Best Strategy for Fuel Scoop

[Darth_Lopez]

So I'm finding different ships tolerate different proximities to the the star better than others. It seems the less massive you are for my ships the better off you are. My Anaconda can never get close enough to really use the fuel scoop I have installed at maximum capcity at most I get about 4/5ths of its total skimming power. (For reference I have a 4C). Where as my little DBX can get insanely close to a star that its maxed out its comparatively much smaller Scoop rate in literally seconds of approach.

Are there fuel scoops that simply work better on some ships than others or am I missing a stat on the scoops? Or is there a golden formula for selecting the "optimal" fuel scoop?

[<Caeris↝]

Fuel scooping

• Depends on the size.
  
  
• Depends on the grade.
  
  
• Closer you get to the star as more you can recieve.
  
  
• O, B, A, F, G, K, M stars can be scooped.
  
  
• Heat depends on which ship you fly, how close you´re to the star and how good your cooling is.
  Ex. Power Plant Grade A + Low Emissions G5 + Thermal Spread overheats much slower than an Power Plant Grade E + Overcharged G5.

[malorob]

My anaconda digs in deep gets max fuel scoop of 7A 1245kg/s between 65 to 69 anything over 70 degrees and it starts to smoke
but no need to stay long as at its max it will re fuel tank with in seconds.

most ships will reach 300 degrees before they take damage.
carry a heat sink if you are worried about heat.

i am yet to try out the 8A fuel scoop mainly because it costs too much for my bank atm

[ElvisDeadly]

I always just fit the largest class A scoop the ship can accomodate.

Then unless it's a really long journey I don't even have to think about it, you collect enough fuel as you just loop past the star to align for the next jump that it will take a long time to run low.

As far as proximity to the star that just takes practise. You need to get used to the size of the ship and how hot it runs, some are easier than others, as you've already noticed the DBX's small size combined with it's very good heat management make it easy, try the same stuff in a Type 7 and you will cook yourself.

[malorob]

Originally posted by ElvisDeadly:

I always just fit the largest class A scoop the ship can accomodate.

Then unless it's a really long journey I don't even have to think about it, you collect enough fuel as you just loop past the star to align for the next jump that it will take a long time to run low.

As far as proximity to the star that just takes practise. You need to get used to the size of the ship and how hot it runs, some are easier than others, as you've already noticed the DBX's small size combined with it's very good heat management make it easy, try the same stuff in a Type 7 and you will cook yourself.

I took a T7 around the Galaxy and i will say yes ran a bit hotter than the average ship but never needed to use the amfu once

[fenke]

Ships are different, a Dolphin for example can dive in deep and get the maximum transfer with ease, and then jump to the next star without bothering to cool down.

[Heimdall313]

Originally posted by malorob:

My anaconda digs in deep gets max fuel scoop of 7A 1245kg/s between 65 to 69 anything over 70 degrees and it starts to smoke
but no need to stay long as at its max it will re fuel tank with in seconds.

most ships will reach 300 degrees before they take damage.
carry a heat sink if you are worried about heat.

i am yet to try out the 8A fuel scoop mainly because it costs too much for my bank atm

You'll also burn alive trying to scoop lol. Type 9 is bad on heat. Not as bad as the Type 7 (I think only the Hauler is worse on heat than Type 7), but pretty bad. Cheapest option for a size 8 slot.
Cutter is pretty good on heat, but obviously the most expensive option.
Type 10 is cheaper than Cutter, surprisingly good jump range, and is one of the best ships in the game at handling heat - its not the DBS or Dolphin but its better than any Large or Medium ship. Try it with a Low Emissions power plant and it might shock you.

[Heimdall313]

OP the issue you have is the Anaconda handles pretty meh in Supercruise, you have to throttle down below blue to get the correct angle on entry to get max fuel scoop, its entirely proximity to star. The DBX handles much better in SC by comparison, so you can get in optimal zone with a higher throttle. DBS and Dolphin handle fantastic in SC and are incredible at handling heat.

