Survival, Maybe... #82 Thomas the Tram Elevator (A Tram Engineers Survival Series)

[@Error404UA]

You know what should be playing when you ride that tram? This: "Good morning, and welcome to the Black Mesa Transit System. This automated train is provided for the security and convenience of the Black Mesa Research Facility Personnel."

[@AntoTabey]

Dude that's an awesome idea ! I hope he'll do it

[@MarceloCostaJr]

EXCELLENT !!

[@OuPoot999]

YES!!! Splitsie; do this!

[@Splitsie]

Maybe ;) I might have something in mind

[@edwardokaa]

So long as the something involves a certain GMan's model being imported from a certain game and applied to Reggie who is then left in conspicuous but inaccessible places... watching, always watching

[@devon4520]

200IQ badass Engineer builds entire civilization by himself would be how i describe this series. Nice job mate wish you would upload these quicker! (I understand tho)

[@Splitsie]

Thanks, I did always enjoy civilization... ;)

[@greenerion]

“ I’m not gonna do that because that’s excessive and unnecessary” hahahahah 😂

[@Splitsie]

Hehe, I'm not sure I believed it even as I was saying it :P

[@BarryTGash]

"Help Others", as far as I'm aware, determines whether the welders will weld another grid not owned by you and not, as you suggest, a sort of cooperative mode between adjacent welders.

[@Splitsie]

That seems to be the consensus, it's to stop you taking ownership of someone else's projected blueprint while your welders are building it. Which is pretty cool, not that I've had much use of it :P

[@piotrkedzior7783]

What i really like about this series is how you manage to solve these problems. You really think like a engineer

[@Splitsie]

Thanks... I think ;)

[@macasaurusrex4863]

Educated guesswork based on shoddy designs

[@Avoncarstien]

If you wanted to be really crazy, you could build a rotating garage like chambers in a revolver. If you did it with an advanced rotor, you could probably even hook them all up to the conveyor system

[@Splitsie]

I thought about doing that for the silo, but a system like that ends up being so large that I decided against it there. I may still come up with a situation where it works in the future though :)

[@mrrat9178]

For how much work you put In for these videos you deserve WAAAAYY more subs

[@Splitsie]

Thanks, I enjoy putting in the work though (I like editing) :)

[@lainwinter375]

Hey Splitsie, from memory of when it was added - I think 'Help others' on welders lets your welders weld blocks not owned by you, and retain their ownership status as built by another player (co-operative welding!). Also...! I had a thought on your battery tram - you might find it easier to use small ship batteries for the battery unit. For volume you can get greater power density while using far fewer parts! Would also maybe help in transferring between the tram and the main grid, since it's easier to mount a small ship merge block on a piston on the station side of the loader. Absolutely loving this series, have great fun!

[@rvendelstrego6688]

And here is the thought, I was looking for.

[@Splitsie]

Ah that makes sense :) I'm thinking merge blocks may not be the way to go now since they need power to function and if I bleed the battery dry I'm a little stuck. So since rotors are the only option for connection without power small grid would probably look nicer since the small grid rotor parts are that much smaller - as another bonus to using small grid :)

[@Socom01]

Easy Automation V2.0 by Coren works great, you have to tweak the suggested way of doing it a little, but we got two elevators with 9 Pistons each, stopping at 5 floors. Works perfectly. You can use one PB for everything on the base.

[@Splitsie]

That's a script I've always meant to look into but have never quite got around to it - I really should put it higher on the list :P

[@TheAnalyticalGamer101]

Splitsie: I want to build a large underground tram network with elevation and bends with a multi-piston elevator with multiple parking floors. Clang: Do you want me to summon my Wrath!!!

[@Splitsie]

Ah, clang's more of a prankster than something truly evil ;)

[@benmohatun]

Your creativity and patience truly amaze me ..

[@Splitsie]

Thanks :) I do find I have a weird level of patience for Space Engineers :P

[@ScottyLovey]

Hell yea, Dude. Your planetary base looks amazing!

[@Splitsie]

Thanks :)

[@danybray721]

My head hurts. Too many PBS. Still looking EPIC Splitsie

[@Splitsie]

It was only.... 8 :P

[@danybray721]

@@Splitsie if it ain't broke don't fix it :)

[@LegoLegend2017]

Have you thought about making this an automatic tram? For example, as soon as you trip a sensor, a series of timer blocks or programmable blocks begin to move the tram from the main floor to the track and set a remote control block to drive the tram back to the base. And have a similar system send the tram back. It'll probably be a complex system, but it's an idea to think on. I honestly want to try to set it up, but I had a severe nervous system malfunction, so I gotta fix myself first. Keep up the great work, Splitsie.

[@Splitsie]

I've had some thoughts about it, however every time I go around the corners and have to reverse because a wheel pops up I think that it's probably not a very good idea :/

[@MrRedinator_]

21:13 someone should make a mod replacing the clanging sound with this at 1.75x the speed

[@Splitsie]

lol :D

[@totalal4601]

You're missing a prime opportunity for the solar axe facility to have an awesome tram control centre built in it... at least they're very safe underground!

[@Splitsie]

Who knows what's going to end up underground, I don't think I've ever stopped building something at the point I originally thought I would :P

[@MarcWeavers]

Help Others on welders, is help other players, so the block that your welder welds (and adds components to), belongs to the player that either placed the block, or that owns the projector that's projecting the block that is being welded... the welders do automatically help each other weld same blocks in radius crossovers :)

[@Splitsie]

Hadn't really thought about multiplayer at the time, but that makes sense :)

[@jlivewell]

A day without this series...is a day I dread. Amazing stuff....

[@Splitsie]

Thanks John :)

[@TengenNiem]

Amazing engineering sir!

