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2x helix for CGOL: x = 41, y = 250, rule = B3/S23 31bo$30b3o3b3o$29b2obo2bo2bo$29b3o6bo$29b3o2bo3bo$22b2o5b3o2bo2bo$21bo bo6bobo$23bo6b3o$31bo$31b2o6$7bo18bo$6b3o16b3o$6bob2o15bob2o9bo$7b3o 16b3o8b3o$7b3o16b2o8b2obo$7b2o27b3o$37b2o2$14bo$13b3o$12b2obo$12b3o$ 13b2o16bo$2b3o25b3o3b3o$2bo2bo24bob2o2bo2...

b-engine wrote: ↑

March 2nd, 2026, 8:08 am

Is it possible to make some sort of a climber with it and therefore a 14c/65 spaceship?

The 14c/65 reaction itself is a climber. Its track, however, is not a periodic pattern but a spark. The idea that it might be possible to build a 14c/65 spaceship based on it dates back to its discovery.

Here is an arguably more compact version of the wick extender: x = 2433, y = 1156, rule = B3/S23 1943b2o$1923b3o16b2o$1925bo18bo14b2o$1907b2o15bo34bobo$1908b2o49bo16bo $1891b2o14bo67b2o$1890bobo82bobo$1875bo16bo29b2o67b3o$1875b2o44bo2b2o 65bo$1874bobo44bo4bo65bo15b2o$1858b3o61b5o80b2o$1860bo148bo14b...

Fly-through: x = 222, y = 569, rule = B3/S23 141bo25bo$141b3o21b3o$144bo19bo$143b2o19b2o13$160b3o$159b3obo$158bo4bo $158b5o$158bo2bo$158b2o$158b2o8$155b2o$153bo4bo$146b2o5bo4bo$145bo2bo 4bo4bo$144b2ob2o6b2o$146bo8$142bo$141b4o$140bo2b2o3bo2bo$148bo2bo10bo$ 151bo9bobo$148b3o9b2obo$147b3o12b2obo$164b2...

Now we're talking! x = 513, y = 799, rule = B3/S23 470bo25bo$470b3o21b3o$473bo19bo$472b2o19b2o4$491bo$490b3o$489bobob2o$ 488b3o3bo2$490bo6bo$491bo2bo$491b3o$492b2o$491b2o$490bob3obo$490bo3bo 2b2o$491b2obo$491b3o$493bo2$474b3o2$472b2o4bo$472b2obob2o$469bo3bob2o$ 469bo2bo$468b2obo$474b3o$470b3ob3o$471...

A glider-stream-to-wick converter that almost works :? Wicks get deadlocked and don't let themselves rephase: x = 213, y = 457, rule = B3/S23 181bo25bo$181b3o21b3o$184bo19bo$183b2o19b2o13$205b3o$198b2o4b2o2bo$ 197b4o7bo$185b3o9bo4bo$185bobo11b2obo$183b2o2bo11b2o$183b2o6$186b2o$ 183bo2b2o$181bo$181b6...

Might it be possible to make one end fire gliders with catalysts, then use those gliders to support the fuse to make a self-supporting p37 oscillator? It'd probably be a bit useless, but I guess it would be nice to have. An oscillator probably won’t work, since any circuitry you’d build moves upwar...

I wonder if an over-unity reaction may be achieved in the form of a spark-assisted glider duplicator. If combined with a spark-assisted glider-stream-to-wick converter, this may lead to a way to duplicate wicks. In the meanwhile, some glider reflectors: x = 1340, y = 815, rule = B3/S23 o459bobo$b2o4...

The first "fancy rephaser" appeared: x = 109, y = 631, rule = B3/S23 32bo25bo$32b3o21b3o$35bo19bo$34b2o19b2o13$43b2o$42bo2bo$42bo2bo6b2o$ 42bo2bo5bo2bo$43b2o7b3o$52b2o5$76bo25bo$76b3o21b3o$79bo19bo$78b2o19b2o 2$55b5o$48b4o4bob2o$37bo10bo3bo2bo$36b3o12b3o$35bo2bo10bobo$34b2o3$36b o2bo$36bo2$36bo2bo50...

If one of the first three will work, there might be room for a self-supported spaceship? That's the idea, but the over-unity reaction is a must. Glider passage can probably be achieved by switching between wick and glider stream stretches back and forth. A fancy rephaser is rather a likely search b...

(unfortunately, I didn't find an MWSS salvo synthesis with 4 gliders coming from all 4 directions): I've found it. x = 120, y = 107, rule = B3/S23 36bo$36b3o14b2o$39bo13bo$38b2o11bobo$43b3o5b2o$42b4o$41b2o2b2o$42bob2o 22bo12bo$43b3o22b3o8b3o$28b2o14bo26bo6bo$29bo40b2o6b2o$29bobo19b2o$30b 2o19bobo18...

