Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 100 Mass production of mountain-splitting cannon

Xishan Island,
The first furnace of molten iron finally came out.

Everyone rejoiced, and from now on they were no longer afraid of being controlled by others.

On that day, a total of 5 furnaces were produced.

Among them, 4 furnaces of molten iron were qualified and were continued to be processed after cooling to make mature iron.

The unqualified furnace was cast into rails.

The pouring method is as follows:
The Chen clan first found a piece of wood and cut it into the shape of a railroad track.

Then I found a piece of ground and smoothed it.

Press the wooden form down firmly until it is flush with the ground.

Then carefully lift out the wooden mold,

Apply grease and sand to the surface of the groove left on the ground and set it on fire.

After the soil layer is basically fixed and formed, it is not easy to collapse.

Pour the molten iron into it,

The temperature difference on the ground quickly cools and solidifies.

Then use a hook to lift out the cast rail.

……

The craftsmen made 8 grooves in one go and repeated the above steps.

In just one afternoon, it was completed.

Zhang Manku was also among the crowd and witnessed this magical scene with his own eyes.

I secretly sighed in my heart, these Cantonese people are really skilled.

The ironworks is higher than the wharf.
Therefore, this [-]-meter road must be leveled first and then rolled with stone mills.

Finally, pave with gravel, three pieces of soil, and then lay stone strips horizontally.

Finally, the rails were laid.

How to fix it is a difficult problem.

The Chen clan members thought of a way.

When the molten iron is ready to take shape, use a square steel rod to poke it in at both ends.

Once formed, the rail will have a square hole at each end.

When laying the rails, use a hammer to knock down the square-section iron bars.

In this way, there is a fixed effect.

It is equivalent to the effect of a long iron nail.

Zhang Manku was mesmerized by what he saw, and for the first time he felt inferior to his own skills.

He returned home dejected,
I told my dad what I saw today, but he got scolded severely.

"Master Li will renew your marriage, marry the daughter of that good family, and let you work as an apprentice in the iron factory. Why?"

Dad lowered his voice:

"The Chen family is an outsider, and our old Zhang family is one of our own. Of course, this technology must be in the hands of our own people. You must learn from it carefully and learn it all."

"Dad, really?"

"You little bastard, you don't believe what dad says?"

Father Zhang put down his chopsticks angrily and knocked twice on his son's forehead.

"Both of us are illiterate. You can go find your wife later, and she will remember what you said. Don't miss a single word of what you saw and heard at the iron factory during the day."

"Oh."

On the table, there are two bowls of small wontons, a stack of scones, and a fried golden fish.

The father and son started eating in silence, each with their own thoughts.

……

at night,

Zhang Manku told his wife everything.

"Ms. sir, it's better to listen to dad."

"You also think what dad said is right?"

"The Nu family is guessing that Mr. Li's thoughts are probably like this. He treats our Zhang family very well, and he really treats us as one of his own."

"Okay, I'll let the dog go too tomorrow."

"The dog is only 5 years old, what can he do in the iron factory?"

"Learning skills should start from a young age. He can get a file and help him polish it."

The dog was born to my previous wife.

Just like the name, it has a tenacious vitality.

Although he is only 5 years old, he moves bricks every day.

In the evening, I went to the lake to catch fish and shrimps and came back to make dinner for my grandfather.

Take a shower and save water.

The children of the poor are in charge early.

The next day, Zhang Manku took the dog to the iron factory.

Give him a hammer and a file.

The dog was very happy and carried it with him wherever he went.

This is a status symbol, we have a serious job.

While playing with other children, I picked up pecans, shells and other things.

Take off the hammer from your waist,

Click, if one hammer can't solve it, then two hammers.

He is in the iron factory and is a non-staff member.

Get 300 copper coins per month.

Doing odd jobs and running errands, the craftsman likes to call on him to help with anything.

The only taboo is not to get within 20 meters of the blast furnace.

The temperature of molten iron is over 1000 degrees. If you are not careful, you will be disabled.

In steelmaking plants hundreds of years later, casualties and accidents were inevitable.

What's more, in this era,

There was already a furnaceman whose foot was melted by the splash of molten iron.

……

After Du Ren heard about it,
Someone purchased a batch of leather coats, leather aprons, leather hats, and boots from Fucheng.

At least, it can block sporadic splashes of molten iron.

Considering the convenience of processing, when forming wrought iron, try to make it into a round rod.

Li Yu attaches great importance to molds.
Chen Laohan and Zhang Tiejiang cooperated to select the best steel and made multiple molds on the machine tool.

