I've been doing it wrong...

Jenny Harper

J
So I've got an ASP Explorer and I've gone on a few (by my standard) long distance trips about 4k ly from the bubble. However, just today I realised that my fuel scope was only a 2A and is thus one of the slowest fuel scopes in the game. As my scooping rate is so slow, I've got a big fuel capacity (about 54 tonnes)... but then I had the sudden dawn of realisation that if I'd have a faster scoop, I wouldn't need such a big fuel capacity so I'd get a longer range (as well as spend less time scooping).

Sudden-Clarity-Clarence.jpg


Such a facepalm moment!

I don't know why I bought such a poor fuel scoop in the first place. Either I had barely any money when I bought my Asp, or the station only had a few fuel scoops available. Either way...

So I'm on a quick(ish) journey back to the bubble so I can replace my fuel scoop and actually make my ship a bit more exploration ready. I would have stayed out in the depths for longer, but now that I've realised my error, I'm keen to rectify it as quick as possible...
 

Gully Foyle

Gully Foyle
Keep the standard fuel tank size, use the biggest scoop you can fit CMDR.

You can also increase your FSD range by using a smaller powerplant and distributor.

Good luck in The Black!

o7
 

Major Klutz

Major Klutz
Get yourself a 6A scoop and you can refuel in the time it takes to swoop past the star to the other side.
Something like this ... https://eddp.co/u/9NKWZloZ
Life will be much easier.

In an AspX, you should be able to average a jump every 60 seconds, including refuel time. Some practiced racing pilots can jump every ~45 seconds continuously, including refueling.

Some find it hard to spend that much on a fuel scoop. The 6A costs almost 5 times the cost of the ship, but it's an investment in time.
If you can't afford the 6A, keep in mind that a 6C scoops faster than a 5A and costs less.
Downgrade if you need to but don't downsize.
 
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Straha Yeagar

S
Major Klutz said:
Get yourself a 6A scoop and you can refuel in the time it takes to swoop past the star to the other side.
Something like this ... https://eddp.co/u/9NKWZloZ
Life will be much easier.

In an AspX, you should be able to average a jump every 60 seconds, including refuel time. Some practiced racing pilots can jump every ~45 seconds continuously, including refueling.

Some find it hard to spend that much on a fuel scoop. The 6A costs almost 5 times the cost of the ship, but it's an investment in time.
If you can't afford the 6A, keep in mind that a 6C scoops faster than a 5A and costs less.
Downgrade if you need to but don't downsize.
Click to expand...

And it'll look something like this...

Edited *Removed my video that was here because I just noticed that it was my video you linked above :D
 
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metatheurgist

metatheurgist
Almost did the same thing. Went exploring with a 3A since I thought I'd need 2 AMFUs. Wasn't so bad to start with but I started to really regret it 16KL out. :)
 

Duckfat

Duckfat
I've only got a 16 tonner with the big scoop. Does me fine.

Your jaw might drop when you see the price tag though. It's like hanging a chandelier in a barn.
 

relayer

relayer
Agree with Smoo; on smaller ships, I do a -B instead of an A-rated scoop. Much cheaper and fills up smaller tanks quickly.
Asp Explorer stock
w/5A: 55sec 9,073,690
w/5B: 65sec 2,268,420


Just scoop whilst honking the system, and scoop each time you can. Even at 40+ly jumps, the fuel scoop is filled before the scanner data is back.
 
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Cdr Voorheez

Cdr Voorheez
It's ok mate I've been doing it wrong since I started playing:)
My own top tips on increasing range:
1. Lightweight (D rate) as much as you can
2. Engineer mods if you can. Specifically:
Grade 5 FSD
Grade 3 dirty drive thrusters
Grade 5 lightweight sensors
Grade 3 enhanced low power shields
(These all reduce mass and weight and increase range)
3. Smallest PD you can fit (1D ideally)
4. Ditch extra fuel tanks
5. Downside your fuel tank to a 16t if you can
These will all help. Good luck Cmdr.
 
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Jenny Harper

J
Thanks for all the tips everyone. I look forward to trying out a faster scoop and not having to stop for ages (12 minutes? Really? It did feel like a long time!) every 10 or so jumps. Though I would do something else while I'm scooping, like emptying the dishwasher or putting the laundry on. I'm looking forward to having additional internal module spaces too when I remove most of my fuel tanks. I have quite a bit of money, so maybe I'll go for a 6A scoop!
 

Leif_Erikson

Leif_Erikson
Credits permitting the biggest A grade fuel scoop you can get.Also pays to have an A grade power plant a few sizes lower than the maximum size fitted too as this helps the ship run cooler than the usual D spec and isn't that much heavier.

We've all done it though- I once went 20k out before I realized I had a bigger grade shield fitted than fuel scoop .I didn't think you could swap the internal modules around at the time. Doh!
 

Orvidius

Orvidius
The good news is that the fuel scoops don't suffer from the same mass issues as other modules. That is, a B-rated one won't be any heavier than an A-rated scoop, whereas most modules have the problem of the B-rated one being the heaviest. Scoops are effectively massless. So a 6B scoop is just fine if you don't like the price on the 6A.

But yeah, I used to do a lot manual steering to scoop. But with a 6B or 6A on an AspX, you can just point your nose through the scooping zone, and go to full throttle, and let it scoop while you look at the maps. If you're scooping at every star (and filtering to scoopable stars only), It'll be full by the time you exit on the other side, every time, no steering needed.
 

VioletSunrise

V
If you are exploring, as opposed to honk-jumping while traveling, a 6a scoop is definitely overkill. My AspX tank is refilled before I'm done with a surface scan of the main star most of the time, much less the time it takes to open the System Map and check for planets worth scanning. I'm still an exploration noob... just heading back from my first trip coreward... and expect that I'll swap to 5A fuel scoop upon my return so that I can use the class 6 slot for a bigger / better passenger compartment (which will hopefully let me double up on some long distance passenger missions).
 

Orvidius

Orvidius
VioletSunrise said:
and expect that I'll swap to 5A fuel scoop upon my return so that I can use the class 6 slot for a bigger / better passenger compartment (which will hopefully let me double up on some long distance passenger missions).
Click to expand...

That's actually what I did for my first real foray outside the bubble. I needed to do the 5k journey for Palin, so I took a 6k passenger mission, and used the size-6 slot for the passenger compartment, and a 5A scoop. It worked pretty well. But any time you're not taking passengers, even the 6B is quite a bit faster and nice to have. So it just depends on your "mission parameters", etc.
 

Straha Yeagar

S
With the insanely high payouts now, 30 first discovered terraformable water worlds is all it takes to afford a 6A. Money is not really a reason any more to not have a 6A.
 
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