Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The achievements of the Gunpowder Research Institute are actually not limited to collodion and fulminate of mercury.

They contributed to the development of the ignition powder used specifically in flintlock muskets.

After scientific measurement and calculation, the gunpowder used in the Ming Dynasty's cannons has become increasingly refined. It is divided into types such as primer, propellant, propellant, pyrotechnic powder, and blasting powder according to their uses, and their proportions are studied.

Especially after further purifying gunpowder materials such as sulfur, saltpeter, and charcoal, the quality of Ming Dynasty's gunpowder became better and better, making firearms more and more powerful.

The discovery of fulminate of mercury was not only the suggestion and promotion of Emperor Zhu Youjian, but also the inevitable result after the accumulation of the Gunpowder Research Institute.

After trying to use mercuric nitrate to react with solid substances such as copper and iron, the Gunpowder Research Institute has been trying to react with liquid substances. As one of the most common liquids, alcohol is bound to be tried by them.

What happened today was both accidental and inevitable. The unsuccessful experimental data are not useless, but are recorded, waiting to be discovered in the future.

There are no researchers of this caliber in the gunpowder research institute. Even Zhu Youjian knows little about chemical reactions. Although he remembers some elements of the periodic table, he has no idea how to measure atomic mass.

For things like trinitrotoluene and lead azide, he only knew the names but had no idea how to make them.

It will probably take a long time to produce these, until the chemical system is established and a real chemical industry is developed.

As for the current Ming Dynasty chemistry, it still belongs to empirical science. It requires real talent to summarize theories from it.

This was also the reason why he wanted to bring in talent from outside.

As a young scholar and a famous scholar in later generations, Gu Yanwu can be said to have such potential.

However, although he was quite interested in various chemical reactions, he was reluctant to get involved in them.

As a young man, he wanted to fight on the battlefield to win a title and provide shelter for his wife and children.

Especially after knowing that he no longer needed to pour the priming powder, he felt that his spring was about to come:
"The flash cap is good!"

"This thing has a high ignition rate and is not afraid of wind and rain."

"If we had this during the Battle of Khorchin, we would have achieved greater results."

Holding the percussion cap that had just been made by the Gunpowder Research Institute, Gu Yanwu praised it highly.

The emperor had mentioned this method of using fulminate of mercury long ago. The Gunpowder Research Institute had also long ago manufactured percussion caps, and even modified a muzzle-loading flintlock musket into a percussion cap musket for testing.

It was only because there was no fulminate of mercury before that it could not be put into practical use.

Now that mercury fulminate has been invented, they quickly applied it to the percussion cap and asked Gu Yanwu and others to try it out.

(Comparison between flintlock and percussion cap bolt, the structures are very similar and can be easily modified)
Gu Yanwu only used it for a while and soon fell in love with the percussion cap. He thought that this percussion cap with high firing rate and easy installation was far better than the flintlock.

As someone who had used a matchlock musket before, he was a little uncomfortable with the flintlock musket.

The flintlock, which had only a 50% success rate in igniting, annoyed him greatly. Every time he fired, he had to worry about whether he could get a spark or whether the ammunition could be fired.

Now that he has a percussion hider, he no longer has to worry about whether the ammunition can be fired after pulling the trigger.

Especially after shooting on the training ground, he found that after covering the primer hole with the primer, the gunpowder gas in the musket would not escape from the primer hole at all.

This further reduces the gas leakage of the musket and increases its power.

The musketeer also does not have to worry about smoke and sparks coming out of the ignition hole, blocking his vision and burning people.

Gu Yanwu was very satisfied with the percussion cap, but Lu Xiang knew that it was just the simplest use of fulminate of mercury, so he smiled and said to Gu Yanwu:
"Is Gu Yuanshi satisfied with this?"

"Don't you think it's cumbersome to install the percussion cap?"

"The percussion cap is so small."

Gu Yanwu laughed and said:
"The percussion cap is small, but it only needs to be pressed into the primer hole. I can see that clearly."

"It's much easier to install the primer than to pour the primer."

It is believed that this percussion cap gun is superior to the flintlock gun with a gravity-flowing propellant system.

Moreover, since there is no need to specially process the funnel-shaped ignition hole, its manufacturing cost may be reduced.

However, it needs a copper percussion cap when used, and its cost is higher than that of a flintlock musket.

Gu Yanwu, who knew that the court's finances were tight, could not help but frown and asked Lu Xiang:

"Why use a copper percussion cap? Can't we use iron or lead?"

“It’s too expensive to make a flash cap out of copper, and it’s hard to recycle something this small.”

Although there was no fulminate of mercury before, the research and development of percussion caps and primers was not left behind. The Equipment Academy used materials such as iron and lead mentioned by Gu Yanwu, but finally found that the copper percussion cap proposed by the emperor was the best.

This is because copper is relatively soft and very easy to process, and can be shaped directly by extrusion.

Steel is not so easy to process, and lead is too soft and toxic.

