Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 242 A Two-masted Sailboat Combining Chinese and Western Ancient and Modern ([-])

In terms of armament, one exposed fortress and one 70mm rifled cannon are installed at the bow and stern of the ship.A retractable tarpaulin frame is installed above the exposed fort, which can be covered to protect the artillery at ordinary times.It has the same structure as the exposed gun turret installed on the fishing boat by the artillery trial production team headed by Lin Shenhe. The only improvement is that the recoil system of the ship gun mount retreating gun has been changed from the original pulley group + cable system to a rail mount. ——The artillery carriage is installed on the sliding track of the wheels, and the recoil force of the artillery slides along the track to counteract it when fired. Push it back to its original position - no steel is used to prevent sparks from colliding between the two.If the traverser's mechanical level is better, Lin Shenhe can introduce more complex gears, rollers and hydraulic systems to achieve better cushioning effects-after all, the weight and volume of the artillery to solve the problem of the rear seat on the warship The restrictions are much looser.

This system has already undergone preliminary tests on the Lingaojiao turret, and it is considered that it basically meets the requirements, and the installation on the No. [-] ship also includes the intention of sea testing.

The gun position of the artillery is rotary, which is driven and rotated by manpower under the deck.In order to facilitate the gunner to guide the rotation angle, a talking tube is installed on the gun position.The 90 degrees pointing to the deck is limited to prevent the enemy from using it to design the deck once they jump to control the artillery, and also to prevent the gunner from misoperation.

Although the protection of the exposed turret is not very good, there is no artillery in this time and space that can surpass the range of the 70mm rifled gun. The gun shell is riveted with rolled iron plates, and the defense is quite impressive according to the standards of this time and space. .According to the ideas of Wen Desi and the navy, he also wanted to lay a layer of rolled wrought iron armor plate on the deck of "Ship Zero" to manufacture the first dome armored cruiser, but the cost of installing this deck was calculated. After the number of wrought iron plates needed, Wen Desi gave up this idea, and finally just installed an armor belt around the ammunition room, which can be regarded as a kind of safety protection.

As for auxiliary weapons, according to Li Yunxing's idea is to make a multi-barreled gun, but this thing is relatively bulky and slow to load.In the end, according to Lin Shenhe's suggestion, the mature technology was used: six 2-pound light mortars were installed: one on each side of the ship's side, one on the bow and one on the stern.The other two doors are to be installed on the platform at the top of the mast.This kind of artillery is very small and is mounted on a freely rotatable gimbal, which can rotate 360 ​​degrees, the elevation angle can reach 80 degrees, and the depression angle can reach 40 degrees.Fire iron sand, broken iron and shot with a total weight not exceeding 1 kg.The shooting range is very short, similar to the 12.7mm high planes on modern warships. It is specially used to kill enemies at close range. In naval battles, it is often used to shoot the opponent's sail cables and sailors on the deck, and it is also used directly when necessary. Clean up jumping gangs that have boarded your deck.Of course, the guiding ideology of crossing the navy is to shoot as far as possible, rather than engage in exhausting, close-range bombardment with heavy casualties.

Since the No. [-] ship is not going to install side cannons, its available space under the deck is much larger, which greatly improves the self-sustainability and carrying capacity of the ship, and the living conditions of the crew are naturally much better than those of ordinary sailing warships: more More crew rooms and sanitation facilities, better lighting and ventilation, even for the most ordinary sailors, Wen Desi has prepared retractable hammocks for them.From the perspective of a traveler, these can only be regarded as the minimum.Wen Desi is very aware of the weaknesses of his group of people. They have courage and ambition, but they lack the will to live a hard life.Not letting everyone eat, drink, and sleep well, and letting these people go on a long voyage and adventure is tantamount to nonsense.

As for the sails, the shipbuilding team decided to use Chinese-style hard sails for the time being—the hard sails are quite suitable for the ability of the traversers, after all, the traversers themselves do not have the technology to make soft sails.Sewing sails is a specialized technique that not only requires special tools, but also requires a huge space. At that time, not to mention that no one in China knew this technique. Even Macau may not have sailmakers. The canvas planning committee for sails There is no inventory in the warehouse, and we must rely on imports. It is still unknown whether there are so many canvases available for import in Macau.

In contrast, the manufacturing and material requirements of Chinese-style hard sails are much lower. Hard sails are a flat piece, while soft sails and spinnakers are complex curved surfaces that require sewing by professional craftsmen.The material of the soft sail must be special canvas, and the hard sail has supporting bones, so the material requirements are not high. Ordinary cloth, even straw mats, reed curtains and other things can be used instead. Even if a little damaged, it can continue to be used and temporarily repaired. It is also very convenient.

First of all, the hard sail has high wind-receiving efficiency. The hard sail is like the wing of an airplane, which can use the wind from eight directions.When the wind blows to the sail at a very small angle of attack, a lift is generated on the sail surface, and the lift is perpendicular to the direction of the wind.When the ship has a side wind, the lift force is roughly similar to the direction of the ship, which has high efficiency.Even in the case of a slanted headwind, the ship can follow a "zigzag" track and still travel.That is to say, the so-called "wind from all directions" can be used.One side of the sail is tied with a rope.The sailor can adjust the angle of the sail at any time according to the change of the wind.It seems that it is much more convenient to take the zigzag route based on the rapid raising and lowering of the sail and the crosswind, at the cost of being slower than the soft sail.