[@Splitsie]

Thanks :)

[@chrisf84]

The 'Check Others' box toggles whether the welders will weld other peoples blocks, not whether the weld radius will overlap.

[@Splitsie]

Makes sense, nice to learn something new :)

[@seanmaxwell3319]

“Put drills on the middle of the tram.” What could go wrong?

[@Splitsie]

With my luck... be left stranded miles from the base with 1 health left - I definitely wouldn't die though :P

[@seanmaxwell3319]

Splitsie You’re like that Roach in wall•E. No matter what you do... he lives.

[@davfree9732]

A tram shed with a spare tram made for recovery and track repair might be a good addition to the tram fleet. With hydrogen thrusters and flashing red and blues for rapid response for clearing blockages

[@Splitsie]

It sounds like you're assuming I'm going to crash :P You're probably right ;)

[@kenkalajdzic]

Hydrogen powered contraption with wheels in all directions crossing over multiple slightly misaligned grids ... What could possibly go wrong :D I like it!

[@AceOfBlackjack]

Add a plow because well it’s splitsie and his luck it will became a train graveyard 🚃🚃🚃🚂🚂🚂🔪🔫

[@TheLondonhascalled]

Love your videos, some awesome ideas and all clearly explained so I can give em a shot

[@Splitsie]

Thanks, that's exactly what I was going for - I love the idea that people can come along and then go and make their own (often better) versions of the same sorts of things :)

[@Triaxx2]

Okay, have binged the entire series. Great series by the way. So a couple thoughts. Grinder Pit: If you ever get it finished, perhaps the last row of blocks should be wheel blocks mounted to a rotor that spins towards the pit. Aligned correctly, it should allow any scrap generated to fall between the tires and the end of the ramp, and down to collectors. The wheels should then pull any larger bits over and into the pit for grinding. Pelican: Probably more efficient to drive it out and dump chunks of drifting pursuants into the Pelican, than fly them all the way around and into the base. In addition, parking it so that the Goose is facing down hill, so gravity helps will probably let it eat scrap more efficiently. For actually loading the scraps, what you need is something like a Telehandler. And arm with a rotor, a couple pistons and a rotor mounted landing gear on the end. So you can reach out, grab a hunk of scrap you've separated and drop it into the pelican's maw without wasting energy hovering on thrusters. Unless you want to get fancy and build a scrapyard crane with a free dangling magnet/landing gear that relies on gravity to hang straight. A couple other thoughts. You're all about power savings right? So why fly all your aircraft around? I'd suggest building a... skate of sorts. Basically a wheeled platform with only a small power source of it's own, that you can dock your fliers to, and drive them to a destination. Say you want to take the nugget out to the first pirate base you destroyed, and convert it into a hydrogen processing plant. Instead of having to load it to the Goose, or fly it on it's own, it lands on the skate, locks on, and then drives to it's destination. Speaking of which, the Pirate Ore Processing plant, instead of being left to rust, could be repurposed into a hydrogen processing plant. Ice in one leg of the plant, hydrogen out the other leg. That way ice can be mined from the lake by whatever machines you use, then transported to something with it's own power and a bunch of H2/02 generators. Also, for your battery loading/unloading. Four pistons arranged around a rotor, with merge blocks on the end. That way you can simply spin the rotor around and move a new battery into the proper position, charging or loading/unloading.

[@Splitsie]

Thanks, it's been a lot of fun making it so far :) I've tried making some rotor and piston based arms with the MArmOS script and while they usually work for a minute, they have all ended up exploding or flipping their host vehicle in fairly short order. If I ever figure out what I'm doing wrong and get one working you can be certain that I'll be building a crane whether I have a useful purpose for it or not :P The pirate base is over 10km from my home base and it was quite a challenge to get up to it which is why I haven't planned to use it for anything as it just ends up being a nightmare to use - plus I like the idea of it sitting there rusting after the trouble it caused me ;) I do want to build a lake mining trailer for the Goose so I can drive down and grab a huge load in one go though :) Nice idea about the battery loader, I might do something like that :)

[@Triaxx2]

In this particular case I think the MArmOS might be over complicating the issue. As for flipping, I'm very surprised no one has come up with an auto-ballasting script to shift weights, such as stone around in cargo containers to counter gravitational forces. Though I suppose a medium cargo container or two full of stone as a counterweight might be helpful. Oooh, sounds interesting. Though I figured you might need to exploit the iron at it's base eventually. Especially with all the mega projects you keep making. (Which I find awesome.)

[@pawnsgamebag4145]

there is a game setting in advanced settings of world settings that allow unsupported stations if this is turned off then disconnected it from the voxle will automatically turn into ship grids and get effected by P-Gravity.

[@Splitsie]

Sadly it only works for grids under a certain size :(

[@seannewcomb7594]

I believe the 'help others' allows your welders to interact with other people's blocks. It may be limited to share permissions though.

[@Splitsie]

Ah, hadn't really thought about it being a multiplayer thing

[@cheesecakeking6165]

I was watching this episode, then it hit me, the best way to have multiple trams (each with parking charge spots) is instead of a singular elevation with different stop levels, you instead have a huge Ferris wheel garage, basically a vertical turntable!!!

[@Splitsie]

That is certainly an option, you'd need an enormous area to put it in though :P

[@MinorLG]

In GIS plots (geographic information systems) [the standard used for surveying, and as such also building, excavation, and well, any real world 3D physical object] Z-direction is Height/Altitude. Any use of Z as a direction other than height is flawed and or incorrect.

[@Splitsie]

I figured there would be some sort of standard and I knew I'd end up being different :P

[@MinorLG]

@@Splitsie it's ok, if Minecraft can be wrong, so can you. It still bothers me though.

