Overview
How to make planes that not only fly well but also look good. What to do, how to do it and what not to do.
The Preparations
What you need to have before starting:
First of all working wings (I recommend Wings mod or Scoob’s Wings)
Without wings you can’t make a plane, that’s pretty simple. There are thruster based ”planes” but they’re just thrustersticks shaped like planes. You could use Modpack wings alone, but they don’t look good (unless you’re going for some really specific aesthetic) and it will be more complicated.
In terms of controls I recommend: The Modpack for number logic, it’s very useful, especially in planes.
I will briefly show how to make controls without number logic, but they perform much worse than number logic.
And In terms of aesthetics, I recommend:
The Modpack Polygons, so your fuselage will look ok.
The Modpack Polygons Glass for making windshields, block windshields look really bad.
This is all you need to make a basic plane that will fly well and look good.
I recommend adding other mods, but they aren’t necessary. Do NOT add mods just for one unnecessary, super specific part. Planes should have below 10 mods, more that that is excessive.
The Basics
Now that you got tools to work with, you need to know what you want to make with them.
You probably want a plane to just fly around the map with, nothing complicated.
There are many designs that can fit this function. I recommend taking some inspiration from real life planes and concepts.
A standard thruster powered monoplane without any special features should be the easiest to make.
Controls
Controls are very important but also very subjective (for example some people prefer inverted pitch over normal). I’ll show you a few most common ways to control your plane.
Number logic and smart engines, definitely the best way to control your planes.
Here’s a good tutorial on how to make it.
+ Precise
+ Very customizable and adjustable
– Takes more space
– Requires more skill to make
Alternative control types if you really don’t like number logic for some reason:
If you’re lazy or you don’t have space, you can use WASD converter mod.
Electric engine controls
+The simplest to make
+Takes the least space
-Doesn’t go back when you stop the input
-Can rotate too much if you aren’t careful
+Simple to make
+Adjustable
+Won’t oversteer like electric engine controls
-Locks in extended position with W and S
-Slow
-Requires more bearings and space
For pitch, use elevators, typically located on the tail of the plane, you can also use canards, flaps or even move your entire wings.
For roll, use ailerons, typically lotated on the wingtips.
For yaw, use a rudder, typically located on the tail of the plane.
There are two main designs of control surfaces, both work just as well as each other.
Tips:
I highly recommend connecting roll bearings directly to the seat. Works well and you don’t need any logic.
Set controls to be comfortable for you, it’s very subjective.
Yaw is not necessary, it’s a good addition but it’s not required for the plane to work well.
I also highly recommend using invisible bearings from The Modpack instead of normal ones. They don’t stick out and you don’t need to paint them.
What NOT to do:
Don’t use glitch controls, they’re arguably even more lame than thruster controls.
Don’t use thrusters specifically for pitch, roll or yaw. It’s just bad. Looks awful, it’s unrealistic and takes more space. If you want thruster controls, go bulid a thrusterstick.
Propulsion
There are two main kinds of propulsion, both have advantages and disadvantages.
The difference between them is similar to the difference between gas engines and electric engines.
Thrusters:
+Much smaller size
+Different speeds without changing power
-Slower acceleration
-Noise and fire
Propellers:
+Almost instant acceleration
+Consistent speed
-Big size
-Hard to balance planes with odd number of propellers because of torque
Tips:
You can put thrusters/props on your wings and/or control surfaces, this will make them a lot stronger if done correctly.
Use smart engines to rotate propellers, it will make them completely silent and you will be able to adjust the speed however you want.
Use light materials, you’ll need less power to move around.
What NOT to do:
Don’t spam thrusters or propellers. All you need is 1-3 of them.
Don’t use fake propellers (thrusters that look like propellers). It’s lame and lazy. If you want propellers, use actual propellers, if you want thrusters, use normal thrusters.
Stability
Stability depends mainly on 3 things and relation they have with each other:
Center of mass
-Mostly depends on overall shape of the plane and weight of parts used, remember that wings add mass too.
Center of lift
-Mostly depends on shape of the wings and other horizontal wing parts.
Center of thrust
-Mostly depends on placement of thrusters/propellers
If you want a stable plane, you have to balance these three centers.
Center of mass and center of lift should be very close together, center of thrust should be in line with the center of mass.
What will happen if there are not balanced properly? Well, it depends on how hard and in what way you screw up.
Pitch stability:
If center of thrust is too low or center of lift is in front of center of mass, the plane will pitch up by itself.
If center of thrust is too high or center of mass is in front of the center of lift, the plane will pitch down by itself.
Roll stability:
There are 3 types:
Unstable: Plane will continue to roll by itself after input stops.
To achieve this put your wings on bearing and angle them down, bigger the angle, stronger it will be.
Neutral: Plane will stay at the same angle after input stops.
To achieve this, just have wings straight horizontally.
Stable: Plane will go back to horizontal position by itslef after input stops.
To acheve this, put your wings on bearings and angle them up, bigger the angle, stronger it will be.
Yaw stability:
Just have a big rudder surface if you want better stability
Stability on the ground:
Closer the gear legs are to each other, the less stable it will be.
Tips:
Neutral roll is usually better for smaller and more maneuverable planes, while stable roll can be better for big planes.
Small wings will usually be less stable than bigger wings.
Big wing surface will provide more lift, usually helping with gliding and low speed maneuvers.
Not all planes need wheels. You can have skis or floaties instead.
Hide your gear properly, it can be visible, it just needs to go well with the shape of the plane.
If you really don’t have any space for wheels to go it, you can make detachable gear, still better than solid gear. No wheels is better than having wheels that stick out.
What NOT to do:
Gear should hide inside the fuselage. Gear that doesn’t retract or still sticks out when retracted is bad, unless you’re going for WW1 aesthetic.
Shapes
Looks are important, performance is too but good mechanics can have both in the same creation.
The most important thing is using slopes and wedges.
You’re making a plane, not a voxelart.
Fuselage shouldn’t be a box or a barrel.
Nose and tail should be thinner than the center.
Tips:
Paint.
Your.
Creations.
Experiment with weird shapes once in a while, it might turn out nice.
What NOT to do:
Don’t spam parts like an idiot.
Don’t make a bus.
Don’t make a sasuage.
Finishing touches
Calibrate it to perfection, add some markings and maybe a duck or two and you’re done!
If you followed my tips your plane should both work and look nice. You don’t need to follow every single one, if you have good reasons for it.
After years of playing this game I decided to share some knowledge, hopefully there will be less litter and more cool stuff on the workshop.
I really hope this helped someone.
Still need help or want me to clarify something? Just ask. If you need some already bulit planes that you can experiment on I can provide a few.
Got any feedback? I would love to see it, it’s my first guide of this kind and I spent quite a while making it.
Sorry in advance for any typos, I checked a few times but I most likely missed something.