how to properly fuel scoop

[Burned_Follower]

I have finally left the starter zone. Making the long journey from Matet to the Wolf system to do business with that engineer that I unlocked. I installed a fuel scoop before I left. Reason I haven't fuel scooped yet is because I JUST found out about the fact that you can use stars to refuel lol. Anyway, whenever I tried to refuel at stars that you can do that with on the way to the wolf system, I know how to get close enough for the fuel scoop to automatically deploy and do it's thing, I see myself refueling on the bottom/left part of my HUD as well as the middle of my screen, but I doesn't look like I'm refueling fast enough, because my ship heats up faster than I can make any progress refueling. I end up spending more fuel trying to refuel, than the fuel I'm actually getting from the star and if I'm not extremely careful take on heat damage as well. I'm not complaining, this is a really fun challange for me to overcome.

Any advice on how to do this correctly, since I'm obviously not doing this right?

 

[Para Handy]

Keep the star's yellow exclusion zone circle line off-centre (below, above or to the side - which is what I do) - no need to get too close, watch your scooping temperature, keep it below 70%. I find that if I just move / position my ship so that the temp goes to 63% - 64% it will stay stable until the scooping is complete.

Some people like to zoom about like a mad thing when scooping - I just manoeuvre until I get the 63% then stop (zero throttle) until complete.

You will develop your own preference as you learn.

BTW - larger and better scoops work faster so get the best you can afford. Note also that some ships are "hotter" than others when scooping.

 

[varonica]

First, upgrade your fuel scoop, put the biggest fuel scoop you can on that ship, make sure it is A rated. My Fuel scoop gathers 878kg, it doesn't always sit at that rate, but it usually get up to it as I dive in. If you have a decent scoop for your ship size you should be able to always leave throttle on max and be able to scoop to fill one jump before round the star, if you can't do that you may not have a suitable scoop for your ship size.

If nearly empty I set throttle to 50% as I scoop, if you are overheating you may be approaching to close, only approach till you reach max scoop rate, it won't get any faster if you get closer and it will overheat, it's just practice, you'll get it. As long as you have the biggest A rated scoop you can fit it should be good.

The reason for A rating is this, as I said earlier I can scoop at 878kg with an A rated but the same size scoop in an E rating will only scoop at 376kg, so getting the biggest and A rating is best. I don't know what sort of ship you have so I can't give advice on what size you could fit, but the max module slot size is the one you are after. So if you have a size 6 module slot, put a size 6 scoop in it!

 

[SMcA]

I have finally left the starter zone. Making the long journey from Matet to the Wolf system to do business with that engineer that I unlocked. I installed a fuel scoop before I left. Reason I haven't fuel scooped yet is because I JUST found out about the fact that you can use stars to refuel lol. Anyway, whenever I tried to refuel at stars that you can do that with on the way to the wolf system, I know how to get close enough for the fuel scoop to automatically deploy and do it's thing, I see myself refueling on the bottom/left part of my HUD as well as the middle of my screen, but I doesn't look like I'm refueling fast enough, because my ship heats up faster than I can make any progress refueling. I end up spending more fuel trying to refuel, than the fuel I'm actually getting from the star and if I'm not extremely careful take on heat damage as well. I'm not complaining, this is a really fun challange for me to overcome.

Any advice on how to do this correctly, since I'm obviously not doing this right?

Welcome to the Black.

I assume that you know which stars you can fuel scoop from. (KGB FOAM or FOG KBAM or (O,B,A,F,G,K,M))

When I enter a system, with orbit lines showing, I will veer away from the star turning so that it is off to one side. Then you can see your heading and the star’s exclusion zone so you don’t crash out. When your temperature reaches about 60% ~ 70 % slow down or stop. Keep an eye on your temperature and move away from the star if you get too hot. Also you can drop a heatsink if you start getting damage.

When travelling I don’t slow down while scooping but circle the star until my next jump is visible. That takes a bit of practice.

If for any reason you crash out of SC at the star it can be dangerous. What I do is to put the star directly behind me and fly away until the FSD has cooled down. Throttle down to zero. Press SC jump and watch the temperature and countdown. If the temperature climbs above 80% pop a heat sink. When the countdown is finished throttle up and boost. That will take you into Super Cruise although you might need to pop another heat sink.

It sounds complicated but you will get the hang of it, quickly.

 

[Lyvan Kitaen]

If you have a small fuel scoop and it doesn't fill you up quickly you can also stop your ship far enough from the star that you don't overheat and just sit there until your tank is full.