They are used for gun barrel embryos, cannon barrel embryos, sword embryos, and Mini bullets.

Mold is the foundation of industry.

Precision molds mean that tolerances can be reduced and mass production can be achieved.

In this era of transition from the handicraft age to the machine age, it is of great significance.

The technology for manufacturing matchlock guns is currently mature.

Only after the iron factory's production capacity explodes and a batch of iron ingots are stockpiled can the manufacturing of elastic steel be attempted.

The gun action of a flintlock gun is inseparable from the spring.

There are currently only two types of gun barrel embryo molds, the ones that imitate light artillery.

Some time ago,

General Hu Qian from the city guard camp came to visit and talked with Li Yu in detail for a long time.

Lao Hu had fought on the Jinchuan front line and had a general understanding of the common artillery of the Qing army.

Among them, the one that impressed him most was the mountain-splitting cannon.

The so-called mountain-splitting cannon is actually a kind of artillery with a very small caliber.

The overall weight ranges from 50 catties to 400 catties.

Slender and slender, it can shoot shotgun and some solid bullets.

Because it is lightweight, it is easy to arrange.

It can be moved with just a few people lifting it.

In mountain warfare, the effect of suppressing Jinchuan soldiers is good.

Of course, it's definitely not possible to deal with watchtowers, so you'll have to rely on heavy artillery.

According to Lao Hu’s description,
Li Yu keenly discovered a fact.

The artillery of the Qing army was polarizing.

Either heavy artillery or very light artillery.

The ones with middle power seem to be useless.

Heavy artillery attacked the enemy, while light artillery killed and wounded the troops.

Li Yu thinks this idea is very good.

……

in fact,

It depends on the war objectives.

The Qing army rarely conducted large-scale mobile field operations.

Even if there is, the opponent lacks equivalent firearms projection capabilities.

Most of them are sieges or security battles.

The heavy weight of the heavy artillery and the poor road conditions made transportation difficult.

So most armies, unless there is a clear need to siege a city.

They generally do not march with heavy artillery.

Napoleon also practiced similar artillery ideas.

This gave the artillery unprecedented mobility, and the cavalry pulled the cannon across the field.

The art of artillery is fully displayed.

However, in the last battle, they suffered a big loss in front of the coalition forces with a large number of medium-sized artillery.

Because of the range!

Because the opponent is also a purely firearms army.

Time is also life.

Li Yu came to a conclusion,
When using troops, we must be flexible.

You have to eat one bite at a time, and the same goes for making cannons.

Start with the lightest mountain-splitting cannon to gain experience.

A good cannon embryo is a solid cylindrical wrought iron body with no bubbles and impurities inside and is evenly distributed.

Director Chen said very confidently,
He personally controlled the molten iron for the cannon.

Zhang Manku firmly fixed the gun embryo on the drilling machine fixture and started the drill.

The drill bit rotated at full speed, and the cannon embryo slowly approached.

At the moment of contact, there was a harsh metal friction sound.

From time to time, craftsmen drizzled whale oil on it as an industrial lubricant.

The drill bit got stuck in the cannon embryo,

After drilling two inches in, Zhang Manku controlled the cannon embryo to slowly retreat.

Drizzle the drill bit with whale oil again.

The breeze blows through the window, cooling down the temperature.

Then, repeat the above actions ten times.

Finally drilled to the predetermined depth.

Unscrew the barrel and check the results.

The bore wall is smooth and consistent in thickness.

There are no pores, indicating that the quality of the molten iron is acceptable.

"Measure the barrel."

An apprentice picked up a ruler and compared it.

"Master, no more, no less."

"The next step is to cut the outside of the barrel, you do it."

……

Zhang Manku stood on one side, reminding his apprentice of his actions from time to time.

Machine tools are precious and cannot tolerate any carelessness.

Outside the workshop, two guards with sabers stand guard every day.

This apprentice also studied with him for a long time and was familiar with the details before letting him experiment.

The gun embryo rotates slowly, and the outside is close to the boring tool.

The excess fell to the ground like wood shavings.

According to Li Yu’s poor scientific experience,
The thickness of the outer wall of the artillery should be slightly thicker at the rear and slightly thinner at the front.

In this way, the weight can be reduced and the chamber can be prevented from exploding.

The rear of the gun has the highest chamber pressure.

For craftsmen, eyes are very important.

Zhang Manku can roughly feel whether there is any problem with the size just by standing on one side and looking at it.

"Master, do you think it's okay?"

"Okay, you guys will finish polishing tonight and remove any excess burrs."

"Hey, good."

Although the apprentice felt that this was unnecessary.