[@Splitsie]

Yeah, minecraft really went all out with doing bizarre things with its cardinal directions :P

[@Cyberguy42]

When using computer vision and representing points in the camera's coordinate frame, Z points forward, X points right, and Y points down.

[@MinorLG]

@@Cyberguy42 that would work If the monitor/camera were aimed parallel to the floor. Since in most cases, the camera is aimed perpendicular to the floor, everything is off by 90°. In the olden days, games were represented in 2d, and so up on the screen related to walking forward, but as 3d developed, the system didn't rotate to keep forward being the same direction. In those old 2d games, Z would still be height, (and would have been the axis into/out of the screen), but with 3d rotating the axises, some people didn't rotate the labels with the axises.

[@Rickard_H]

In my experiance the help others is a must to be checked, even for small ships, since it cuts down on the time it takes to weld, they do concentrate more on one block at a time, so say you have 5 welders welding something in the middle, the three in the middle will co-op while the ones on the sides will do different blocks and then get help from the middle sides and so on.

[@Splitsie]

Interesting, from what others have been saying it's a multiplayer setting to stop you from taking ownership of someone else's projection while welding it.

[@Rickard_H]

i mean sure thats a thing that can happen, but the thing that decides that is the ownership of the welders itself im pretty sure. either way its not like thats a big problem and the pros are worth the cons, cause in single player there is no cons :D and in multiplayer eaven if the ships is owned by other friends its easy fix with share with faction

[@colerockman385]

Still love this series, I can't see you ever stopping, you have plans on plans on plans for the future...

[@Splitsie]

I don't see me stopping any time either ;)

[@hobgoblinuk5100]

Just watched Raveric's (spelling?) train vid the double deck bullet train. That thing is insane. I can see why you wanted to build a tram. I think I am going to try building a version of his Dawnstar (I think that was it's name) train. Much easier to build I reckon lol As for your tram. The design you have for parking trams is wonderfully Victorian and so in keeping with the solar axe station. Love it.

[@Splitsie]

His train is amazing, a very cool design - not necessarily easier to build since you have to get wheels all around the rail anyway which is just as tough as getting between the two rails (I played around with both approaches) :P I'm glad the design ideas are fitting together ;)

[@hobgoblinuk5100]

@@Splitsie I have tried your design (closely resembles yours) and got it working. . Not as well as yours yet but I will get there. Watching you build yours was really informative and the things I learned will hopefully help. You are once again pushing me to do more and I am really enjoying it. 2100hrs of SE and still learning all the time :D It's what makes this game so great

[@jaymiddleton772]

Did you check out [infal] Piston Control script? It's command line based, so typically one PB only for multiple piston groups with arguments: -g "[group name]" -s [speed] -p [position] -tb "[timer block]" It triggers the TB when the pistons reach their target, which could be useful for managing multiple axis where it's safer to move an axis after others have completed. Also, check out [infal] Charge State Manager. It wont work with merge blocks, but that might give you something to consider; with removable batteries and fixed batteries, you need to manage the charge state so that the removable's are discharging as a priority and the fixed are charging. If they're just all set to auto they all discharge at equal rates and all reach 0% charge at the same time. Both of these scripts have actually been used by TimmyCarbine in his Survival Maybe series, if you want to check them out there, or not use them to maintain a point of difference

[@Splitsie]

I should definitely have a look at that one as it seems like it could be a good alternative for the elevator :) I'll see if there's anything I can do with Isy's scripts that are already running on the base to make that happen and if not that will be a good solution too :)

[@AcidFlashBrandy]

We use [infal] Piston Control script for an elevator with 4 Floors and its working great. 11 Pistons.

[@armastat]

You can also use connectors to allow power to go thru the tram rails between stations, but then there is no point in having a tram so not recommended, lol.

[@MistaJayRo]

Another great video! This gets more interesting every week. Will the wednesday episode ever come back? I miss my wednesday entertainment XD.

[@Splitsie]

My plan is to have Wednesday's be co-op and Saturday's be single player. If I ever get more time to make more videos I'll be bringing an extra single player video back :)

[@ChristopherMocko]

The MArmOS script would let you define the lift as a single "Robotic Arm" and control it with WASD. Once in position where you want it, you can save the orientation and command the arm to move to that spot by activating the programmable block with an argument. It takes a bit of messing around to figure out how to make it work, but the script lets you control multiple degree of freedom "arms" very easily. Its a monster of a script, and worth checking out if you want to make some stupid complicated stuff.

[@Splitsie]

I've toyed with MArmOS and most of my constructions have ended in destruction sadly - not quite sure where I'm going wrong since they normally work well for about 2 or 3 minutes before they break :P If I ever get something reliable you can bet I'll be building a flat bed trailer for the goose with a crane attached, even if I don't have any real use for it ;)

[@ChristopherMocko]

Splitsie That's fair. It took me a good while to figure out how to make it work, and then I found out rotors don't have nearly enough torque for what I wanted to do. I guess I could have built a "hydraulic" arm, but that's more effort than I felt like putting in.

[@scorpioncoreuniverse8981]

In my own opinion start building an automatic missile system full of Rudolph's as well as the other missile but you're doing a great job keep up the great work.

[@Splitsie]

The silo is pretty much ready for full automation on the construction side of things, but I'll need to revise the rudolph design since it doesn't work so well with the welders in its current setup (there are bits that take too long and are too far away from the center so the welder moves away before they're done even when the piston moves at 0.05m/s so I have to manually control the piston) :P

[@scorpioncoreuniverse8981]

@@Splitsie well I have faith in you my friend too bad you can't put sensors around your base and set them up to the silo so when the drones come they can launch automatically but that's an idea but I have a feeling you've already thought of it.