 

[Ashnak]

Yes - different ships scoop (or heat up) differently. The Hauler is notoriously hot, while the Dolphin is frighteningly cool. And different scoop sizes and grades have different scoop rates (who'd have thunk?).
So, depending on your ship and your scoop, different tactics are necessary. Close and fast, get out before your ship overheats - or just sit there at equilibrium, scoop slow and cool - or go all in, anything is ok as long as it holds up long enough to get you to your destination; your ship is tougher than you think. In the last case, though, don't rely on keeping your cargo, your hatch is usually among the first modules to fail.

 

[d8veh]

Here's a video below that shows what you need to know about scooping at 38:50 onwards. You can save a lot of heat when you're on a long journey scooping by switching off all modules that you don't need for travelling as soon as you leave the station - that's weapons, shields, power distributor,just about all the optional modules and all utilities except maybe one heatsink launcher if you have one. That will make a big difference to how long you can scoop without over-heating.When you arrive at your destinationn system's star, you can switch everything back on again.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1dRDm02yS0

 

[Burned_Follower]

awesome, thanks all. I'm about to go watch that video, but before I do I got a quick question about heatsinks. When it comes to learning about heatsinks, so far I've learned how to shop for them, and how to purchase/install them on a ship. But when it comes to deploying them, is that just a matter of pressing a button? If so, I'll go browse my controlls until I find it and make up my mind which button on my hotas or keyboard to assign it to.

 

[SMcA]

You buy a heatsink launcher which comes with heatsink ammo. You will need to buy or make more ammo when you run out. You can assign them to a fire group or bind a key to them. I never travel without them and bind them to my hotas..

 

[d8veh]

Just to make it clear, the heatsink launcher comes with the maximum three heatsinks when you buy it. You only meed to replenish the heatsinks if you use them.

You can asign amy key or button to deploy a heatsink. You can also put it in a firegroup and use your primary or secondary trigger to deploy it, but the heatsink launcher must be the only thing on that trigger in that firegroup otherwise you'll fire a heatsink eevery time you operate the trigger.

Deploy a heatsink whenever your ship starts boiling.

Once you understand how fuel-scooping works, and how to keep your ship cool by switching off thimgs you don't need, you should never need heatsinks.

 

[Para Handy]

.... But when it comes to deploying them, is that just a matter of pressing a button? If so, I'll go browse my controlls until I find it and make up my mind which button on my hotas or keyboard to assign it to.

Default key for launching a heatsink is "V".

 

[varonica]

awesome, thanks all. I'm about to go watch that video, but before I do I got a quick question about heatsinks. When it comes to learning about heatsinks, so far I've learned how to shop for them, and how to purchase/install them on a ship. But when it comes to deploying them, is that just a matter of pressing a button? If so, I'll go browse my controlls until I find it and make up my mind which button on my hotas or keyboard to assign it to.

Heatsinks are a controversial topic, I can't see a use for one during fuel scooping, I have never used one for fuel scooping and never take one with me while exploring, but yes I can see a use for them while you are learning the ropes, but once you get used to it you should be able to fuel scoop without taking any excess heat and that's always the best route. If you get to used to heatsinks one day you will get into a situation that is easy to handle with a heatsink and that's when you realise you haven't got any stock.

Avoiding the need to use heatsinks is always the best option.

 

[FlyingBrickyard]

First, upgrade your fuel scoop, put the biggest fuel scoop you can on that ship, make sure it is A rated.

Agreed! To a point at least.

Once I get to a size 6 scoop, I'm far more likely to fit a B rated one. At that point the practical difference in scoop rate is minimal, but the difference in cost is astronomical.

For example, if you're looking to fit a size 6 scoop to an Asp Explorer, the A rated scoop alone will cost you more than the ship itself, while the B rated one is much more reasonably priced.

For that reason I run a 7B on my Anaconda. As it is, better than 95% of the time I'm topped off before I can get a clear line of sight (and thus jump) to my next destination, so I don't see much practical value in spending an additional 70 million credits for the A rating when it just means I'll spend an extra 3 seconds at max fuel while waiting for the destination to come around the star's horizon.

As long as the tank is full before I have the opportunity to start my next jump, I figure it all works out to be about the same (plus the B rated scoop has additional integrity - which is admittedly probably of little practical value, but is a nice free bonus on an explorer, IMO).

If I just wanted 'the best of the best of the best', I'd fit the 6+ sized, A-rated scoop every time. But even swimming in credits to the point it wouldn't make much difference, I just can't bring myself to spend that kind of money on so little additional return. It just feels inefficient to me.

 

[FlyingBrickyard]

Heatsinks are a controversial topic... Avoiding the need to use heatsinks is always the best option.

Agreed again, though it's not unreasonable to acknowledge that sometimes things do happen.

