What's a reasonable profit?

[spacejumbofudge]

So yesterday I stripped my Asp of most of its expensive components and bought a T7 to grind some cash, I guess with an eye on a vulture.

Last time I traded it was in a T6 and I stopped when they suddenly introduced the dynamic pricing that killed my old route.

So this time I travelled a 150LY out of the way. Found a high population extraction system and a high population high tech/refinery system.

It's two jumps in the loaded T7 between them and less than 10ls to each station. Round trip is about 9 minutes.

Both stations have little traffic - only a few trade ships, less than 30 ships in total in 24 hours.

I can take palladium one way for ~1k profit and performance enhancers the other way for 1200 to 1300 profit. After a couple of hours the palladium had dropped to 800 profit and I could switch to gold for 1k again.

Two questions:

Is this 'good enough' or is it worth me finding better?
Do I need to find a few routes in the same area to stop the profit deteriorating?

 

[Vi.king]

the best route I have yet found is about 1800 both ways... so I would love to have a 2k+ bothways route >.>

 

[OfftheRails]

That's as good a route as I've ever found.

 

[Whiterose]

A reasonable profit is selling it for more than you bought it for. A good profit is selling it for a lot more than you bought it for.

 

[spacejumbofudge]

1800 both ways sounds pretty good.

What about the fact the profit was shrinking? Is that just the norm now and I have to accept it? Worth finding a second nearby route?

 

[Wicz]

In my opinion it's just fine as long as you're happy with it, that's all that matters.

The route I use on occasion is 1285 one way with imperial slaves and 1275-1516 with both Gold and Palladium ( highly variable ) the other way.

I'm in no rush either.

 

[spacejumbofudge]

In my opinion it's just fine as long as you're happy with it, that's all that matters.

If I'm going to grind I want to grind efficiently. If I could be making an extra 20% that might be worth looking for.

I've never gone to trade in imperial space. How does imperial slave trading work? Like any other commodity? Which economy type produces it?

 

[Whiterose]

If I'm going to grind I want to grind efficiently. If I could be making an extra 20% that might be worth looking for.

I've never gone to trade in imperial space. How does imperial slave trading work? Like any other commodity? Which economy type produces it?

Why look for the extra 20%? Just do what you are doing. As for imperial space slaves are usually traded like any other commodity. The economy type varies, but you can make an excellent profit.

 

[Starnr]

To determine if you have a good run going, you should include travel time to and from., I have a T6 run that is not as high as some, I get 1500 per ton one way and 1047 per ton on the return trip, but when i hustle I can make a 7 minute run, which nets me about 2 million an hour. I am now looking at running a T7 on longer route and a little less per ton. So volume will make up for the short fall verses the T6 run.
IN general anything over 1200 a Ton within 10minutes is a good run, anything over 1300 in less than 10 minutes is a great run. Fly safe

 

[Poplin]

If I'm going to grind I want to grind efficiently. If I could be making an extra 20% that might be worth looking for.

I've never gone to trade in imperial space. How does imperial slave trading work? Like any other commodity? Which economy type produces it?

You can't forget the time of looking for a more profitable route either, that's time being used up that could have just been spent using the route you've already found.

 

[spacejumbofudge]

You can't forget the time of looking for a more profitable route either, that's time being used up that could have just been spent using the route you've already found.

Yes, but there is also some fun in looking for a route. Finally making it into imperial space would also be interesting.

From looking at edshipyard, I take it python is the next step after T7?

 

[Whiterose]

Yes, but there is also some fun in looking for a route. Finally making it into imperial space would also be interesting.

From looking at edshipyard, I take it python is the next step after T7?

Or a Clipper

 

[spacejumbofudge]

Or a Clipper

Clipper seems to be able to hold very little more than a T7 from the stats. I'd also need to rank up to get it. Python at least is an extra 50 odd tonnes.

 

[Protoplasmic traveler]

One million per round trip (at least) or I do not even start my engines

 

[guido1205us]

$464,000 round trip is not bad. I'm assuming you have 232 cargo. Round trip 10 min = about $3 mill/hour, I won't complain. I think those that grind $5 mill/hour probably exaggerate a bit.