[@GarryGabriel]

could also sequence the timer blocks so when it moves over and it's done, it starts to move back. and so on.

[@Splitsie]

Yep, that's definitely an option, would still need to have the PBs set up to control where it stops but having a sequence would allow for higher movement speeds potentially :)

[@ronkrueger-capt_koron6112]

Just a thought, create the elevator track car/track turntable that is part of your elevator as a whole unit on top of a rotator on top of the top most piston. It can be rotated to the individual parking sections at the compass type area and the elevator can go up to the level that you want and the elevator track car/track turntable can rotate and line up with the sections of track leading away. Essentially its turntable on top of the elevator lifter.

[@Splitsie]

That could work, I'm going to be coming back to this elevator at some point and there are a few aspects of it that could be improved :)

[@etopsirhc]

while i dont know of one. i have a good idea of how to make one. the idea is a state machine and you write a simple script in the custom data to create states and set pistons and rotors to positions. i think i'll work on that now, if nothing else it sounds like a fun challenge.

[@Splitsie]

That would be massively useful for creating mechanised arms like the ones used in car factories etc as well - would be a very cool way of loading missiles onto a truck for example (or batteries on a tram) :)

[@RedGallardo]

That's what I thought! That if you made a train, it would probably be suspended with wheels on cube rails. The only alternative I know of for elevators was the one wrapping itself around the static rail. But it could be easily damaged. Dunno if wheels are reliable this way. But I think vertical variant should work too. Like an elevator with thruster engines and wheels and a landing gear stopping system. You reach the floor and it triggers "lock". I just happen to be building a moon base and it's quite spread. There are mines at the base of the mountain and a beautiful observation point on top. And the distance is too much for piston elevators to help with. So I'm thinking about making this wheel kind of thing. And, yeah, Black Mesa here ^__^

[@Splitsie]

You can absolutely build an elevator with this system - as you say having thrusters may be needed, although I have managed a build where I used 5x5 wheels and could drive straight up with only wheel power, so you might want to attempt something like that (does end up much larger though)

[@RedGallardo]

I dunno if I can build all I want though. You make magic. Your bases are huge, I have no idea how you manage. Even if I was in creative and it was all about just putting blocks without welding... it would still take months. And you somehow also make it all look awesome, stylish. I would probably have... bricks. You're a grandmaster of SE! =D

[@Splitsie]

You're too kind, I really just muck around until things look vaguely appealing and if they don't I lean into the ridiculous and end up with an Igor or ugly duckling :)

[@RedGallardo]

You underestimate your knowledge and taste and skill =) Oh, and dedication too. It's always amazing to see people like you bringing so much into a game instead of lazily following the path of least resistance like I do. Well.. even when I do try to make things neat and stylish, I just don't have this spark that would tell me "make this room round. Good. Now make this floor elevated and add columns" etc. You're lucky to have it, you must appreciate that. ^__^'

[@mythicty205]

If a static grid is in the earth and the voxels are drilled away from it, it will stay static. If a grid isn't connected to the voxels and the blocks attaching it are removed it will turn dynamic

[@Splitsie]

Except this isn't universally correct. If I take out the legs on the AI bases they will not fall unless you tell them to convert to ship, but if I cut off small unpowered sections they'll usually fall. I'm not sure how power would factor into it, but it seems to be related somehow :/

[@mythicty205]

Splitsie I’ve found similar things happen to that, is it possible it’s close to the voxels that it thinks it’s still attached? It may also have something to do with weapons because of how they deform the blocks. Maybe deforming the blocks affects the behaviour? I’m doing a play through without a refinery and PvE mods, and I came across this crashed ship that was a station. It had 8 almost fully charged batteries together and I wanted them so I ground down the blocks attaching it and then drilled away the voxels and it didn’t drop. I had to put a control panel on it and convert it to a station for it to happen. What I said in my comment seems to mostly be true, but there’s probs other factors that affect the behaviour. I’ll have to look into it and do some testing

[@dennislindemann9057]

After building a "Splitsie's Drilling Guide ™" variant, I decided to grind all the blocks connecting it to the ground and all the blocks at the edges in the hope that it would all fall into a pile for easier grinding (without jetpack). I had mixed success. Some parts fell, but some stayed static. I think the logic rules for static/dynamic grids have trouble when you create multiple grids from a single massive static grid.

[@sirdevonaire3249]

You could use the Heng convaire pipe mod they bend so you can place turrents at the axe and keep power coming to your base just run them along in the roof of the tram tunnel.

[@Splitsie]

I deliberately didn't connect the bases as I liked the idea that I had to physically transfer the batteries to move it - completely silly, but fun for me :)

[@sirdevonaire3249]

+Splitsie Well that's I built my fallout style vault bunker in this game but your idea is pertty nice from a Role play perspective. Keep up the good work can't wait to see the next cinama episode.

[@Eisen_Jaeger]

I could be entirely wrong about this but I know when you set multiple 'bobs' to help others they'll all concentrate on a task to complete it quicker like several motes grinding a single block. Welders I "believe" will shunt their material supplies over to the ones being helped?

[@Eisen_Jaeger]

also also, you going to put an lcd on the tram with a Thomas face? :P

[@Splitsie]

Oh that could be it, I wonder how we'd test to find out... As to the thomas face - that might be tempting ;)

[@Eisen_Jaeger]

And after a quick wiki, the help other seems to be for help welding blueprints for others and not changing the ownership, sorry I was way off base. 'Bobs' may be doing that as well and I've never noticed since I only mp with 2 other people at most.

[@gordon861]

I love how the Build and Repair has just become BOB since the live streams, anyone new to the streams must wonder what the hell this BOB MOD is.

