That is a big, complicated ship. Power generator, two radiation things, a class two reactor with 3 thrusters... this one is going to take a while.
Looking forward to hitting it tomorrow. First time dealing with radiation, so, that'll be.... a thing.
Posted Nov 22, 2023, 7:49 AM UTC
Just watch out when you're hitting the cut-points during the un-sheath. The Gecko has everything all lined up, so while it's possible to be a super cool pro and hit like 8 of them at once, it's also possible to hit the fuel or coolant canisters at the front/back or decompress the aluminum inner hull.
I'll actually tether the stern pieces to the back of the bay to expose the thrusters. After everything is dealt with, you can marshal them into the processor more easily. Sometimes, if the ship is real agreeable and you're clever, you can dunk the reactor with the thrusters or ECU still attached, and you don't have to deal with the meltdown timer at all. There's lots to think about with these, but once you learn 'em, you can be getting all the salvage goals in 2 shifts, but it'll probably take 3 or 4 shifts the first few times.
Ugh I'm at like 8 rn and still have more to go
8 is...a lot. Maybe it's a little more sensible if you're picking out a station hopper. No wonder y'all want to form a union! You get through your debt a lot faster making $11million a shift than you do making onesies and twosies. The trick isn't just to do the steps faster, but it's to find ways to do fewer steps.
I'm not really sure where you're at or what your motivations are. I tried hard to kinda role-play and think about what I would want to be doing if I was working this job. Once I realized there are no consequences for wasted salvage and that the company is treating me like an independent contractor, I decided to optimize for my income over time and that I don't give one floating turd about how the company wants me to salvage every lightbulb. I spent a lot of time looking at the salvage report to figure out what was worthwhile and what wasn't.
So that means, I don't touch lights, at all. They aren't worth the time that they take. Most aluminum parts aren't worth it, either, and that's where we get the art of the "dunk." Swallow your morals and just take a big section of aluminum and throw it into the barge, computers and all. You make all the money for the computers, lights, chairs, etc at the cost of not being able to salvage the aluminum AND you don't have to wait for each piece to detach.
The other thing is to have a plan! I get out in that bay and I HUSTLE. On a Gecko, I fly over the top, strip off whatever antennas are there and cut a hole with the splitsaw, then tether the aft portions to the 88 on the back wall. Then I go inside and make two laps, one on port, the other on starboard, to hit all the cut points holding the nanocarbon on, making sure I get the entire aft section detached before focusing on the nose area.
Then I fly around the whole ship, tethering nanocarbon to the processor. Once it's hooked up, I don't watch it, I just keep moving. Next is the reactor - if I can keep the ECU or thrusters attached and just tether the whole assembly into the bay, all the better. Sometimes I have to cut a ring around the ECU or I have to burn out some brackets holding in the reactor, but it's way faster than doing what Weaver teaches you.
And that's about as far as I get in one shift. Second shift, I go out there and cut the aluminum inner hull into segments weighing 5-10,000lbs each and dunk them into the barge. I do detail the radiation filters and separate those pieces for the processor because they make the aluminum segments too heavy to move, otherwise. If I have time, I might detail some easy areas, maybe cut a hole in the floor so it's easy for me to get things into the barge, but mostly the aluminum is pretty worthless.
Hopefully that helps you cut down your times, but if you're dedicated to "using the whole buffalo" then it's going to take you lots of shifts, yeah.
A decent cutter should be able to do a cargo gecko over 99% in two shifts. The best can do one shift but I ain't that good, just an average cutter with 3 1/2 years in the job.
I agree with pulling the back pieces to the back wall to get them out of the way. The trick is then when the bay is empty to tether the big corner pieces to the opposite side processor (left side nano stern piece to right side processor) so it doesn't accidentally get sucked into the furnace.
The biggest challenge for me when it comes to Geckos is decompression. It’s a huge ship with multiple compartments. It can be a real puzzle where to start. And if you decompress too much at once, it’s likely to cause a lot of trouble, do a lot of damage to the contents, kill you, or any or all of the above.
What I do for simplicity’s sake is to go through the ship and rip out and salvage all Atmospheric Regulators that I find. I also close doors and seal each compartment until I end up in the one where I’m going to start to decompress the entire ship. I decompress one compartment at a time to limit the danger.
Aside from that, Geckos are big projects you can just wonderfully lose yourself in. Have fun.
When salvaging the (class 2) reactor, sometimes it is just simpler to cut loose the thrusters first, and then once you have a clear path from the reactor to the barge, cut the coolant line with the split saw, without running all the way to the ECU and back.
Keep any coolant cans you find handy in case you don't one of the rad filters. The coolant will nullify the particle field that is produced by a damaged filter of you burst it open in the field.
Looks like you've got a real challenge ahead with that Hazard 8 Gecko. Radiation and thrusters are no joke. Tethering the stern pieces sounds like a solid plan to expose the thrusters. Good luck with the reactor and ECU maneuver, sounds like a real game-changer once you get the hang of it.
yo, that Gecko is a beast. power generator, two radiation modules, class two reactor with 3 thrusters... gonna be a grind. first time with radiation, so that's gonna be something.
I think we worked on different geckos… mine was just a passenger hauler. Barely missed my salvage 9 goal
Mine was a passenger hauler as well, you don't unlock the other versions until later. I'm on the open shift mode, so, missing goals isn't usually a problem for me
Just remember, cutter, radiations a bit touchy...
Dont knock it on anything, or it's going to put out a nasty cloud of radioactive particles. Those really dont like fire.
As for the gecko itself, the first few can be tricky, but it's just a ship like any other. Just take your time. If you start to rush, that's when things will start getting a little dodgy on ya.
An old cutter proverb to go by is just "Do things by the numbers".
Alright, I'll leave you too it.
Thanks, Weaver.