@Teamw0rk: probably not. Around Warfare 2, the tools started working normally again.

Is this still a needed mod?

Tested briefly without and with the mod. Vanilla seems to be working again. The mod works but is only needed if you like the enhanced range.

Will be checking the files to see if the update 1.200 changed anything.

Try removing this mod and see if you still have the issue. Be interesting if the problem goes away as there is no relation between the two files.

Nope, no mods that modify welders or grinders

Do you have any mods that modify welders or grinders?

@wheelchock that's what I thought as well after looking at the files and doing some testing in a single player game. I am still trying to figure out why our large block drilling in space with a platform rig setup like we do on a planet/moon are cutting much smaller diameter.

@Palad1n - by "regular drills" are you referring to vehicle mounted drills? It should not affect them as they are different files.

would this mod in any way effect regular drills? I ask because ever since installing this mod on our server, some players are reporting artifact issues with their drill rigs in space, IE: they are rough deeper circular ridges vs what we normally see, as if the drills are trying to cut a little deeper than normal.

@Viper - I hear you. It's a cool mod, but I'm used to things in those first 4 slots on the first tab.

I personally don't use Tool Switcher, I've spent years playing this game with my tools on specific 1-2-3-4 keys and when I tried the switcher my fingers just got confused and I turned the mod off with the F2 menu clientside. I keep it on the server for other people that like it.

To be honest, i'm just gonna wait to see if they complain about a problem. xD

@Viper Thanks for that. Please also see the notes about disabling the default drill in Tool Switcher - go into the Tool Switcher menu in-game (<Enter> > F2 > Mod Settings > Tool Switcher), open the Tools sub menu, select Vanilla > Hand Drill and set Enabled to False. You can also do this by editing the ToolSwitcher-Settings.xml file in %appdata%\SpaceEngineers\Storage

<Drill>
<Keybind>None</Keybind>
<Slot>0</Slot>
<Page>0</Page>
<Enabled>false</Enabled> <----- Set this to false
</Drill>

FWIW, I'm loading this "last", as in "highest priority" - at the top of my huge modlist. Throwing it on my server now, which also contains Tool Switcher. I'll report back.

--- "Tool Switcher behavior is dependent on load order. If the mod is loaded after Tool Switcher, scrolling up only gives the drill. If the mod is loaded before Tool Switcher, scrolling up gives the drill plus another tool, and scrolling down gives the drill and the third tool" ---

Some confusion is in order here, and Keen is to blame. Remember Keen mod lists are reversed from what would be natural. In Keen's world, mods at the top load last and have overwrite privilege, while the bottom-most mod loads first and can be overwritten by the things "above" it in the modlist. Keen refers to this as "highest priority" or "lowest priority".

It's a miracle we don't have more mod load order headaches than we already do in this community!

Sorry for the confusion. I was trying to type it all out while still fresh in my memory. This hand drill mod is nothing more than an excerpt from the HandItems.sbc file. No coding or configuring involved. Just drop it in and it works.

oh i thought this was config fix. well crap. good to know. that's what you meant by going into the mod setting (F2). now I follow.

it works fine with tool switcher. You need to disable the vanilla drill in Tool Switcher, either via the config file or via the HUD menu. Once you do that, you can scroll back and forth with ease. If you need help doing that, just ask.

why does this conflict with the tool switcher. so weird. I'm so torn on not being able to use both. sad face. but until they fix the issue this mod fixed I will remove tool switch.

@Shadowmane81 - go into the Tool Switcher menu (<Enter> > F2 > Mod Settings > Tool Switcher), open the Tools sub menu, select Vanilla > Hand Drill and set Enabled to False. I also disabled the Pistol and Launcher, so you may need to do that as well. Let me know how it goes.

@Shadowmane81 - Interesting. Tool Switcher behavior is dependent on load order. If the mod is loaded after Tool Switcher, scrolling up only gives the drill. If the mod is loaded before Tool Switcher, scrolling up gives the drill plus another tool, and scrolling down gives the drill and the third tool (in my case it was drill + welder, and drill + grinder).

Are you using any other tool mods? If you are, I'm curious to see how they are put together. Maybe I'm doing something unexpected.

I have noticed this has a slight conflict with the Tool Switcher mod, its more of a minor inconvenience but it does stay stuck on the drill when scrolling up with the mouse wheel, scrolling down still toggles threw all the tools. Just wanted to put this out as an FYI in case anyone else is using both of them and see's the odd behavior..

@Kai - verified these work as intended. They are not much different from the originals. The range on each has been increased by a multiplier of only 0.2. If you assume a base range of 1m, you can see they don't vary much from Tier to Tier. I made it so the Tier 1 would (almost) always make contact with the ground while crouching. As I said earlier, it's easiest to see the difference between Tier 1 and Tier 4.

@Kai - I am at work, but will check as soon as I can. They should all be slightly different, with the higher tier drills providing a greater reach and making a larger hole. The difference between Tier 2 and 3 or 3 and 4 is going to be small. You would notice the difference mostly between Tier 1 or 2 and Tier 4. I'll let you know what I find.

I subscribed to this mod and added it to a world but the drill ranges seem to be the same for all the hand drills. I tried it in a new world too. Am I doing something wrong?

PRAISE, BEEN LOOKING FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS. WHY ARE THE VANILLA RANGES THE WAY THAT THEY ARE????

@xXBulletJusticeXx - Glad it works for you. Sometimes we just want something that works without being over-powered.

omg, thank you so much. I have not played in a while and I noticed that it is so frustrating to use the hand drills now.

@Sacrid Author - Glad I could help

I *have* noticed that hand drills are a bit more frustrating to work with lately. Thank you.