[@robertrenato]

Mate...what You`re doing is incredible and amazing. So much dedication and will to create what You imagined, I really admire that! :`)

[@Splitsie]

Thanks, I have far too many grand plans in my head sometimes though :P

[@robertrenato]

But You make them work! :D When I saw the tram idea I was like...my goodness this seems like impossible...And now You have a more functional subway than some Eastern European countries do! :D

[@Splitsie]

And my own country too! :P

[@henryw9440]

@Splitsie add a projector and use a blueprint & welder to auto build the rail. Then you can just make it make it go slowly and run itself

[@Splitsie]

Sadly because of the grid size differences and the station vs mobile grid issues it's quite complicated to get a self projecting build working - most that do it use a single grid size and merge blocks to allow for timed shifting of the projection which wouldn't be feasible with this build :(

[@shad5812]

theres a world setting that makes grids not embedded in the ground become dynamic

[@Splitsie]

Sadly it no longer works properly :( The option remains, but large grids (bigger than some arbitrary amount of blocks) remain static even when released now, or at least when this was made.

[@peterfixit7221]

36:11 I would have created a full battery trailer, set them to charge at the solar axe and discharge at the base and just leave the trailer there until its empty

[@Splitsie]

It's something I was considering but couldn't resist the temptation of a crane ;)

[@peterfixit7221]

@@Splitsie i kind of like that you make everything overly complicated

[@Splitsie]

Thanks, I've found it's where I have most of my fun in SE :)

[@solidgold2]

Just running an Idea across, why not use a connector instead of landing Gear/or both, it will allow you to disconnect the merge block from within the cockpit. or do you plan on using timers to achieve the disconnect control.

[@solidgold2]

also Great episode

[@Splitsie]

To be honest it's probably best I don't use a connector or a merge block now that I've thought about it a little more - since I'm going to be draining the batteries dry I'll need to have a system to reconnect them when they're completely dead so I think I'll have to use rotors with attach detach

[@solidgold2]

yea Good Point, so you'll have to have a remote disconnect/connect to activate at each end, like the Main Base doors system. that will also save space side to side on rail car.

[@gmlviper]

We need a server where we can play with you.

[@Splitsie]

I'm hoping to do some streams later this year that'll be opened up for others to join in - probably sometime in November due to work schedules :)

[@defne499]

what happened to the server where we had a big base in a mountain ? it was shared in the discord server sometime ago

[@milkhbox]

@@Splitsie sign me up for the open SE server as well.

[@ZEOCMF]

@@milkhbox Sign up for Splitsie's Patreon so he doesn't have work schedule delays, and get access.

[@milkhbox]

I get by paycheck to paycheck. Dont really have the money st the moment because..life, but I do intend on it later on when things are better.

[@lordsherifftakari4127]

with the length and width of the Tram Car. batteries can be placed 2 wide, 2 High and a total of 5 Large Grid Blocks long that fits nicely into the open frame. 18 Batteries and a Merge Block to either side top layer mid pack. a single Small Grid lip will be plenty to keep the Battery Pack in place during movement from point to point. in this format, each pack can be used in a multitude of ways including aboard Large Grid Ships going to Space since they can be swapped out on return for a fast turnaround. since the solar array charging it would be quite large, it will generate lots of power to feed those batteries. the Ring Segments can frame the running track providing something in the tunnel to see as the Tram moves along. segments of 10-15 Blocks long can be projected as Modules for Straight or 3-6 Blocks for curved components. a longer segment can host a hinged Track segment for use as a Switch to change from 1 track to another mid route allowing many different locations to be served possibly even down to the Lake for Ice Shipping. this section would need a Battery and Programmable/Timer Blocks to control the Switch and maybe even a light to display the direction selected.

[@gAccountt]

I love your vids. They are cool and funny. Do you build a whole new tram or do you use the one wich has done all the digging and upgrade it?

[@Splitsie]

Thank you :) I'm going to build a whole new tram using the projector so I can copy the settings of the existing one easily :)

[@gAccountt]

@@Splitsie that's heckin smart! And also with several wagons?

[@Splitsie]

I've been thinking about having wagons, will need to do some creative mode testing first before I dare though :P

[@gAccountt]

@@Splitsie well, we'll see what you will come up with. I'm already on the hype-tram xD

[@milkhbox]

A Saturday upload? Noice!

[@Splitsie]

Every Saturday ;)

[@milkhbox]

@@Splitsie Well, dont I look silly. I usually end up watching a couple days after upload. Busy busy XD

[@glenntanner3]

For the turntable, is there room to add a rotor to the elevator so you could just mis align a connection and rotate? I dont think a separate turning area is going to be beneficial in this case. It would have the benefit of allowing 90 degree storage as well; which would probably be a bit overkill... I hope.

[@Splitsie]

There should be room and it's tempting to make the car out of small grid for a couple of unrelated reasons that would also make using the rotor easier - I'll have to test if a small rotor head can generate enough force though

[@taterbits]

Use the MarmOS script (on the workshop). I you can set pre-defined locations :)

[@Splitsie]

I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong when I use it, but every time things end in clang and explosions - usually works well for a little while before though :P

[@jamesmyers7418]

I think you need something more challenging for the future. Launch a space station from underground?

[@Splitsie]

I feel like this tram has been quite the challenge to get functional :P

[@jamesmyers7418]

Well of course Just thinking ahead! 🙃

[@Jack_Wolfe]

QUESTION: Do you have a track laying tram?and how difficult would that be?

[@Splitsie]

The tram I used to weld it is the closest I went with, the reason you can't easily lay track is that you can't have a projection from a mobile grid intersect with the voxels :(

[@gary0228]

imagine if the tooltip for "help others" was actually worth the time spent for its creation.

