How many heat sinks do you guys use?

[Morbad]

Yeah heat management is a massive subject.
Several factors to consider here:
I fly a DBE. Heat sig very low.
1. I always throttle back on jump to negate the "aargh a star" scenario.
2. Turn off all modules except PP/FSD/thrusters/sensors/LS/ADS/DSC
3. Always scoop to the maximum scoop capacity (4A scoop) then zero throttle and scoop. Temp rises to about 64%

No issues with generic heat management. Basic piloting skills tbh, my issue is binaries and neutron stars I will definitely encounter.
Descision made though: going to trek on minus heat sinks.
I'll keep you updated on what I find.

All standard practice while exploring, but if you land next to a star that has another star orbiting it at close range, that star can come within close proximity before you can move away. All you can do is wait for cooldown (or forcibly disable your thrusters/FSD), disengage SC, and then jump from normal space.

This has happened to me about five times in ~1000 hours of play. Most of the time I would have gotten hot enough to take module or even hull damage just charging the FSD to leave if I didn't use heatsinks.

In the images above, my FDL hit 198% heat before I was even able to exit SC, and only cooled down to 70% with everything except thrusters and FSD disabled. A more heat efficient vessel would have fared better, but given how close I was to the star, I don't think there is any ship that could have escaped some damage without heatsinks.

 

[Cdr Voorheez]

Excellent advice and thank you all for it. I feel better equipped to deal with this frankly inevitable outcome when I eventually hit it. Appears heat sinks cannot mitigate the massive heat transfer twin suns will inflict on a vessel.

 

[gooddoc]

none...just a couple of AFMU's....for those little accidents

 

[Kancro Vantas]

I grew into the practice of always carrying one with me...

In my last trip (~75,000 ly) I did spend it all 3 loads. One was accidentally spent, the other two were accidents falling into the gravity wells of stars.

Now, mind you. I got this practice from earlier times, when heat was more damaging, heat measurement were different and I didn't have AFMU's.

Last time I fell in a gravity well in my trip, I didn't have any heat sink left! But because I have also grown wiser, now my ship runs significantly cooler...and lo and behold...I found out I could escape unscratched from that G star...

Now, have that one been an O, Neutron or an A, I am not sure I would have left so smoothly.

So I guess, it is a matter of your style. But even in the worst case scenario, you will need them once every 10,000ly or so. It all depends on your flying style. After all, if you don't go above 150% only your modules will suffer damage... and the AFMU is there to fix them...