Ships DBX build for long trips.

[Harrier_1961]

Yes you definitely want 'bumper' shields to absorb casual landings. A Dolphin should be perfectly fine with 3D shields as it provides over 100mj. Hull reinforcements should not be necessary as they add weight (reduce jump range) and you should absolutely not be damaging your hull while exploring.

You can experiment with E rated G5 heavy duty shield boosters to pump up your shields further but I wouldn't expect a significant improvement on a Dolphin. Instead, I'd recommend simply landing on low gravity worlds to minimise any risk. There is absolutely no reason to do a dangerous high gravity landing when out in the black, unless you miraculously discover Raxxla or something...

Build your ship and then do a few practice landings on various planets while paying attention to the gravity, this will give you all the experience you need and let you stress test your ships defences. With 4 pips to sys most ships can shrug off even clumsy landings if they have shields.

Hell, the Dolphin even has room for a little 1d repair limpet if you're worried. That would provide potentially unlimited hull repairs and still be lighter than most hull reinforcement modules...

Thanks for that Maymo, I'll take another look at my setup and tweak it as you suggest. When you say that 100mj of shield is OK. Is there a calculation to work out adequate shielding for a ship and it's chosen application or is it just an acceptable amount generally?

Thanks for your time

 

[Maymo]

Thanks for that Maymo, I'll take another look at my setup and tweak it as you suggest. When you say that 100mj of shield is OK. Is there a calculation to work out adequate shielding for a ship and it's chosen application or is it just an acceptable amount generally?

Thanks for your time

Here take a look. This is a standard Dolphin with 4 pips in a 3D shield...

...it provides 284mj of absolute (collision) shield strength. That’s actually a lot of shield for just touching down on a planet in a small ship like the Dolphin.

If you’re struggling to make that work for you on landings then you simply need to revisit your landing technique. The Dolphin has very good shield potential for exploration, you’d have to be pretty careless to break them and damage hull...

 

[Harrier_1961]

Here take a look. This is a standard Dolphin with 4 pips in a 3D shield...
View attachment 194535
...it provides 284mj of absolute (collision) shield strength. That’s actually a lot of shield for just touching down on a planet in a small ship like the Dolphin.

If you’re struggling to make that work for you on landings then you simply need to revisit your landing technique. The Dolphin has very good shield potential for exploration, you’d have to be pretty careless to break them and damage hull...

Ah, more Coriolis stuff. I'm still finding my way around there but the more I see, the more I realise how much info there is as I search through the various tabs.

Thanks very much

 

[Maymo]

Ah, more Coriolis stuff. I'm still finding my way around there but the more I see, the more I realise how much info there is as I search through the various tabs.

Thanks very much

Many explorers, usually in the AspX as it’s rather heavy and drifty, have lost there ship due to simply forgetting the basics while out exploring.

A shielded ship with 4 pips in systems can actually withstand high impacts, more than you would think...

The panic response is to put all power into engines to run away from problems, but that often leaves your ship more vulnerable. If you’re coming in hot, stay cool and put 4 pips to sys, every time....

The Dolphin has less mass than a Cobra3 and has much better shields. Seriously, take it down to a planet and deliberately give it a bit of a bashing around on the surface with 4 pips in sys so you get a really good feel for its overall durability.

Having a bit of confidence in your exploration ship is nice if you’re going to be out for a while.

When I went out past SagA in the Dolphin I always ended my session by landing on a planet to roost for the night, never had a single problem...

....apart from the paintwork, the Dolphin really doesn’t look good when sandblasted.

 

[ChipStar65]

Another boon to the Dolphin is its regular upkeep (refreshing the Ship Integrity in Repairs) is dirt cheap, as are most hull and module repairs should you encounter a mishap or three along your routes. J's Nimble Minx now has around 30,000 LY on her odometer as my principal exploration and mapping vehicle, and has returned almost 1B in exploration data in conjunction with my FC base. Sweetest little scout ship flying.

Good thing paint job touch-ups are also easy on the budget.

 

[Jcarmona]

Greetings!

Here are two builds that have good range and give you shields that are strong enough to survive rough landings, hostile ships, and rough encounters with asteroids:

Coriolis EDCD Edition

A ship builder, outfitting and comparison tool for Elite Dangerous

s.orbis.zone

564 MJ of shields, 499 m/s boost speed, all the basic exploration gear.

Coriolis EDCD Edition

A ship builder, outfitting and comparison tool for Elite Dangerous

s.orbis.zone

704 MJ of shields, about 1 LY less jump range than the first build.

All of my exploration builds follow this principle: strong shields and good jump range.

CMDR Janet

 

[Cohen the Worrior]

There you go, a deep space DBX. Pretty cheap and with only the FSD engineered.

 

[LifesAJourney]

There you go, a deep space DBX.

3A scoop...?

 

[Cohen the Worrior]

3A scoop...?

Too big? Get a 3D scoop then.
Not big enough? I'm sure it'll fill your fuel tank by the time you scan all the planets.

 

[CMDR Correa]

Hi all,

I'm looking to build a long-distance 'sightseeing' ship. Nebulae etc etc.
I currently use an ASPX for my exploration but fancied something cheap, built just for system hopping. I'm currently thinking about buying a DBX and kitting it out accordingly. To break up the longer trips now and again, I quite enjoy exploring the planetary surfaces with the SRV and so have included the hangar and then chucked in a cargo rack just in case I find anything worth selling on. I've just used the Engineers who I currently have at my disposal now to improve where I can.

Does this look like I'm on the right track please?

Thanks very much.

I did some 20k on my trusty DBX, loadout similar to yours couldn't be happier. Thing is, once you leave the sector there's not much to find on planets unless you are going to populated places, so I'd recommend a repair limpet + auto maintenance unit just in case (maybe a research limpet if you have spare space).

 

[JetsonRING]

Hi all,
I'm looking to build a long-distance 'sightseeing' ship. Nebulae etc etc.
I currently use an ASPX for my exploration but fancied something cheap, built just for system hopping. I'm currently thinking about buying a DBX and kitting it out accordingly. To break up the longer trips now and again, I quite enjoy exploring the planetary surfaces with the SRV and so have included the hangar and then chucked in a cargo rack just in case I find anything worth selling on. I've just used the Engineers who I currently have at my disposal now to improve where I can.
Does this look like I'm on the right track please?
Thanks very much.

.
For sightseeing you might be better off in an Asp-Explorer (Asp-X). The Diamondback-Explorer (DBX) is a great little ship, emphasis on little but it is a minimal sort of ship, the view through the canopy is not so hot and you said you want to go sightseeing. For my credits the view through the Asp-X's canopy cannot be beat and you give up only a tiny bit of jump-range in exchange for a lot more capability. o7

 

[Fish172]

If jump range is not your thing then I would also suggest a ship with a much better scooping ability. I find a Cobra better for proper long range but ultimately a phantom is near perfect as can be for galactic trips.