[@Splitsie]

Yep, a useful tool tip can go a very, very long way :P

[@wepntech]

instead of scripts elevators could be done with a number of pistons. just use buttons for each one reversing. would potentially need more pistons then with a script but it is simpler. moving tram carts around then like a vending machine with container rails or something.

[@Splitsie]

Yep, exactly the way I did in my elevators tutorial ;) I wanted to try out some scripts for this one which is part of why I didn't plan it out to include the extra pistons - thought it would be fun to try something different :)

[@shankenmalabanan3860]

You kinow this is the best video😍😍😍

[@Splitsie]

Thanks :)

[@CattSing]

You don't have to use the menu trick to let your tools continue without holding your mouse buttons. You can just double click left or right.

[@Splitsie]

I just went and tested this and you're right, I don't know when they added the double right click function but it's something that never used to work - very happy it does now :)

[@CattSing]

I previously used the menu trick myself. At some point, shortly after the multiplayer update it kind of stopped working for me. So I fiddled around a bit and suddenly "Whoah! I can just double click!"

[@Splitsie]

It's amazing the number of things that Keen can fix that go by unnoticed sometimes :P

[@L0rdNikoN1]

Do Rudolph´s Big Brother Missile, Brodolph... Same Thing, but with Large Grid Warheads :D Or, build an entire new type of missile, Blitzen, the Cluster Warhead Missile

[@Splitsie]

I think first I might try to use rudolph with a sensor to detonate the warhead and see if it does more damage that way as I wouldn't want to completely destroy the base - gotta get that loot ;)

[@zachw2906]

Hey, Splitse, I have run the numbers and they suggest you should use small-grid batteries for your battery modules (if you're not already committed to the large-grid ones - I haven't had a chance to watch the latest episode ^^; ). Three small-grid batteries store slightly more Watt hours than a large one, and they take up less volume and use fewer components (particularly power cells). This would also make it easier for you to have more than one merge block on the module, which would make swapping old modules for new ones much easier. Also, I just discovered a HUUUUGE reason to try out Digi's Build Info mod (if you can squeeze it in without tanking performance) - if you select your grinder and aim at a block that is holding your grid together, a little red message appears in the hover text that pops up next to the block. Build info also tells you block name if you point a grinder or welder at it, and for any block it will tell you mass, power usage, and other vital stats. I think it also adds more to the details pane for certain terminal blocks, but Keen changes things so much these days I can't be sure what's vanilla and what's not. That "don't grind this, you fool" message is amazingly helpful, as you might imagine ;) Cheers.

[@Splitsie]

Fortunately I've already been talked around to using small grid batteries, since I should really be using rotors to connect/disconnect (as they'll work without power) I like the idea of small grid as the rotor parts are much more appropriately sized :) As for build info, that's a cool function, but I never particularly liked the way that it can really clutter the interface (as someone who plays with their crosshair off 100% of the time you might imagine I'm picky about that) :P

[@ryderlynch2281]

"I think I can! I think I can!" ~ the Little Tram that Could to the Solar Axe. Suggestion: Next episode build two Chicken Hawks. One based at your main base and one based at the Solar Axe. They'll both be able to cover their respective areas of responsibility and you'll have one handy regardless of which place you're at. Ideally though you may eventually want more than that. It's too bad you don't have a "squadron control script" or something. Imagine a small squadron of say five Chicken Hawks in formation following their leader controlled by you as you take on an approaching Drifting Pursuant. Questions: the bridge outside the entrance to the hangar presently curves to the right when you exit, but do you think it's possible to add an extension that would allow you drive straight in the direction of the mine and bypass the area outside the base completely? Additionally, do you think it would be possible to excavate the mountainside to the left of the bridge to create a small ledge or secondary hangar for the Chicken Hawk(s)?

[@JohnyDaison]

Well, this exists: steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1162841676

[@IG40fied]

Squadron control script: steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1460996597. Def agree with multiple chicken hawks, squadron or not.

[@Splitsie]

I think having a chicken hawk at both bases is a very good idea :) The reason I didn't extend the bridge is mostly aesthetic but also a little bit functional. The bridge would have to be enormous and would dominate the area making the original solar tower look so small that it would almost be sad, also getting the bridge to line up with the terrain is a nightmare so driving on and off would not be easy - I fairly carefully chose the spot I put the bridge on to maximise the ease with which it transitions to the voxels. Having a chicken hawk or two loaded under the bridge might be something to look at though ;)

[@ryderlynch2281]

Splitsie Have you thought about adding the shield mod too? You mentioned having it on your other series with Capac, but it could be handy here to enclose the Solar Axe in a shield as an added layer of defense. Not sure if it would work with the original solar tower though. The bridge does look nice. One thing I would love to see on it though (and I know there definitely isn't a mod for it or way of doing it) is a bungee jumping capsule on the underside of the bridge. I've had the opportunity to see it done in the real world when I did a bridge tour in Auckland and thought it would be awesome. You could invite Capac over, let him jump, and then leave him dangling there. I agree with having a Chicken Hawk or two on a platform under the bridge or on a small ledge adjacent to it would be a terrific idea. Previously you've had the Chicken Hawk parked at the rear of the hangar, almost to the Goose parking area, and you've had to fly out through the length of the hangar before be able to reach the outside. Repositioning them outside would allow you to response more quickly to approaching threats.

[@IG40fied]

Is it just me or is that horizontal piston direction/offset in the wrong direction? The one used for projecting. It seems as though when you extend it, it will push the tram away from the track rather than towards/past it for adding wheels on the side currently in the rail.

[@Splitsie]

I set it up pretty roughly, but yep I'll need to rearrange it before I start welding :)

[@kalsaari4670]

"Help others" on welders! Now that you mention it, i never looked at the welder's options and so nerver noticed. I know, however, that the mod Build And Repair System has the same exact option and it works for it. I wouldn't know for the vanilla welder sadly.