There is a slight burr, which does not affect the performance of the gun.

But since the master said it, it must be done.

Zhang Manku understood Li Yu’s temperament.
The father and son had been in and out of the study many times and found that the master was a person who paid attention to details.

……

the next morning,

A perfect mountain-splitting cannon appeared in the clearing.

Du Ren is here too,
Take a look here, take a photo there.

The heavy feel of metal is reassuring.

"How heavy?"

"Weighed, 80 kilograms." This weight is considered small among artillery.

The gun mount was improvised by a carpenter.

The simplest wooden frame with four wooden wheels underneath.

"Try the cannon. No one else is waiting, just take 50 steps back."

The two miners who volunteered began to test the cannon under the guidance of Blacksmith Zhang.

Black powder wrapped in silk was stuffed into the barrel of the cannon.

Poke it to the bottom with a pole and insert an iron ball.

First, take a sharp steel drill and pierce the silk bag.

Insert a long lead into the small hole at the end.

The gunner fired and then retreated hastily.

After 1 seconds,

Fire and white smoke erupted from the muzzle.

On the cliff, smoke and rubble rose.

"Lao Zhang, Lao Chen, you two can do it." Du Ren was in a good mood and his tone was friendly.

"Mr. Du, please try a few more shots."

"Row."

The gun carriage moved far back.

Several people pushed forward and returned to their original positions.

This time, a little more aiming.

Of course, it is the simplest and most primitive direct visual aiming.

200 meters away,

The crown of a tree used as a target was broken.

……

Everyone looked happy and exclaimed about the cannon.

Lao Zhang and Lao Chen looked calm, showing the demeanor of master craftsmen.

However, during the fifth shot.

There was an accident and the fuse burned out, but there was no explosion.

This made everyone wonder for a while,
"Is the gunpowder damp?"

"No. I've checked the gunpowder."

"Then, is the lead broken?"

"It's impossible. I just made the lead last night and checked it countless times."

After a while, there was still no movement.

Only then did a bold gunner step forward to check.

Re-inserted a lead,
After lighting it, it successfully exploded this time.

Everyone was relieved, and after the gun barrel cooled down, they searched for the cause.

however,
I didn't find the problem for a long time, so I could only record it.

The next day,

Li Yu smiled after reading the test record.

He knows where the problem lies.

The lead was too soft and failed to contact the silk medicine packet.

The solution is simple,
A section of goose quill, with the front section cut diagonally.

Thread the lead wire through it, and then insert it into the small hole at the end.

In this way, there will be no embarrassment of the lead not touching the medicine package.

Don't underestimate this hidden danger.

In wartime, misfiring can seriously undermine the artillery's confidence.

Of course,
The first one to explode is the artilleryman’s ultimate nightmare.

……

He repeatedly emphasized in his letter,

The molten iron used to cast the cannon blanks must be qualified.

Don't be afraid of waste, defective molten iron can be used for other purposes.

such as,

Iron farm tools, iron ball cannonballs, and even iron ingots for export.

You have to be flexible in your thinking. It is also good to sell defective iron ingots to other people and make some money.

There are several buyers who make guns.

A little less, they can accept it.

Under this kind of thinking, every mountain-splitting cannon is of excellent quality.

In one month, 21 doors were built.

Two specifications of mountain-splitting cannons,

One fired 2-pound shells and the other fired 3-pound shells.

They are all absolutely light artillery. In addition to killing people and horses, they can destroy shield vehicles, wooden fences, and wooden arrow towers at most.

At present, the only one that relies on outsourcing is iron ore.

Fortunately, the place of origin is not too far away.

The quality of the ore in the Ma'anshan Iron Mine next to Jiangning Mansion is acceptable.

Purchase iron ore from local private mine owners and transport it back along the Yangtze River.

Inland shipping has no shortage of sailors.

People from Qingyue Village and Cantonese sailors are all qualified.

Lijiabao also has several sand ships of its own, which are barely enough for now.

As long as the iron ore is not stuck, Xishan Iron Works can operate at full speed.

Unfortunately, there are no iron ores in the Taihu Lake belt.

Otherwise, a coal-iron complex can be built.

……

Old Hu is here,

It was at Li Yu's invitation that I came to Xishan Island to visit the artillery shooting.

10 mountain-splitting cannons were lined up.

"Brother Li, this cannon is really good. You have capable people under your command."

"Compared to what you saw on the Jinchuan front?"

"Just looking at the appearance, it's not as good as what you made."

Lao Hu leaned over and ran his palm over the polished barrel. There were no burrs or pits.