The emperor has asked craftsmen who frequently come into contact with lead to take protective measures, and has completely banned the use of lead in the palace.

So after much experimentation, copper was finally chosen for the primer and the flash cap.

Even sub-guns and bullets use copper shells.

Lu Xiang held a bullet and said:

“Look at this, it uses more copper.”

"Even the emperor felt sorry for us and asked us to develop a reusable sub-gun."

After converting the sub-gun into bullets, Zhu Youjian originally planned to use disposable bullets to completely replace the sub-gun.

But after calculating the costs, I found that this was not feasible.

In the absence of smokeless gunpowder, modern muskets require a lot of propellant and a very large caliber to ensure their power.

The shell of 12mm ammunition obviously requires more materials than the shell of 78mm ammunition. In the Ming Dynasty, the material alone for making a copper shell bullet is nearly 20 grams, which is close to the weight of seven copper coins.

Add to that the labor costs and material loss of manufacturing the cartridge cases, and we simply cannot afford to throw them away after using them.

Therefore, under the suggestion of the Equipment Academy, Zhu Youjian asked them to continue to improve the reusable sub-gun, and in addition to the full metal shell, to study low-cost bullets with metal bottom and paper or copper foil on the top.

The distinction between sub-guns and bullets is also determined by this:

The cartridge case of a sub-gun can be reused, while the bullet can only be used once.

During normal training, sub-guns should be used for training. After training, they should be collected and qualified sub-guns should be reassembled and used again for training.

Bullets are used in wartime, and soldiers cannot be expected to recycle copper shells during fierce combat.

Gu Yanwu was no stranger to bullets, because the improved revolver musket he used used bullets. It was filled with a powder column, with a round hole in the middle of the bottom, and was wrapped with a piece of paper to prevent the ammunition from getting wet.

When using it, you need to peel off the paper, load the bullet into the cylinder of the revolver, pour the primer into the powder pool, and ignite it with a spring-loaded lighter.

After the bullet is fired, the shell can be removed and reloaded using the speed loader.

Its firing rate is much faster than that of ordinary muskets, but Gu Yanwu doesn't like it.

Because you need to pour the primer.

Especially when there is an operational error, the primer may spill on a bullet that does not need to be fired. If the spark of the spring-wheel lighter flies over, it may accidentally fire the bullet.

This made him have to be very careful when using it, lest the bullet be fired by mistake and explode in the cylinder.

Now seeing the bullets that Lu Xiang handed to him, he was a little confused and said:

"Although the bullets are made of copper, they are not used much, right?" "Nowadays, bullets are wrapped in paper, so there is no need for copper shells."

Lu Xiang smiled and said:

"In the past, bullets were wrapped in paper, but not anymore."

"Look for yourself. Can the round hole at the bottom of the bullet be used to install a percussion cap?"

When Gu Yanwu heard what he said, he suddenly understood and said excitedly:

"In this way, the revolver gun will not need to be primed."

"You just need to change the spring wheel lighter to a hammer to fire the bullet."

Thinking that he would no longer need to pour gunpowder when using a revolver in the future, Gu Yanwu was excited and couldn't wait to see this kind of musket.

At the same time, he also understood what kind of pistol he needed—

The revolver that uses primer bullets is definitely a very practical weapon.

He even thought about making the revolver longer so that it would have a longer range and greater power.

The people in the Equipment Academy also had this idea, otherwise they would not have studied the revolver and invested their energy in it.

In the past, because revolvers were prone to air leakage, their power was reduced and they could only be used for hand guns and short guns that did not require a high range.

Nowadays, with the use of primer-equipped metal bullets, the leakage problem will be further reduced, and the range may be longer.

While Lu Xiang and Gu Yanwu were discussing this issue, the craftsmen at the Gunpowder Research Institute had already made several universal primers, installed them on sub-guns and bullets, and fired them with specially made test muskets.

(Top left: Complete universal primer for shotgun shells. Top right: Shell, bottom left: Boxer primer)
This type of musket is based on the modification of the vertical wedge-type rear-loading musket. A hole is drilled in the breech block and a firing pin is placed in it. Then it is struck with a hammer to hit the primer and fire.

Soon, the propellant in the subgun was ignited and the bullet was pushed out.

This means that using a primer-fired sub-gun can also be successful.

A bullet with the same specifications as the bottom of the sub-gun was then successfully fired.

With the joint resistance of the shell and the breech block, this vertical wedge-type rear-loading musket also rarely leaks gas, and its power is almost the same as that of the front-loading musket.

This made the craftsmen at the Gunpowder Research Institute excited again.

Because it means that they made the upright wedge-type breech-loading musket completely practical.

The problems that previously restricted it, such as air leakage and reduced power, are no longer an obstacle after the metal fixed ammunition is perfected.

This weapon, which is less expensive than the rotary-locking breech-loading musket, may become the new generation of standard equipment of the Ming Dynasty.

Everyone in their gunpowder research institute will be rewarded for their meritorious service.