[@Splitsie]

From what some others have been saying it seems to be related to helping the construction of other people's blueprints in a way that you don't end up with your welders giving you ownership - I've not tested that though

[@cmilkau]

90 degrees only? Says the same person that already has rotating connector arms. You can also use reversing loops or rail triangles for reversing cars, if you prefer alternatives to another turntable

[@Splitsie]

I did elaborate on that, but it just seemed silly when I could try another approach that's different and still a little bit crazy ;)

[@NARSAonline]

I thought you just had to double-click the mouse to turn on the drills? I know it still works that way for the handheld drills.

[@Splitsie]

It seems like they've finally added the ability to double right click - it previously wouldn't work for right click but would work perfectly with left. Glad I've learned this now :)

[@TeamScapeGoat]

that condition for stations falling over is a world setting. unsupported stations.

[@Splitsie]

Sadly that setting has not really done much for a while, the situations I'm talking about in the video are with unsupported stations set to off. Apparently Keen changed the behaviour to allow more things to not be affected by gravity due to the performance impacts of always checking if blocks were attached to voxels :(

[@Macabri_2k10]

help others affects only welding on blocks not specifically owned by you, more a multiplayer thing i guess

[@Splitsie]

Ah, that would make some sense :)

[@G33kT3chstudio]

Help others, This Check box allows you to repair or build blocks that are not owned by you.

[@Splitsie]

It seems to be more about the taking ownership of those blocks when helping build a projected grid (at least from what I've found out since). Without it if you weld someone else's projection you'll take control but with it they retain ownership

[@lurkingstar]

Yes finally!

[@Bainbridge13]

Isn't help others so that a welder owned by you will weld blocks owned by other people

[@Splitsie]

That sounds like it could be it - it's honestly something I'd never looked at before :P

[@mrfinder18]

Dont know why, but this tram tunnel is giving me flash backs to Half Life!

[@Splitsie]

I might have some plans to make those flashbacks even more dramatic ;)

[@cys-slayga]

Do yoy know how long i have been waiting ive been constantly check your channel if youtube didnt notify me of your new video Keep up the great work :)

[@Splitsie]

Sorry, I was a little late today but I'm glad you enjoyed it :)

[@cys-slayga]

np dude you make awesome videos and its Worth the wait

[@Jessie-vm6kq]

So, splitsie, when is you railway company going public

[@Splitsie]

We'll be having an IPO when the fundraising for our next big expansion is needed :P

[@matthewclark7885]

Of course splitsie, only you would have a roundhouse for a truck and something similar to a truck garage for your tram......... is it just me or is the logic very.....unique here, and yes I do understand why you do it with your limitations, I just think it's moderately ironic.

[@Splitsie]

I love to introduce irony where I can ;)

[@matthewclark7885]

@@Splitsie I hope you find an iron deposite while building, just to add more irony

[@charleslee1858]

I know this is an old series and I'm way late but I'm binging the series and just gonna drop a few questions and ideas here and there. For example, is there any advantage or disadvantaged to using batteries and merge blocks over a energy transport tram? I mean why transfer the batteries? Just build a tram or two with like 6 or 8 batteries on it and charge it at the Solar Axe and then run it where needed to discharge into whatever system you need it. Discharge seems a lot faster verses moving blocks around. Just dock at a charging port and top off the base or silo and then return to the Solar Axe. Or am I missing a factor other then Splitsie just being overly complicated Splitsie as per usual? P.S. Would it be possible at very low speed maybe to automate the tram? At least like battery tram. It's basically only 4 commands if you have the speed limit set really really low. Wouldn't it just be Forward, Switch-Lock, Discharge, Switch-Lock, and Reverse? Maybe have the Switch-Lock on a timer to top off any grid it's set to travel to so it just runs out and back on a schedule? This is my own curiosity about automation potential if the track is smooth enough to reliably travel at a consistent slow steady speed.

[@Splitsie]

There's an efficiency loss with transfer between batteries of about 20% but really I wanted to do it this way for the fun challenge as much as anything :P

[@charleslee1858]

@@Splitsie oh. I didn't know about the loss. Good to know. Thanks. :) Also anxiously awaiting more Survival Impossible. Loving that one! Chewing through wrong way down and this one in the mean time. Keep it going!

[@Plant3468]

Use a crane to move trams of and on, and pray that clang is with you

[@Plant3468]

Still good video, loved every one of em so far

[@Plant3468]

I need a thomas the tank engine. Minus the train, plus more tank I think you know what I mean ;)

[@Splitsie]

I had thought about using a crane, but feared the whole tram would topple over without the top rail :P And a tank is in the plans ;)

[@FreakGene]

From my experience when testing an issue I had with station grids not being converted to ship grids, though i havnt been closely following your series so idk if its applicable, but ship grids that have been converted to station grids via the menu opption don't seem to ever properly update back to ship grids (via the removal of blocks, disconnection of merge blocks, or rotor heads) even if you turn off unsupported stations n etc.

[@FreakGene]

Example I was making an self building elevator, flew it into position, converted it to a station grid via the menu, and then attached it to the ground, and an it wouldnt work as the disconnecting auto built parts were stuck as station grids, and the pistons couldn't move them, even when those parts didn't exist when the original ship was converted to station, only got it to work if i connected to a fixed merge block that was naturally a station

[@Splitsie]

Yeah, it seems like there are a few bugs with it - especially in multiplayer. I'm sad there are bugs, but I'm glad it's not just me :P

[@gvaca433]

Make museum in spherical shape ^^

[@Splitsie]

I'm rarely happy with large rounded areas in SE - they tend to look great at a distance but look really weird up close :/

[@AcidFlashBrandy]

@Splitsie: Please recheck your Blueprint position. I think your piston cant correct this at the moment.

