the 'Conda from explorer to miner - not too much of an outlay as I cannibalised the thrusters, PP and PD from the 'Vette and some mining tools from the Krait. The Krait, Moist von Lipwig now has no raison d'etre. A thought for the future.

Why is that, sometimes my collector limpets last ages, whilst other times they'll expire quite quickly? I don't have anything targetted so they shouldn't be getting confoozed.
Also, why do my prospector limpets always fail according to Verity then go on and do their job flawlessly?

The vagueries of a miner I suppose!

SportyScribe · May 23, 2020

Had a bit of fun A-rating as much of the Viper as I could and hanging round in RESs... I decided to follow an NPC in a wing to see if i could keep up with him (and to see if the police had arrived yet)... that was a close one... once I started in on him, his wingman was quite vicious... until... the NPC waked out of the RES leaving the Adder on his own!

I switched out Beam lasers I had originally for burst lasers and A-rated all the usual stuff and have multi-cannons.
Next thing to practice probably tomorrow is to try and target power plants especially if I am waiting for the police to be taking some action before wading in... some good bounties though pinging between a couple of RESs close to each other....

I dunno I just want to feel more prepared if I am about to go off bouncing around the bubble picking up stuff for the engineers

SportyScribe · May 23, 2020

Tyres O'Flaherty said:
Repurposed the 'Conda from explorer to miner - not too much of an outlay as I cannibalised the thrusters, PP and PD from the 'Vette and some mining tools from the Krait. The Krait, Moist von Lipwig now has no raison d'etre. A thought for the future.

Why is that, sometimes my collector limpets last ages, whilst other times they'll expire quite quickly? I don't have anything targetted so they shouldn't be getting confoozed.

Also, why do my prospector limpets always fail according to Verity then go on and do their job flawlessly?

The vagueries of a miner I suppose!

Collector limpet suicide is a sad and frequent thing.
If you have one one Prospecter Limpet in play when you launch a new one the old one expires and the the new one does it’s thing... kinda like a “The King is dead, long live the King” deal....