| Grinder | |
|---|---|
| |
| Category: | Functional Block |
| Status: | Functional |
| Function: | |
| Dismantles blocks and retrieves their components | |
| Fits small ship | |
| Mass: | 513.4 kg |
| Capacity: | 3,375 L |
| Power: | -2 kW |
| Range: | 1.5 m |
| Fits large ship and station | |
| Mass: | 777.4 kg |
| Capacity: | 15,625 L |
| Power: | -2 kW |
| Range: | 2 m |
| Data Controls: | [edit] [purge] (?) |
Grinder Block is a massive, ship-mounted version of the handheld Grinder used to dismantle blocks and salvage components from wrecks. It is available for both large and small ships.
Grinders are helpful ship tools in Survival Mode where Grinder and Welder Blocks are often built together on salvage ships or on RC repair drones. They are redundant in Creative Mode.
- Warning: When active, the grinder blades are lethal to players in Survival Mode!
Usage[]
The Grinder Block is used to speedily and efficiently salvage ships and bases in survival scenarios, which would take much longer to do by hand. While the speed is the same as a handheld grinder, the Grinder Block can grind multiple blocks at once because it has a larger area of effect.
Consider the following before use:
- A Grinder Block does not have any effect on voxels, ores, or ingots.
- A Grinder Block does not disassemble nor pick up free-floating items. Use a Collector for that.
- Exception: If you grind a container full of items, the grinder first picks up the contents from inside, and then the components of the container.
- As of 9/5/14, Grinder Blocks will not grind their own grid, however, Grinder Blocks attached by a piston or rotor are not considered the same grid and the subgrid may be affected.
You activate a Grinder Block from the cockpit through the grid's Control Panel Screen. If you need to switch it on and off often (e.g. in a repair ship), assign its functions to action keys on the ship's toolbar.
For immersion in a station, you can assign the Grinder Pit de/activation to a Button Panel.
To comply with Operational Health and Safety laws, be advised to install a Sensor and configure it to activate only when grids are in the area of effect, and deactivate when players are near.
Construction[]
The Grinder Block exists for large and small grid. It's quite unwieldy as it takes up 2x1x1 blocks space on large ships and 6x3x3 blocks space on small ships. It attaches to other blocks on the five sides of its cubic back half.
It has a large conveyor port on the backside and it has a small inventory. Optimally, you connect it to a conveyor system or cargo containers to store the salvage.
Leave space in front and next to the Grinder Block for the area of effect. The Grinder Block's range is 3 small blocks on small ships, and 4 small blocks on a large ship. Range is spherical and centered roughly at the center of the grinder blades.
Engineers typically engage multiple grinders to dismantle large wrecks quickly -- but on multiplayer servers, be aware of PCU limits prohibiting that.
Grinder Usage Ideas[]
A player-controlled repair ship with both Welder and Grinder.
- A salvage ship with multiple Grinder Blocks
- A repair drone with a mix of Grinder Blocks and Welder Blocks
- A grinder pit (see below) on a base
- An articulated salvage crane in a wreck yard or on a wrecker's large-grid truck.
All of these example builds need to be conveyored to cargo containers.
Tip: On small grids, to be able to transfer all salvaged components, use 3x3 Hinges and Advanced Rotors, and do not use small-grid pistons nor Small Conveyors.
Grinder Pit[]
A Grinder Pit is a room full of Grinder Blocks whose areas of effect overlap, typically with a large opening on top. You throw wrecks and cargo drops in the pit to have them dismantled automatically.
Instead of dropping the wrecks, you can also hold them in place using landing gear on pistons, and push the wreck into the Grinder Pit in a more controlled fashion, similar in structure to a 3D Printer, but opposite in function.
When dismantling mobile grids, be prepared for loose blocks being ejected from the grinder pit, or parts drifting off in low gravity and crashing into your ship. Wrecks of mobile grids no longer stabilise themselves and are affected by physical forces that can damage other grids.
Wreck pieces ejecting and damaging your salvage ship are no issue when grinding down static (!) stations using a grinder ship. One of the World Settings determines whether unsupported parts of stations will drift away or remain static.
Damage[]
When active, the area of effect of the grinder blades is lethal to players in Survival Mode.
Similar to 
Landing Gear and Wheels, the Grinder is resistant to damage from collisions. Assuming one approaches the wreck at reasonable speeds, there should be little danger of harming the Grinder during normal use.
Power usage[]
The Grinder uses 2 kW of power, regardless of whether it's mounted on a small or large ship. Its power usage doesn't change when it has something to grind away versus when it's just idly spinning.
Inventory[]
With Realistic settings, the Grinder Block has an inventory with a capacity of 13,500L on large ships and stations and 2,500L for small ships. The inventory holds typically component type items, which is the type of salvage collected while it operates. The inventory accepts ores and other items as well, in case you grind a cargo container, it can hold the contents.
If attached to a conveyor system, it will automatically push its contents to other valid inventories. The inventory is flagged to send items to blocks that pull them, for example, an Assembler in Disassembler mode.[1]
Recipe[]
The Grinder Block can be built on both large and small ships, as well as inside stations. Stationary grinders are referred to as Grinder Pits (see above).
| Grinder | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Component | Large Ship/Station Required | Large Ship/Station Optional | Small Ship Required | Small Ship Optional |
 Computer | 2 | — | 2 | — |
 Motor | 4 | — | 4 | — |
 Large Steel Tube | 1 | — | 1 | — |
 Small Steel Tube | 4 | — | 4 | — |
 Construction Comp. | 25 | 5 | 15 | 2 |
 Steel Plate | 15 | 5 | 10 | 2 |
Gallery[]
Video[]
