Zhu Youxiao stayed in the military camp for two days and made all the preparations. After returning to the palace to deal with political affairs for two days, he received a report from Xu Guangqi that the bronze cannon was made, and then quickly went to the arsenal.
The scale of the arsenal has been basically completed. There are nearly 6,000 craftsmen of various sizes working day and night to make armor and weapons according to the standards set by Zhu Youxiao.
Zhu Youxiao was worried that it was too slow, so he divided all their work and operated it in an assembly line manner. He even implemented two shifts, which made the efficiency several times faster. If they operated according to the previous method, it would be impossible to create a large number of people in just two or three months.
There are so many armors and weapons.
"Bang!"
There was a loud bang on the arsenal's testing ground, and thick white smoke was seen coming out of the muzzle of a brand-new small bronze cannon, while the target made of bricks and stones in the distance had been blown to pieces.
"Okay, this gun is really powerful. Keep loading and try a few more rounds!"
After trying five rounds in a row, Zhu Youxiao was very satisfied with the power.
"How far can this gun shoot? How many kilograms of medicine can be loaded? Can it be fired continuously?"
Zhu Youxiao asked several questions in a row, which he couldn't help but understand. These questions were all very important.
Xu Guangqi stepped forward and replied:
"Your Majesty, the firing range of various types of gunpowder is different. For example, solid bullets can reach 600 steps, while bulk guns can reach between 700 and 800 steps. And this cannon is made of high-quality bronze.
It can fire twenty rounds continuously, and you only need to stop for a moment before continuing to fire!"
Seven hundred steps is equivalent to more than 500 meters in later generations. Its range is similar to that of the Crouching Tiger Cannon, but it is more powerful, easier to use, and easier to carry than the Crouching Tiger Cannon. It is basically ahead of the Crouching Tiger Cannon in all aspects.
"Your Majesty, this gun is a combination of the General Cannon and the Tiger Crouching Cannon. It has a long barrel as the muzzle, a two-wheeled vehicle underneath, a hook in the middle, and double armrests on both sides. It weighs fifty kilograms in total. Two sergeants can
You can push it up and go at any time, whether it is in the mountains or fields, and the same is true for horses as long as they are hung up on the hook!"
Bronze cannons are much better than iron cannons. They do not require cooling holes like iron cannons. They are more tough and difficult to explode. Moreover, the manufacturing process of bronze cannons is simpler and faster than iron cannons.
Now that the bronze cannons are built, the firepower of the Shenji Battalion can be strengthened, and it can also flexibly deal with the cavalry. It can retreat if it wants to retreat, or attack if it wants to, without being rushed into the enemy's face.
"Master Xu, how many bronze cannons can be made in one month?"
Xu Guangqi thought for a while, then said respectfully:
"Your Majesty, today's craftsmen don't know much about the manufacturing process of bronze cannons. They need to be taught in advance and can only start work after they are familiar with it. This will take about ten days!"
"If Your Majesty needs it urgently, the craftsmen will work day and night, and they can probably build eighty to one hundred doors. At normal speed, they should be able to build more than fifty doors!"
Today's artillery factory has more than 800 craftsmen with excellent skills. Now there is no problem in terms of people and craftsmanship, but there is a lack of time.
"Just come at a normal speed, don't tire people out!"
If fifty bronze cannons were concentrated and bombarded indiscriminately, no matter what kind of soldiers were on the opposite side, they would not be able to withstand it, and it would be enough to drink a pot of Lin Dan Khan!
"After the artillery is completed, each one must be strictly reviewed and tested. There must be no deviations in power, range, and angle. After the review is completed, it will be quickly handed over to the Shenji Battalion for practice!"
"yes!"
Zhu Youxiao went to the warehouse to check the armor and weapons that had been made. There were really too few. These were made of the best materials, but good things are never easy to make. It is precisely because the materials are better.
The better, the slower!
Armor is better, but weapons are more difficult, because there are too many types of weapons, including spears, long knives, short knives, sabers, heavy bows, light bows, shields, armor-piercing hammers, pure axes, etc.
It is required by all arms.
"Zhang Zhiji, judging from the current progress, can we produce equipment for 50,000 people before March?"
Zhang Zhiji stepped forward and said:
"Your Majesty, I'm afraid we can't. There is really not enough time. I have transferred all the free people in the arsenal to the factory. But as of today, there are only seven or eight thousand pairs of armor. Heavy armor is even more difficult. At the moment, there are not even half of the number.
None, let alone ordnance!"
Although Zhu Youxiao asked Zhang Zhiji to quickly produce equipment for an army of 50,000 people, he was not empty. The Ministry of War's warehouse and the equipment they had equipped before had tens of thousands of pairs. Zhu Youxiao was not very fond of armor.
Very lacking, what he lacks is sophisticated weapons and heavy armor.
"We can stop the armor first and build the heavy armor and weapons first. These are what I urgently need!"
"yes!"
Then Zhu Youxiao ordered Ma Xianglin to try on a suit of heavy armor. The armor of the Ming Dynasty was mainly cloth armor. Only the armies of Jiubian and Liaodong were qualified to wear iron armor or cotton armor, but it was different from the chieftain soldiers.
, their weapons and armor were all prepared by themselves, and the white-pole soldiers wore thick cotton armor.
"Your Majesty, this armor is really good. Although it's heavy to wear, it feels pretty thick. It's basically airtight. It's perfect for outside the customs!"
The heavy armor made by Zhu Youxiao at the arsenal was divided into two layers, with a layer of chain mail on the inside, a layer of thick cotton in the middle, and an iron armor about one centimeter thick on the outside. A mask was also specially made.
This is used to protect against bows and arrows, and is heavy on the whole body.
Whether it was Mongolia or Jiannu, they both relied on bows and arrows. Mongolia could not afford firearms and artillery, but Nurhachi looked down on them. He thought these were just fire sticks, and artillery was more practical. This was the difference between him and Huang Taiji.
Huang Taiji's vision was much further than that of Nurhachi.
I saw Ma Xianglin put on the heavy armor and swung the sword a few times. He was relatively flexible, and the armor could only do this.
"Zhang Zhiji, first allocate five thousand pieces of armor and ordnance to the military camp!"
After speaking, he looked at Ma Xianglin and said:
"Tomorrow you will be responsible for the escort. First, equip all the Xiaoqi battalion, and the rest will be handed over to Zhou Xingwu's Huben battalion!"
"Go see the firearms factory!"
There are more than a thousand craftsmen in the firearms factory. Zhang Zhiji has a clear division of labor. Every five people are responsible for one matchlock gun. You cannot rush this kind of thing, you have to work slowly and carefully.
The speed is not very slow. Basically, 600 fine matchlock guns can be made in ten days.
The reason why Zhu Youxiao only made matchlock guns was because only this kind of musket could barely break through Jiannu's heavy armor, bird blunderbuss, and three-eyed fire blunderbuss, which were useless and too weak.
Zhu Youxiao asked Ma Xianglin to choose 20 muskets to try out, and also specially found some iron pieces to make armor. Basically, it could be barely broken through in 70 steps, and it could be penetrated in 40 or 50 steps.
There is no way, I don't have the conditions to make heavy muskets now, I can only make do with these.