Anyone use trucks and stations to deliver coal

[Frost]

Just curious if anyone has success using trucks and truck stations with autopilot to deliver coal to coal generators. I heard several people say to just belt the coal over but I'm curious how well trucks would work out - are they just too buggy or something right now?

Edit: Well I've set up two routes now using trucks and they work fine. Only once so far a truck stopped acting like it was out of fuel, but both of my stations in its round trip had fuel and get fed fuel, so not sure what that was all about. I felt better doing that than having a belt.

[The Big Brzezinski]

Yes, constantly. I'll use a belt for vertical traversal, but vehicles are the way to go for any kind of overland shipping.

[Taco Cat]

Just build the coal generators next to the coal node :c

[The Big Brzezinski]

Originally posted by Mr Treffnix:

Just build the coal generators next to the coal node :c

Can't truck water.

[phillip_lynx]

Originally posted by The Big Brzezinski:

Originally posted by Mr Treffnix:

Just build the coal generators next to the coal node :c

Can't truck water.

Iirc, later you can :)

[The Big Brzezinski]

Well, you can either setup packagers on either end with mk.4 belts and a supply of empty canisters, or you just ship the coal and use pipes instead. Since generator placement doesn't matter as far as the power grid is concerned, you might as well keep your logistics as simple and painless as possible.

[Taco Cat]

Originally posted by The Big Brzezinski:

Originally posted by Mr Treffnix:

Just build the coal generators next to the coal node :c

Can't truck water.

But Pipe it. I rather set up a pipe once than check on a truck.

[Deejudanne]

Originally posted by The Big Brzezinski:

Originally posted by Mr Treffnix:

Just build the coal generators next to the coal node :c

Can't truck water.

you'll be able to later on ;) and get that alternative package blueprint as it wont need plastic

[The Big Brzezinski]

Originally posted by Deeju⁧⁧danne:

Originally posted by The Big Brzezinski:

Can't truck water.

you'll be able to later on ;) and get that alternative package blueprint as it wont need plastic

Well the plastic wouldn't matter because you'd haul the empty containers back on the return trip.

Or you can just get two unlocks into phase 2, can run coal tractors to a big water source. They work pretty much bug free now.

[Ducky]

Originally posted by Frost:

Just curious if anyone has success using trucks and truck stations with autopilot to deliver coal to coal generators. I heard several people say to just belt the coal over but I'm curious how well trucks would work out - are they just too buggy or something right now?

I've used the tractor as my first bring-coal-to-water/factory transport and have had no negative experiences.
The route is being driven reliably by the autopilot and transport volume was more than what I needed (had to set a 5 min pause at a station to avoid rounds with full inventory).
I've made one observation where the tractor just came into view and was driving slightly off course (probably bcse of simplified physics outside view), then it turned around to the previous waypoint and continued without problems, never got stuck or missing.

[Deejudanne]

Originally posted by The Big Brzezinski:

Originally posted by Deeju⁧⁧danne:

you'll be able to later on ;) and get that alternative package blueprint as it wont need plastic

Well the plastic wouldn't matter because you'd haul the empty containers back on the return trip.

Or you can just get two unlocks into phase 2, can run coal tractors to a big water source. They work pretty much bug free now.

well i was thinking about the packager for water containers idk this game burns my brain but its addicting

[SpaceWombat]

I don't transfer coal manually since the generators consume a LOT just to generate a passable amount of energy. By doing that you're essentially just turning coal power into a less efficient version of bioreactors since the burn rate is constant.

By the time you get to mk.3 belts you can essentially power 18 coal generators per overclocked coal node ( double that for mk.4 which is quickly aquired after phase 2 elevator ). This means that those 18 generators are gonna be consuming 2.7 stacks of coal per minute. varying with your trucks inventory and yours you'll be buying yourself 35-50 minutes of power per trip... and only be generating 1350MW. It's one way to do it, but i'd rather be working on other stuff than doing that early game.
The only scenario where driving coal makes sense is if you have a specific spot where you are making compacted coal.

Don't worry, you won't necessarily need to convey and pipe resources everywhere the whole playthrough. By tier 6 you'll have access to trains which will make cross-map production actually viable.

[syro]

personally i find vehicles too unreliable and clunky to use or something so essential. i build my coal generators within belt range of the nodes.

[Shagar]

It's either trains, drone later on or pipe/belts.
Any wheels vehicules are unreliable and you'll just waist hours trying to figure out where it has stuck itself.
The only vehicule i use is the Factory cart to cancel fall dmg without having to use parachute.
It also don't need any fuel to let you travel at decent speed within your factory.

[DrNewcenstein]

Originally posted by The Big Brzezinski:

Originally posted by Mr Treffnix:

Just build the coal generators next to the coal node :c

Can't truck water.

Depending on which part of the map you are, water and coal should be close enough to see one from the other. If you're in the Blue Crater, pave the lake, build your generators on it, belt the coal over the ridge, and your water extractors will be level with the generators.

If you're in the Dune Desert, up near the NorthEast corner, there should be water at the bottom of the cliff, and world-ending waterfalls. Pave the coastline, belt the coal down the cliff to the generators. You always want the generators closer to water. Do not move water except by rail, and dedicate that train to just that job.
Pipe dynamics fail in this game. You will find a flat empty pipe surrounded by flat full pipes, and no logical explanation why the one in the middle is empty on a level piece of ground.
Set up a simple train loop to collect water, drop it off, then circle around for more. Use the big water tanks at the offload station. I'd actually suggest 2 of them, since the unload cycle causes outflow to stop until the cycle completes.

[Man's Best Friend]

Originally posted by Shagar:

It's either trains, drone later on or pipe/belts.
Any wheels vehicules are unreliable and you'll just waist hours trying to figure out where it has stuck itself.
The only vehicule i use is the Factory cart to cancel fall dmg without having to use parachute.
It also don't need any fuel to let you travel at decent speed within your factory.

I've used plenty of automated trucks to haul all sorts of things around. Literally never had them stall for anything other than that one time they changed vehicle pathing in an update. And that got fixed pretty quick.
Things I've seen them recover from all on their own:
Crashing into a tree.
Crashing into a power pole.
Crashing into the vehicle I'm driving.
Driving off a cliff.
Being rammed off a cliff into the abyss by me.
Being flung across the landscape by forces unknown.

And all that included 4 trucks all delivering to the same station. I'd actually see the trucks queueing up waiting for the one in front to finish unloading.