Scoops, try to get a max sized, A-rated one, for max fuel per second. Its especially important in DBX since the fuel tank (size 5, 32 tons) is twice as big as its largest optional slot (size 4). ASPX and Phantom have oversized options (Size 6 scoop feeding a Size 5 fuel tank) for very fast refuel, and Anaconda has a comical Size 7 scoop feeding a Size 5 tank (which honestly needs to be a Size 6 tank, or run an extra Size 5 fuel tank in optionals). Beluga can explore too, but its massive Size 7 (128 ton) fuel tank is a horror to fill with a 6A scoop, would actually recommend downsizing tank to Size 6 (64 ton).

The "golden formula" you want is a pretty simple rule of thumb: Matching sizes of Scoop (assuming grade A) and Tank (size 5 feeding size 5 tank for example) refuels at an average pace. Undersized scoops (Size 4 feeding size 5 tank) is slooow, and oversized scoops (6 feeding 5) is a real quick refuel. Again, rule of thumb, exceptions exist, but its generally true.
There's no such thing as too big for fuel scoops.

[Yuki]

There are several strategies, several valid!
For starters: Heat:
The larger your ship the more heat it can "tank".
The more heat you have the more your ship will dissipate, up to when it reaches 66%. From there you just get rid of the same flat amount of heat per time.
-> You stay at 66 or lower you wont overheat. 67? You generate more than you can dissipate, if maybe just a tiny ammount but- you will overheat in time.

The DBX now has a "hidden feature" in such that it can tank a lot more heat than a ship of its size can usually do. Dolphin too.

Heat is generated by modules running. Some modules do directly, e.g thrusters and FSD or weapons while being used. Others indirectly by the main power plant. Imagine that every MW you use generates one heat. Now different powerplants run cooler. An A-grade will make that x 0.4. So for every MW you only gain 0.4 heat. It can be engineered further even below 0.2. For once- lower is better. Take an A-grade plant, potentially even of a lower size if thats enough. The grade matters. And deactivate what you do not need. Need that planetary vehicle hangar all the time? Mine is usually offline until i land. Means i can get away with a smaller powerplant too.

Every ship uses a certain ammount of fuel per LY. A DBX will no matter how you fit it use less than your much more heavy anaconda. As a result people usually measure scooping in "seconds of max scoop per max range jump". And here- scooping is actually the downside of the DBX, its sloooooooooow compared to its exploration-peers. An AspX can get double as fast for instance. Certain fitting tools have that calculation, eg. edsy. Or just follow what Heimdall wrote ;)
The calculation is a bit scewed because some ships also have less "troubles" reaching a max scooping zone (e.g. DBX), or dont even need to go that deep in most cases (e.g. Phantom, AspX)- or re so cool they can initiate the FSD while they are still in the scooping zone (DBX, Phantom, Dolphin)

For many the strategy is just scoop while you align to the next star.
If you are traveling that is about the one strategy. Traveling in a straight path usually means you will need to "fly around the star" anyways. Yes, directions matter and following a straight line of stars makes it so.
And this is where the DBX falls short: It needs to get in deeper than for example a travel fit AspX. Which can also be made to run so cool it can activate its FSD while still scooping. Which...the DBX can do too. That kind of makes the comparison to ships that would want to leave the corona before jumping a bit difficult.

But there is another strategy if you explore, hence scan a system:
You can also just slow down while scooping. A common strategy with a DBX or even slower scoopers is to "sit in the corona" while you FSS scan the system (remember the 66% rule). Slower scooping is less of an issue of you do it while you do something else anyways. It does require either a very cool ship or even scooping at less than max, again less of an issue while you do something else anyhow. You just sit as deep in as the heat management of your ship allows.

Dip-diving is also a possibility. Some ships run hot, but can scoop fast. As long as you dont overheat you wont take damage. So get in, get in low, but plan your path and speed in such a way you leave the star full and before you reach 90%. Needs practise but as a rule of thump: Overheating a "bit" is not a death sentence. Take your time for testing.
The iEagle and Alliance Chieftain are ships that can fit an adequately large scoop but often run relatively hot. Different stars will need different paths and speeds, but they can scoop insanely fast if done right. Too fast to overheat.

[Sighman]

I stop my ship in the scooping zone, with temp not rising above 75%, and that's when I scan the system.

Sometimes the star blocks a few planets, but I just move further out once the tank is full.