I used 3 on DW2 - two precautionary and only one that might have been strictly necessary. It was on arrival to Hypiae Phyloi LR-C d22 and there was a spot of lag - likely due to a large number of players in the system at the time. Even attempting an escape path perpendicular to the star itself, I appeared to be stuck in one place for a good 20 seconds. The heat was rising, but my ship simply wasn't getting any farther away. It wasn't due to any lack of planning or poor decision making on my part, it was just a server glitch - but I was glad I had the heatsinks available to mitigate it.

That said, I've also engineered the launcher for lightweight 5, so 0.195t of mass isn't doing a lot of harm to my Anaconda's jump range. Certainly less than the shield boosters are - but that's a whole other can of worms to get into when it comes to exploration.

 

[d8veh]

Heatsinks are a controversial topic, I can't see a use for one during fuel scooping, I have never used one for fuel scooping and never take one with me while exploring, but yes I can see a use for them while you are learning the ropes, but once you get used to it you should be able to fuel scoop without taking any excess heat and that's always the best route. If you get to used to heatsinks one day you will get into a situation that is easy to handle with a heatsink and that's when you realise you haven't got any stock.

Avoiding the need to use heatsinks is always the best option.

If you're on a long trip, it's easy to fall asleep and fall into a star. I've been into the deep black about 4 times and I reckon I've fallen asleep at least once on every trip. Also, I do a lot of alt-tabbing when I'm playing because I listen to podcasts and Youtube while playing, or check emails between jumps. That also brings the hazard of flying into stars. In any of those cases, heatsinks can be very useful or even a life-saver.

 

[SMcA]

If you're on a long trip, it's easy to fall asleep and fall into a star. I've been into the deep black about 4 times and I reckon I've fallen asleep at least once on every trip. Also, I do a lot of alt-tabbing when I'm playing because I listen to podcasts and Youtube while playing, or check emails between jumps. That also brings the hazard of flying into stars. In any of those cases, heatsinks can be very useful or even a life-saver.

I never travel without one. They are also handy when you pop a shield cell.

 

[varonica]

If you're on a long trip, it's easy to fall asleep and fall into a star. I've been into the deep black about 4 times and I reckon I've fallen asleep at least once on every trip.

That's why they introduced Hyperspace Dethrottle. But everyone to their own, I have never fallen asleep face first into a star, ok I may drunk flown into one once but I am not sure even a Hyperspace Dethrottle or heat sinks would have saved me then! Hmm, I wonder why no=one has invented an alcohol sink yet!

 

[ChipStar65]

A tip for reducing the need for extended scooping times is to plot your jump routes using the "Economical" option. The FSD uses fuel according to what appears to be a logarithmic fuel/distance curve, which means longer jumps use significantly more fuel than shorter jumps. Economical routing plots many small jumps that use very little fuel for each jump, making scooping on arrival a much less time-consuming operation. This approach is not fast, however, which is why the other option that strings near-max-distance jumps together is labeled "Fastest." Those long jumps will require the longest time to recover your used fuel.

After you're more comfortable with scooping, also consider running on less than a full tank. Less tonnage in the tank can increase your jump range a little, making your FSD a little more efficient with either routing option. Just be sure not to run the tank dry. Checking the GalMap for upcoming star types will let you know if there's a scoopable star (types O through M in descending order) close enough to slurp a refill before things get chancy.

 

[varonica]

A tip for reducing the need for extended scooping times is to plot your jump routes using the "Economical" option. The FSD uses fuel according to what appears to be a logarithmic fuel/distance curve, which means longer jumps use significantly more fuel than shorter jumps.

Yeah I switch to economical when scanning nebula and areas of interest, you can run around really quickly, systems with only stars you can scan with a DS and be heading off to the next systems as soon as the FSD has cooled down.

 

[avow555]

Agreed! To a point at least.

Once I get to a size 6 scoop, I'm far more likely to fit a B rated one. At that point the practical difference in scoop rate is minimal, but the difference in cost is astronomical.

For example, if you're looking to fit a size 6 scoop to an Asp Explorer, the A rated scoop alone will cost you more than the ship itself, while the B rated one is much more reasonably priced.

For that reason I run a 7B on my Anaconda. As it is, better than 95% of the time I'm topped off before I can get a clear line of sight (and thus jump) to my next destination, so I don't see much practical value in spending an additional 70 million credits for the A rating when it just means I'll spend an extra 3 seconds at max fuel while waiting for the destination to come around the star's horizon.

As long as the tank is full before I have the opportunity to start my next jump, I figure it all works out to be about the same (plus the B rated scoop has additional integrity - which is admittedly probably of little practical value, but is a nice free bonus on an explorer, IMO).

If I just wanted 'the best of the best of the best', I'd fit the 6+ sized, A-rated scoop every time. But even swimming in credits to the point it wouldn't make much difference, I just can't bring myself to spend that kind of money on so little additional return. It just feels inefficient to me.

Fairly sure the OP is not flying a Conda....