When I looked at the barrel of the cannon with my eyes, I was even more amazed.

"let's start."

All the key players from Lijiabao were present.
The artillery was improvised, selected from the escort team.

"How much is the charge?" Li Yu asked Du Ren.

"7 taels."

"Lao Hu, is 7 taels a lot of medicine?"

"That's enough. That's it for the small artillery on the front line. If there are more, the artillerymen won't dare to fire."

"Just 1 catty. I believe in the craftsmanship of Master Chen and Master Zhang."

Everyone was dumbfounded,

So the silk medicine packet was re-opened on site and the dosage was increased.

However, the artillerymen were a little afraid.

Du Ren looked bad:

"Whoever lights the cannon will be rewarded with 2 taels of silver."

However, these artillerymen still looked at each other.

This made Li Yu look a little ugly, and he was about to have a seizure.

A young man separated from the crowd and stood up:
"I come."

"Why do you look familiar to me?"

"Master, last time you came to the mine, you gave me a pot of wine and a roast chicken."

"It turns out it's you. You're so brave. What's your name?"

"A villain has money and courage."

Phew, someone couldn't help laughing.

This name is quite artistic.

Li Yu said happily:

"Only those who are brave will have money and a good life. Go ahead."

……

The artillerymen finished loading one by one and inserted the goose quill leads.

Then, he ran away in a hurry.

Seeing that Li Yu looked bad, Lao Hu comforted him and said:
"Actually, the same goes for the Green Camp artillery. They usually don't release enough gunpowder."

"Then the range is compromised, isn't it?"

"Hey, you've never seen an explosion, it's terrible."

Lao Hu's thoughts went back to the time when he was a knife player on the Jinchuan front line.

An artillery piece blasting the watchtower in front,
Suddenly the barrel exploded, and the 2000-pound gun barrel rose into the air and hit the infantry formation.

As if, the boulder fell into the tomato basket.

That tragic scene, when reincarnated at midnight, is often the stuff of nightmares.

Qian Youdan took the torch and walked to the first cannon.

The cannons were lit in turn, with a brisk pace.

White smoke spewed out from the muzzle one after another.

It looks very spectacular.

Everyone applauded and admired this man's boldness.

Li Yu also smiled and nodded, thinking he was a man.

In the distance, water columns rose from the water.

The visual distance is 5 miles.

Considering that the artillery is higher than the lake surface, the actual maximum range is just over 4 miles.

For a mountain-splitting cannon weighing less than a hundred pounds,

Very good.

"Master, I'm lucky to have lived up to my destiny."

"Okay, I'll promote you to the position of captain of the artillery team. Study hard and you'll still have a chance to get promoted."

"Thank you sir."

……

Li Yu dictated and Du Ren recorded.

Every five mountain-splitting cannons are organized into a team and a captain is appointed.

10 teams were organized into a battalion.

If there are vacancies, pick them from these artillerymen.

The criteria are: loyalty, courage, and mastery of artillery knowledge.

"Lao Hu, please give me some advice."

"I've never used a cannon. A musket, sword, and shield are all right."

"Then do you have such talents under your command? Anyone who has been a gunner in the Green Camp should preferably be an officer."

"There is a candidate."

"Is it reliable?"

"This man is my fellow villager, General Qian of the Green Battalion Artillery Corps. He has a broken leg and has returned to his hometown to work in farming."

"Send someone to find him. Let him earn a salary."

"Okay, as long as he's not dead, I'm definitely willing to come."

Lao Hu treated his fellow villagers with affection and justice.

Since he became rich and moved his old mother, wife and children out, people from the village have come to join him one after another.

I have traveled thousands of miles to find him.

Lao Hu tried his best to help.
The young man went to work as an apprentice in a shop in Fucheng.

The older ones grow vegetables in the suburbs and sell them in the city.

The women and children helped the camp with washing and washing, and got some copper coins.

Even the places where these people live are shacks built on the land of Lao Hu's family.

With his status as Mr. Qian of Green Camp holding him down,

These people will not be bullied by ordinary gangsters and the people around them.

……

suddenly,

Lao Hu looked solemn, pointed at the lake and said:
"Look, what is that?"

Li Yu looked intently, the sunlight was a bit distracting.

There is a black spot on the lake in the distance.

"It's a boat."

Old Hu also narrowed his eyes and muttered:

"The visitor is not good."

"Why?"

"Didn't you notice? His angle is very tricky."

Li Yu nodded,
This boat came with its back to the sun, just to prevent the people on the island from noticing it too early.

"Water bandits?"

"No, it looks more like a naval warship."

(End of this chapter)