Secondly, the lifting and lowering operation of the hard sail is convenient. Since there is no complicated sail cable system, ordinary people can perform the work of retracting and retracting the sail almost without any special training. It can be done in a few seconds.Hoisting the sail is slower and more laborious—the sail has ribs in it and is heavier, but it doesn't require any special skill.The hard sail does not need to be adjusted frequently during sailing, which saves manpower.

Although in the long run, soft sail sailing is the trend of sailing development.Large sailing ships and fast sailing ships all use this system, but the mission of No. [-] ship is at most going south to the Philippines and north to the Japanese archipelago, basically in the coastal areas.Chinese-style hard sails are very suitable for the coastal areas of the mainland where the sea conditions are complex and the wind direction is changeable.

"Replace it with a hard sail for the time being, and then replace it when we have the ability to manufacture sails." Wen Desi actually doesn't like to use hard sails, but the conditions remind him that it is better to be realistic-except for industrial problems, soft sails Sailing requires much higher skills for sailors, and it is not as simple and convenient as hard sailing.After all, the zero ship is a ship that will be put into use immediately.

"In the future, steam engines will be used, so why do we need sailboats?" Li Di said.

Wen Desi shook his head: "At least in the next 20 years, the galleon will still be the direction of our ocean transportation - it does not need fuel. The steam engine ship does not have an advantage in the transportation of bulk cargo, and it is not efficient and consumes coal. Long-distance voyages require Solve the problem of overseas coal filling stations. As for when we can produce steam turbines, it depends on how fast we can climb the technology tree.”

Sailboats actually sailed until the 20s before they were completely eliminated by the world shipping market. Before that, sailboats were still the best means of transportation for long-distance transportation of bulk cargo at sea.

"I really want to drive our ironclad ship as soon as possible." Although Le Lin, a naval officer, doesn't know much about shipbuilding technology, she spends her time in the shipyard whenever she has free time.

"It's actually not that difficult. Iron-hulled ships are actually easier to build than wooden ones." Wen Desi said, "As long as there are enough materials and skilled workers can keep up with the training, building a thousand-ton iron-hulled ship is a trivial matter."

"Mr. Wen, do you think it's time to build another 70-ton soft sail sail as a training ship?"

The one who spoke was Ming Qiu from the Ministry of Marine Forces.As a naval consultant, he often came to this shipyard to see the construction progress of the first self-made warship passing through the navy.To be honest, after getting used to seeing modern warships, it's quite strange to see that the navy's warship is actually a sailing ship.Especially the strange emplacement——Ming Qiu only vaguely remembered seeing something similar when visiting a fort built in the late Qing Dynasty.Although the reality is somewhat out of touch with his experience, the basic idea of ​​building a navy is the same: whether it is a navy in the age of sails or a navy in the electronic age, people are always the most basic and critical composition.Training enough sailors is a top priority.Ming Qiu also saw the sailing training ship of the South China Sea Navy who came to visit, and felt that this method was very exercised and suitable for the future needs of the Navy.

"You're right. I'll discuss with the executive committee to allocate materials as soon as possible and start building a training ship, but this requires the support of the foreign trade department." In fact, a few days ago, Ma Qianju had already sent a foreign trade company's People went to Macau to see if they could manage to find relevant materials and craftsmen.

While talking, a European-style sloop with a swordfish-like long-toothed mast and a long row of sails was sailing crookedly in the sea outside the shipyard. It can be seen that there are still a few people crawling on it, and the sound of yelling can be heard in the faint sea breeze.

"Whose ship is this?" Wen Desi was taken aback.

"Li Huamei's ship, Hangzhou." Chen Haiyang reported, "I reported to the executive committee last time, and now she is teaching everyone how to maneuver a boat with a sail cable."

"It's her. She looks very active." Wen Desi was thoughtful, "Didn't Mond report that she didn't want to be a coach?"

"She refused. It's not considered a formal teaching now, it seems to be for entertainment."

"It's unique to use this pastime." Wen Desi was full of distrust.

After Li Huamei came to Lingao, the executive committee had doubts about her intentions, so they didn't set a tone for how to treat her.So only people from the foreign affairs department were sent to treat them with delicious food and drinks.Li Huamei, who was bored at the port, naturally got in touch with the navy members of Bopu. With her name, beautiful appearance, sharp temper and her fast boat, except for a few retired PLA naval officers, she still maintained a good relationship with this woman. In addition to the considerable revolutionary vigilance, most of the navy quickly lost their due vigilance, and often took her boat for a ride in the waters outside the port, and even learned the skills of sailing under the pretense of name.Li Huamei is also generous, not only giving lectures on various sea navigation experiences, but also performing various ship maneuvering techniques from time to time.For a while, his reputation soared and he won a large number of fans.So much so that every time the executive committee held an enlarged meeting, someone would say good things about her.Let the executive committee deeply feel the power of women's charm.

(End of this chapter)