[@Splitsie]

Yep, you're right, I'll be fixing it before I start :)

[@d-obvious]

So if you can merge block batteries to share power.. Can you do that with atmospheric, or any thrusters for that matter.. Moving an engine suite from one grid to another so one doesn't have to be building engines, or to temporarily increase power of say an overloaded mining unit.. . I realize you'd need a seat and battery to fly the power unit to location.. wheels won't steer on pistons.. Wasn't sure if engines behave on merge blocks as expected

[@Splitsie]

On a merge block things are treated as a single grid, so the thrusters will work as normal when the merge block is connected :)

[@baz5521]

the tram is cool

[@Splitsie]

Thanks :)

[@willson555]

Did you just get a small ship projector to project a large grid?

[@Splitsie]

Wow, I did didn't I! I completely missed that - I wonder if we can make it weldable or use the same trick to make a large grid project small...

[@Splitsie]

I just had a bit of a play with it, things get very strange, very, very strange - you can weld small from large but you end up creating a large grid's borders and the small grid faces with a large grid's collision mesh. With large from small you can't get any blocks to show up as weldable :( Still a cool way to get a projection of a small grid from a large grid projector though - all you need to do is look at the part of your construction that matches the projector when you create the blueprint and ensure the part you want projected has more blocks :)

[@willson555]

Still might be useful for making a kind of thin projection wall to try and hide what might be inside. This way you can weld it without meaning to......

[@forestnfren8146]

i feel like you are James Turner

[@robirvin1502]

I thought Help Others meant that you could welt something that wasn't part of an allied grid. You could repair or help build stuff you didn't own. 0% tested, though.

[@Splitsie]

That seems to be the consensus, I'm glad to learn something new :)

[@phillipnunya6793]

Me and SE are stuck in a cycle. I want to play with SE. SE pisses me off. I leave SE. Videos like this one remind me of all the good times me and SE could have together. I want to play with SE.

[@Splitsie]

That's how I am with Kerbal Space Program :P

[@phillipnunya6793]

Me and KSP broke up a while ago. Maybe there is room in my life for a side game...

[@Splitsie]

lol :D

[@lowrads3653]

What about detachable batteries? Sometimes I wish this game had steam power and coal.

[@Splitsie]

Detachable batteries is exactly the plan for this tram all along :)

[@prestonkincaid3723]

Can u add the Current World Save to your workshop please

[@Splitsie]

Oh yeah, I should probably get around to updating that :P

[@prestonkincaid3723]

Splitsie thank ya very much loving your series hopefully u can make more or expand this one

[@CaptainFigaro]

You should have capac play on this world as king of the drones a crazed man who hates you for living on earth and who dies on a daily basis lol

[@Splitsie]

Hehe, when I first started I had thought about using Capac to increase the challenge when I finally attack the pirate base, may still do that, but not sure if it'll actually increase my challenge ;)

[@zurielwolfe]

Hello Splitsie, is it just me or is the second rail lower then the first rail by half a block?

[@Splitsie]

Yep, it is. Since the second rail is part of the solar axe grid it was locked to that position and while I got very close with the line from the main base it was still a little way off when I brought it in which left me with a half block offset in height and left-right :P

[@zurielwolfe]

just wondering why you did not use the first rail as an reference point so the pistons are on the same height

[@larsriisgaard-jensen3448]

when you make your museum make projektions of all the ships there is been destroid

[@Splitsie]

Yep, definitely need displays of those lost in battle :P

[@lurts9820]

Whats that mod called where he has that display on his arm and plugs himself in the cargo containers

[@Splitsie]

That one's animated interaction :)

[@TriggerhappyJTV]

Here is a question. Will there be a workshop download of this world once your done?

[@Splitsie]

There are currently two versions on the workshop, hopefully I'll get some time tomorrow to bring the in progress one up to date :)

[@Zenarisu]

big chunkus

[@commanderstorm8874]

Since he is going through all of this trouble with programmable blocks just build a super computer in se

[@Splitsie]

I'm quite a way from the level of those people who build basic computers out of redstone in minecraft or who actually write the scripts for SE - but if someone wrote a script that required multiple PBs set up in a certain way, as long as it did something cool I'd try it out :P

[@porkchop99]

🕺🕺🕺

[@Splitsie]

I do need more music to dance to... ;)

[@Sifizero]

ooohhhh

[@Splitsie]

I'm so close to being able to work on making this pretty, sooo very close :)

[@Sifizero]

yep looks good bit of fine tuning, coming along nicely.

[@asgardiumccx6216]

Hum.... Are you sure you are still playing Space Engineers ? Seem to me it's more ''Tunnel Engineers'' Or maybe "Dwarf Simulator 2018" you know.... ^^ And by the way.... That is completly mad. I never expected that something like this would be possible someday in SE..

[@Splitsie]

I do have quite the dwarven tendencies in this series, that's why I'm forcing us to be mobile in the co op series - ensures we remain above ground as much as possible :)

[@blackshirt29]

Way too late for this build, but if you add wheels that grip the underside of the lower rail (like modern roller-coaster designs) couldn't you then completely eliminate the upper rail completely? ... or conversely hang the tram and eliminate the lower one? - Not feasable here with how you designed the upper rails but likely possible if you made a system where the elevation and curves were done on the upper rail instead of the lower as done here.

[@Splitsie]

You can certainly do it that way, it's not quite as stable since the wheels aren't completely rigid and you're applying all the force across a small area though. Either way though, I liked the idea of the roof and floor tracks after seeing Rivvion's build with a similar design :)