Out of curiosity, what inhibits the 3g synthesis from being used? It doesn't work neither at p37 nor at p74 as an inserter. x = 188, y = 103, rule = B3/S23 106bobo$107b2o$107bo14$o$b2o$2o123bo$126b2o$125b2o5$10bo$11bo$9b3o8$ 18bobo$19b2o$19bo123bobo$144b2o$144bo2$19b2o$18bobo$20bo123b2o$23b2o 118bo...

The fast edge shooter can inject into a p37 stream, so we have a pseudo-period 37 edgeshooter: True, that makes a smaller pseudo-p37 MWSS gun: x = 203, y = 160, rule = B3/S23 36bo$36b3o14b2o$39bo13bo$38b2o11bobo$51b2o$58b3o$43bo14bo2bo$38b2obo2b 2o12bo$38b3o4bo12bo3bo$28b2o10bob2obo12bo$29bo13b2o14...

Thank you, nice optimizations! Especially that edge-shooting conduit. Where did you find it? Does it have a name? xWSS syntheses are suboptimal. The following would make a smaller pseudo-p37 MWSS gun, but there may be even better syntheses, the gencols search is still running. x = 189, y = 258, rul...

I wonder whether one could squeeze useful reactions out of two interacting wicks. I can imagine a few scenarios: produce a spark that can feed three wicks produce a spark that can feed two wicks (a fancy rephaser) produce a sparse spark that can feed two wicks while leaving enough room for a glider ...

I've built a somewhat bulky fencepost for this wick. x = 2581, y = 2968, rule = B3/S23 2009b2o$2005b2o2bobo$2006b2obo16bo$1989b2o14bo19b2o$1988bobo34bobo$ 1973bo16bo50b3o$1973b2o66bo$1972bobo67bo15b2o$1956b3o37b2o59b2o$1958bo 34bo2b2o61bo14b2o$1940b2o15bo35bo4b2o74bobo$1941b2o50bo2bo77bo16bo$ 1924b2...

I believe the number of xWSS in the helix doesn't mean as much as the number of xWSS in fanout devices. And since the input of the (13,1)c/31 crawler is way more versatile than 17c/45 (it can accept a block, 3 orientations of a boat, and - most importantly - 4 orientations of a glider) I hope it is ...

It looks like it may be possible by making use of the spaceship stream on the opposite side. This would, however, result in a huge distance between the helix and fanout devices, as well as large triangles of gliders in the front. That said, if the slow salvo approach is used, the distance to the spa...

With a slow salvo construction we could still use both forerakes and backrakes when we needed them, but most of the helix construction could be a tight stack of one type of rake (not sure which type is cheaper). It always seemed to me that the result would be a really significantly smaller spaceshi...

I've posted some of my recent results in the Helix thread , but I think I'd better use this topic, because it's too specific. I've just found out that there is a glider duplicating convoy that works at x3 period, so it seems one could overclock fanout devices, halving their number: x = 145, y = 422,...

- actually the 24 gliders are 12 on each side, so in terms of length of the caaterpillar, they only lead to 24 *WSS, no HWSS. Each glider needs 2 xWSS to get duplicated, so that leads to 48 xWSS, not 24, and x5 helix would save at least 8 xWSS, not 4. However, you're right that spaceships on the ot...

Someone might have to write some new code to dig up slow salvos that can edge-shoot spaceships. On second thought, slow salvo construction may be not the right idea, if the goal is to reduce the size of the spaceship. Also, reducing the helix from 21 to 14-ish xWSS at x6 doesn't really bring as muc...

Here is a slightly shorter one, 12 xWSS + Coe ship: x = 66, y = 184, rule = B3/S23 54bo$24bo28b3o3b3o$16b2o5b3o12bo13b2obo2bo2bo$15bobo5bob2o3b3o4b3o12b 3o6bo$17bo6b3o3bo2bo3bob2o3b3o5b3o2bo3bo$24b2o4bo7b3o3bo2bo4b3o2bo2bo$ 30bo3bo3b2o4bo8bobo$30bo3bo9bo3bo5b2o$30bo13bo3bo$31bobo10bo$45bobo2$ 57b2o$...

EDIT: Oops, no, it actually might be fairly tricky, unless another activation can be found or the LWSS that's following along can be moved somewhere else: There are a plethora of options, these two worked for the boat: x = 122, y = 36, rule = B3/S23 22bo$22bobo$22b2o8$18bo$17bobo$17b2o2$11bo49bo49b...

Could one of you experts give a try a new x6 helix for the original c102/270 caterpillar, using a few Coe ships to decrease the overall number of *WSS? In order to be 17c/45 x6 buildable, the overlap between the tracks of the *WSS should be minimal and especially the Coe ships should be isolated fr...