Lu Xiang was also one of the cheering people. Gu Yanwu asked him quietly:
"This musket is cheaper. Aren't you worried that your rotary-locked breech-loading musket will be replaced after it is equipped?"

"I guess the Privy Council will definitely equip this kind of musket after it is perfected."

Compared with the rotary-locking breech-loading musket, the gun mechanism and receiver of this vertical wedge-type breech-loading musket are much simpler and the cost is also lower.

But Lu Xiang was not worried about this. He smiled and shook his head, and said to Gu Yanwu in a mysterious tone:
"Don't worry about that. The benefits of the rotary gun machine are much greater than you can imagine."

"This low-cost musket will at most replace the self-priming muzzle-loading musket, but it will not threaten the status of the rotary-locking breech-loading musket at all."

Thinking about the various rotating gun machine models made under the emperor's instructions, Lu Xiang knew that the emperor's favorite was still this kind of musket.

Now that mercury fulminate has been invented and primers have been used, metal fixed ammunition has been successfully put into practical use, completely solving the leakage problem of breech-loading muskets.

However, the advantages of the more securely locked rotary gun mechanism have not disappeared. On the contrary, because a magazine or magazine can be installed under the receiver, it can be turned into a weapon capable of continuous firing.

This kind of automatic musket is the weapon the emperor needs.

Lu Xiang has decided to perfect this weapon as soon as possible and put it into service.

At the same time, the gun mechanism and receiver must be improved to reduce costs as much as possible.

He wanted to use a weapon with excellent range, power and cost to upgrade his title to a higher level.

Having become a first-class viscount, he obviously realized the difficulty of becoming a high-ranking noble, and planned to use an unquestionable weapon to obtain the title of earl.

With this mentality, Lu Xiang certainly would not be hostile to the upright wedge-type breech-loading musket equipment. He even used his own insights to guide researchers to improve the structures such as the firing pin and hammer and integrate them into the musket.

Soon, this simply integrated experimental musket was presented to the emperor, along with the matching sub-guns and bullets.

Jinyiwei checked the gun several times to make sure it was safe, especially the primer, before allowing it to enter the palace. Zhu Youjian asked the guards around him to practice shooting in the inner training ground.

After seeing the guards open the breech block, put in the bullets, pull the firing pin, lower the breech block, pull the trigger, and fire the ammunition, Zhu Youjian nodded with satisfaction and asked:
"What's the fastest firing rate of this musket?"

"What's the effective range?"

Zhang Tao, who was in charge of the improvement of this musket, said:

"If used by a skilled shooter, the rate of fire can reach more than ten rounds per minute."

"When using a rifled barrel, the effective range is about 400 meters. Other aspects have not yet been fully measured."

This is because the manufacturing level of the Ming Dynasty could not keep up with the design, and the problem of rifling has not been solved until now. As a result, each rifled musket has a corresponding smoothbore model, and the effective range is naturally different.

For the vertical wedge-type breech-loading musket, it is even more troublesome because the range and power are different when using sub-guns or bullets.

When using copper-bottomed bullets with a paper shell on the upper part, this type of musket still has a certain amount of air leakage, which will affect the range.

Zhang Tao has been organizing craftsmen to work hard to improve and strive to produce lower-cost and more powerful bullets.

Zhu Youjian frowned slightly after hearing this, and frowned even more when he saw the guards had to use their hands to pick out the shell after firing.

He drew a diagram based on the structure of the Sharps rifle he had seen in the movie and instructed:

"The bottom rim of the cartridge case could be made larger, and an extractor could be added to push it out."

"This will allow for a faster rate of fire and a better seal with less leaks."

When Zhang Tao and others heard this, their eyes suddenly lit up. Then they heard the emperor say:
"With the flange, the bullet can be located by the rim instead of the front shoulder."

"The space reserved in the chamber can also be made longer, so that bullets with longer shells can be used."

Teach them to use long-cased bullets with enhanced charge to increase range and power.

This is the unique advantage of a single-shot rifle. Without having to consider the magazine, there is not much restriction on its length. The cartridge case and bullet can be lengthened without affecting its use.

The famous Sharps rifle can use .50-70 and extended .50-90 ammunition.

Zhu Youjian asked them to develop two types of ammunition, ordinary bullets and strong-loaded bullets, for use with this type of musket.

Because this musket was improved based on the electric gun and belonged to the fourth generation, Zhu Youjian named it the Electric Gun Type 4, abbreviated as CC, and planned to put it into equipment after it was perfected.

Compared to the later-appearing automatic musket, it could only be loaded one shot at a time, so it was called a single-shot musket.

More people call it a single-player gun, and think that the name of the electric gun is a bit of a misnomer.

However, compared with the old muzzle-loading muskets, its firing speed can be described as lightning fast, and its firing speed is very close to that of a bow and arrow.

Coupled with its greater power and range, the Ming Dynasty finally possessed a firearm that completely surpassed the bow and arrow. (End of this chapter)