While finding two stations to round robin with can make you coin, it's boring as hell. I've found that is better to find a trade route between like 5 stations, again within 1 jump and < 2k ls. Doesn't deplete the resources as quickly, more variety of stations (I hate the polyhedron ones, can never find the mailbox which consumes most of my time), sprinkle some missions in every once in a while to grind up rep, etc. This is comparable per credit hour. I've got a 5 station route that nets me about $3 mill/hour.

 

[spacejumbofudge]

$464,000 round trip is not bad. I'm assuming you have 232 cargo. Round trip 10 min = about $3 mill/hour, I won't complain. I think those that grind $5 mill/hour probably exaggerate a bit.

While finding two stations to round robin with can make you coin, it's boring as hell. I've found that is better to find a trade route between like 5 stations, again within 1 jump and < 2k ls. Doesn't deplete the resources as quickly, more variety of stations (I hate the polyhedron ones, can never find the mailbox which consumes most of my time), sprinkle some missions in every once in a while to grind up rep, etc. This is comparable per credit hour. I've got a 5 station route that nets me about $3 mill/hour.

I might try making it into a multi-stop round trip, might be less boring and should take longer to deplete.

You know for the polyhedron (coriolis) if you target the station, the schematic hologram on the left of the dash has little arrows on it showing the way to the letterbox?

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Just noticed you said 232t cargo, no I have 216t I think. I have a 4c shield generator. I don't think I'd want to go shieldless.

 

[guido1205us]

I might try making it into a multi-stop round trip, might be less boring and should take longer to deplete.

You know for the polyhedron (coriolis) if you target the station, the schematic hologram on the left of the dash has little arrows on it showing the way to the letterbox?

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Just noticed you said 232t cargo, no I have 216t I think. I have a 4c shield generator. I don't think I'd want to go shieldless.

Yea, that's why I like the different stations on my 5 stop route. Also, I know about the targeting of stations and the arrows. Problem with that is the arrows sometimes point in the stations rotation, making it longer to get to the mail box. Or you pick the other way opposite of rotation only to find out that is has to rotate all the way around and it would have been quicker to go the other way! I'm all about reducing minutes man - hunting for that mail box with this station bites! It's all about the profit/hour! Can't waste a second!

Shields. True, but so far I haven't felt the need for them. I do scrap every once in a while with the station. Smaller ships just bounce off, interdictions are easy to outrun, repairs are cheap.

 

[Hitsuke]

My route nets me 1100 profit each way. It's not amazing by any stretch, but it's consistent and gets me 500k in an 8 minute round trip.

 

[Stein]

Clipper seems to be able to hold very little more than a T7 from the stats. I'd also need to rank up to get it. Python at least is an extra 50 odd tonnes.

Clipper has many subtle improvements vs T7, that can be overlooked if you just consider the slightly increased cargo capacity.
It is faster and can almost boost continuously, thus reducing transit time to and from station / supercruise / hyperspace.
It has much better heat dissipation than T7, so you don't have to wait at all for cooldown between jumps, if your route is two jumps or more.
It carry heavy weapons! I found that I was interdicted a lot less by NPCs when trading in a clipper than in the T7, which reduces total travel time. Most human pirates would also think a little longer before interdicting a Clipper. Being interdicted in a Clipper is fun Not so in a T7.
Clipper is much more maneuverable, so you can dock and take-off with higher speed and with more confidence
(beware of overconfidence though... I had no serious accidents in my T7, but managed to smash my Clipper with 232 T gold into the edge of the letterbox... facepalm..)

Bottom line - Clipper can generate much higher cr/h than T7.
And of course - Clipper is way more cool to fly.

Biggest downside Clipper has over T7, is that if you're aiming for a Python or higher then you will get the Python faster if you just keep going in the T7 - since it takes a while to level up Empire ranks.

 

[Spicy Weiner]

I'm all about reducing minutes man - hunting for that mail box with this station bites! It's all about the profit/hour! Can't waste a second!

So modify your approach to the station in super cruise. Most stations rotate with their Letter Box pointed "ROUGHLY" towards the planet they orbit.
I slide in between the planet and the station , do a 90° turn in the last few seconds of approach, and exit when safe. Always I can see the adverts that stick out from the Letter Box after breakout from Super cruise. 30% of the time I'm starring at the face of the station with the LB on it! Going in too hot will mess the approach completely.