Specifically talking about the DBX, which has a slightly undersized scoop and takes a little longer than the phantom or AspX.

[Heimdall313]

Originally posted by Sighman:

I stop my ship in the scooping zone, with temp not rising above 75%, and that's when I scan the system.

Sometimes the star blocks a few planets, but I just move further out once the tank is full.

Specifically talking about the DBX, which has a slightly undersized scoop and takes a little longer than the phantom or AspX.

each class size is exponential (2^(class size)) so the scoop in a DBX is half the size of its fuel tank; 4A is made to feed a size 4 tank. ASPX/Phantom, a Size 6 scoop is intended to feed a Size 6 tank - double the fuel. ASPX/Phantom is a complete refuel in ~32 secs, DBX takes over 90 seconds on a complete refuel. I'm not sure I'd call it a "slight" difference lol
I scoop every jump as possible to top off the tank but a DBX is fortunately able to just park in scooping zone, ASPX is uh, not great on heat. It doesn't overheat unless you jump in scoop range but DBX/Phantom/Dolphin are way better about it.

[Yuki]

AspX can as well jump from scoop- just about as good as a DBX. However you usually do have more things with you than in that tiny DBX. If those are offline - not that much of a difference. Less when you engineer the powerplant. Even less difference given that an AspX doesnt have to go in as deep as a DBX. A travel fit AspX is thereby even more likely to do so than a DBX, which usually makes it way faster for traveling too. (Anaconda as well thereby)
And Phantom then is even better with the heat, but it has more of a difference in jump range usually.

[Darth_Lopez]

Originally posted by Sighman:

I stop my ship in the scooping zone, with temp not rising above 75%, and that's when I scan the system.

Sometimes the star blocks a few planets, but I just move further out once the tank is full.

Specifically talking about the DBX, which has a slightly undersized scoop and takes a little longer than the phantom or AspX.

It's more my conda that is providing the issue. I got it fine in literally any of my other ships: DBX, Krait Mk II, Mamba, ASPX . Never have the issue. But it seems like if I try to get max scoop on my 'Conda it goes south very quickly. :/ I have been getting better at angling I guess? last night I had a few stops where it didn't exceed 65% but I was getting approximately 200 per second. Which is fine.

Edit: I think folks have fixated on my DBX whihc for me is completely fine. I can park almost anywhere in the zone on a star and its totally fine. It is my Anaconda that I am having issues with.

[Darth_Lopez]

Originally posted by Heimdall313:

OP the issue you have is the Anaconda handles pretty meh in Supercruise, you have to throttle down below blue to get the correct angle on entry to get max fuel scoop, its entirely proximity to star. The DBX handles much better in SC by comparison, so you can get in optimal zone with a higher throttle. DBS and Dolphin handle fantastic in SC and are incredible at handling heat.

Scoops, try to get a max sized, A-rated one, for max fuel per second. Its especially important in DBX since the fuel tank (size 5, 32 tons) is twice as big as its largest optional slot (size 4). ASPX and Phantom have oversized options (Size 6 scoop feeding a Size 5 fuel tank) for very fast refuel, and Anaconda has a comical Size 7 scoop feeding a Size 5 tank (which honestly needs to be a Size 6 tank, or run an extra Size 5 fuel tank in optionals). Beluga can explore too, but its massive Size 7 (128 ton) fuel tank is a horror to fill with a 6A scoop, would actually recommend downsizing tank to Size 6 (64 ton).

The "golden formula" you want is a pretty simple rule of thumb: Matching sizes of Scoop (assuming grade A) and Tank (size 5 feeding size 5 tank for example) refuels at an average pace. Undersized scoops (Size 4 feeding size 5 tank) is slooow, and oversized scoops (6 feeding 5) is a real quick refuel. Again, rule of thumb, exceptions exist, but its generally true.
There's no such thing as too big for fuel scoops.

So basically: Will the grade allow for faster collection at a distance? Is that what we're saying here >.> Because I'm using a 4 I think to fuel a 5. And Time for me is not an issue. I kinda like being able to just Chill out in a star and collect fuel while I do other things until the game give sme the "OK you can jump now" and I'm like "kthx by" to a star. I'm just trying to get my conda into the specified zone to ignore the issue >.> Because right now its just like chronically overheating.

