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Grinder
Icon Item Grinder

Category: Tool
Status: Functional

Function:
Dismantles blocks and retrieves their components


Data Controls: [edit] [purge] (?)


The Icon Item Grinder Grinder is a tool in Space Engineers. Its primary use is to break down ship and station blocks and salvage the components. Its secondary uses are hacking, melee combat, and felling trees.

It is one of the tools you spawn with, along with the Icon Item Welder (Tool) Welder and Icon Item Hand Drill Hand Drill.

Using a grinder tool significantly increases the rate at which suit energy drains. For larger grinding projects, use the ship-mounted Grinder (Block) instead.

Usage[]

Salvage[]

To break down blocks into components:

  1. Make sure you have the Grinder item in your inventory.
  2. Open the Toolbar config by pressing (G key).
  3. In the Character Tools section, drag the Grinder Tool to assign it to a toolbar slot. Press (ESCAPE key) to close the window.
  4. Press the slot number to hold the Grinder in your hand.
  5. LMB-click a block and hold to disassemble the block into its components.

The HUD tooltip on the right shows you how far you are.

Grinding fills up your inventory quickly with components, and then proceeds to drop components on the ground or lets them float away in zero g. While grinding, regularly pause to empty your inventory into a cargo container. Press (F key) to pick up dropped components.

Tip: Alternatively, double-LMB-click to switch the grinder on (or off) without having to hold the mouse button pressed.

PvP/PvE Hacking[]

Main article: Hacking

Hacking is a game mechanic that transfers ownership of a functional block to you. A block owned by another player or NPC can be "hacked" by grinding away all of its Computers, and then re-welding the block back up.

PvP/PvE Ship Boarding[]

It can be lucrative to sabotage an enemy ship using the Grinder: Hacking or dismantling their turrets, disassembling essential blocks such as enemy Reactors, Medical Rooms, and Refineries, emptying the enemy's hacked cargo containers and connectors, before making a swift escape with the stolen components.

Unlike the standard "Fireworks Show" of mutual PvP destruction, a “hack and salvage” strategy makes a boarding raid against a ship profitable.

PvP Melee Combat[]

In hand-to-hand combat, a Grinder (Tool) has a higher damage output than pistols or rifles, but it has very low reach. Since rifles also use ammunition, the Grinder is a far more effective melee weapon for PvP, but best used only in an ambush in tight places.

The cheapest Grinder is as deadly as the Elite Grinder, so it's not worth it taking expensive Grinders into close quarter combat (CQC).

Tool Upgrades[]

There are faster versions of the grinder available. They can be built in assemblers if you have the required materials. The only disadvantage of a faster grinder is that you sometimes accidentally dismantle the whole block (and the one behind it) when you may have wanted to just hack it.

Below is a comparison of all four grinders. Values for speed and energy consumed are tested on one heavy armor block at the "realistic" setting and are all approximate. "Energy Used" is especially questionable because of the slow update speed of the suit's energy value on our HUDs.

You craft the Grinder (Tool) from the Tools tab in the Assembler using the materials listed below. Material values reflect the "Realistic" setting.

Grinder Speed (Sec.) Energy Used (Suit %) Iron (Fe) Nickel (Ni) Gravel Cobalt (Co) Silicon (Si) Silver (Ag) Platinum (Pt)
Icon Item Grinder (Tool) Standard 37 10.5 3 1 5 0 1 0 0
Icon Item Enhanced Grinder Enhanced 16 4.6 3 1 0 2 6 0 0
Icon Item Proficient Grinder Proficient 12 2.8 3 1 0 1 2 2 0
Icon Item Elite Grinder Elite 5 2 3 1 0 1 2 0 2
Tools
Icon Item Grinder Grinder, Icon Item Welder Welder, Icon Item Hand Drill Hand Drill, Icon Item Hydrogen Bottle Hydrogen Bottle, Icon Item Oxygen Bottle Oxygen Bottle, Icon Item Datapad Datapad, Icon Item S-10 Pistol S-10 Pistol, Icon Item S-20A Pistol S-20A Pistol, Icon Item S-10E Pistol S-10E Pistol, Icon Item MR-20 Rifle MR-20 Rifle, Icon Item MR-8P Rifle MR-8P Rifle, Icon Item MR-50A Rifle MR-50A Rifle, Icon Item MR-30E Rifle MR-30E Rifle, Icon Item RO-1 Rocket Launcher RO-1 Rocket Launcher, Icon Item PRO-1 Rocket Launcher PRO-1 Rocket Launcher, Icon Item Flare Gun Flare Gun
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