[Heimdall313]

Originally posted by Darth_Lopez:

Originally posted by Heimdall313:

OP the issue you have is the Anaconda handles pretty meh in Supercruise, you have to throttle down below blue to get the correct angle on entry to get max fuel scoop, its entirely proximity to star. The DBX handles much better in SC by comparison, so you can get in optimal zone with a higher throttle. DBS and Dolphin handle fantastic in SC and are incredible at handling heat.

Scoops, try to get a max sized, A-rated one, for max fuel per second. Its especially important in DBX since the fuel tank (size 5, 32 tons) is twice as big as its largest optional slot (size 4). ASPX and Phantom have oversized options (Size 6 scoop feeding a Size 5 fuel tank) for very fast refuel, and Anaconda has a comical Size 7 scoop feeding a Size 5 tank (which honestly needs to be a Size 6 tank, or run an extra Size 5 fuel tank in optionals). Beluga can explore too, but its massive Size 7 (128 ton) fuel tank is a horror to fill with a 6A scoop, would actually recommend downsizing tank to Size 6 (64 ton).

The "golden formula" you want is a pretty simple rule of thumb: Matching sizes of Scoop (assuming grade A) and Tank (size 5 feeding size 5 tank for example) refuels at an average pace. Undersized scoops (Size 4 feeding size 5 tank) is slooow, and oversized scoops (6 feeding 5) is a real quick refuel. Again, rule of thumb, exceptions exist, but its generally true.
There's no such thing as too big for fuel scoops.

So basically: Will the grade allow for faster collection at a distance? Is that what we're saying here >.> Because I'm using a 4 I think to fuel a 5. And Time for me is not an issue. I kinda like being able to just Chill out in a star and collect fuel while I do other things until the game give sme the "OK you can jump now" and I'm like "kthx by" to a star. I'm just trying to get my conda into the specified zone to ignore the issue >.> Because right now its just like chronically overheating.

Scoops have a "Class" and a "Grade". a 6A scoop is Class 6 (the size of internal optional slot it goes into), and Grade A (A is best, E is worst).
Higher class scoops more than lower class (4C is better than 3C, etc), higher grade within the same class scoops more (5A scoops more than 5C).

Anaconda, the absolute best you can use is a 7A, but those are really expensive. 6A is entirely fine. Using a Size 4A scoop to feed a size 5 (32 ton) fuel tank takes about 90 seconds from empty to full - using a 6A to feed the same tank is about 32 seconds. Huge difference. You'll spend less time in the heat.

Overheating, is usually the power plant. Anaconda is pretty good on heat, but wants a Grade A power plant: 5A, 6A, the smallest you can run and keep everything online. Smaller class = less weight = longer jump :P
The Power Plant Grade dictates how efficient it is at dissipating heat - a 6C power plant will overheat faster than a 6A power plant. Some of it depends on the ship itself (Type 7 basically always overheats, a DBX or Dolphin is actually hard to overheat on purpose) but a Grade A plant will help a lot. If you have Engineering, Low Emissions will run a lot cooler than stock plants, but it reduces power. Thermal Spread experimental, you always want on a ship unless you NEED monstered for a small power boost.

edit: simple answer, tl;dr:
yes a better grade (A) will collect more fuel at a distance than the same size grade C scoop. Its just more expensive.

[HughJardon]

If you want to stop to scoop because your tank needs filling up, you just approach the star slowly until the temperature reaches 65 deg. At that temperature or any below, it will stay constant and no overheating will occur. If you stop at 66 deg or any temperature above, the temperature will rise constantly until you get overheating.

Everything else depends on the ship and its load-out, but that rule is consistent regardless of those things.

To stop at 65 deg you have to anticipate run-on because it takes time to slow down to a stop, so stop at a lower temp, then nudge your ship forward until you get to 64 deg or 65 deg, Some ships are more sensitive than others,

If you're just looking to top up your tank without slowing down, just fly round the star until your tank is full or until the heat reaches 80% - whichever happens first. If you reach 80%, immediately turn away from the star at full throttle until the scoop goes away, then engage FSD and turn towards your next target system.