Chapter 371: The creation of the Military Industry Department, the 2-pound Condor Cannon!
At the end of September, the corn in the Lake District has just matured and produced green grains. The fragrance of the grains is carried in the wind, and large groups of birds come to smell the fragrance.
Farmers in the village were mobilized, sleeping in the fields day and night, killing birds and animals that stole the corn. This hard work lasted for more than ten days, until the corn was completely ripe, and the farmers went to the fields to harvest.
In this era, in order to increase the yield as much as possible, corn has always been harvested late. Fresh and tender corn is a luxury for the nobles. The corn eaten by most people is old, yellow and hard, and one bite of it raw can break one's teeth. From then on
Agriculturally speaking, this is to give full play to the post-ripening effect of crops. It is necessary to wait until the leaves turn yellow, the bracts turn white, and the stems are completely dead, so that one or two more bushels can be harvested.
On this day, in the southeast of the capital, a large group of warriors wearing armor and holding bows, carrying strange golden-brown copper beasts, passed through the field stalks. The farmers along the way knelt on the ground in awe, not daring to look at the warriors. Gyeonggi Province
The villagers always have a little more knowledge. Even if there is no flag in today's battle, they must be the top nobles, even the supreme king!
Soon, the warriors disappeared behind the hills in the southeast. The farmers whispered a few words and continued to guard the farmland of the village. Waiting for the sun to rise in the sky, a roar of a giant beast suddenly sounded from the hills in the southeast.
, and then two more sounds!
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The sound was as loud as thunder, but it was as deep as the trembling metal. Then, there was a snap of a big tree breaking. The villagers crouched on the ground in fear, facing the southeast direction, praying devoutly to the Lord God.
"God bless you!..."
"God bless you!"
Seeing the results of the shooting, the king's expression was extremely excited. He roared excitedly, like a roaring jaguar. Behind him, Bertard opened his mouth in shock, and was absent-minded for a rare long time.
"Your Majesty, this is the gift of the Lord God! An indestructible artifact! The Sun Eagle Cannon!"
The director of the Bronze Bureau, Tiripi, looked excited and his face was full of irrepressible joy. He walked out from behind the craftsman who was operating the cannon and stroked the golden-brown copper beast that was still smoking. The surface of the copper beast flashed with golden light, and its tentacles were covered with
The heat was as hot as his blazing chest.
"The gun weighs 500 kilograms, the bullet weighs about 2 kilograms, the caliber is 5 centimeters, the gun length is 1.2 meters, the aiming range is 500 meters, and the maximum firing range is 2 miles! Within 1 mile, where the stone bullets fall, there is no warrior in the world.
You can resist it! If you block it, you will die, just like the big tree in front of you!!"
After saying that, he pointed forward. The cannon he just fired flew 1 mile and hit a wrist-thick tree on the hill, directly breaking the tree in two! And he had tried, even the strongest bronze heavy
A, in front of this condor cannon, it is as weak as newly made hemp paper!
"2-pound eagle cannon, 2-pound eagle cannon, I finally created a truly epoch-making weapon! A real bronze cannon!!"
The king's excitement could never calm down. Because only he could truly know the significance of this bronze cannon to American civilization!
"This is the weapon in my hand that can really break through the colonists' plate armor! In front of it, even groups of plate armored infantry have lost their irresistible aura and become bulky and fragile! This is also the only weapon that can threaten the colonization.
A weapon for sailing ships! Even though it only weighs 2 pounds! With it, I will have the truth and justice to fight against Westerners! It will become more powerful!..."
Deputy Director of the Department of Military Industry, Chalape, stared at the supreme king carefully with his eyes wide open. This was the first time he had seen the king so gloomy.
"Haha, the Sun Eagle Cannon, a real bronze cannon!"
Two steps away, Tiripi also laughed loudly, like a child who had created a favorite toy, shaking with joy. All of this was really not easy!
Since September last year, when he started building cannons, he has encountered hundreds of failures in a row. He has built more than a hundred clay molds! Seeing that the six-month deadline required by His Majesty is about to expire, he has been under tremendous pressure.
He even thought about committing suicide. Fortunately, His Majesty led the army to march north, leaving him enough time to continue exploring slowly.
All this time, he had room and board in the workshop, forcing the craftsmen and apprentices to work overtime day and night. They overcame countless difficulties and suffered countless hardships, and only in June last year did they build the first qualified Sun Condor.
Cannon! The weight of the Condor cannon continued to increase, from 250 kilograms to 500 kilograms, the inner diameter increased from 4 centimeters to 5 centimeters, and the outer diameter continued to thicken. The 1-pound cannon was cast into a 2-pound cannon, and all the problems were eliminated.
The gun barrel is leaking. Even if it is placed in water, there will be no bubbles at all.
After the first condor cannon was built, everyone immediately sent a letter to the north to report the belated good news. Then, based on this successful experience, the clay mold and the cannon casting process were adjusted. Each bronze gun was
The cannons were cast and melted, melted and cast, and it was not until August this year that 10 usable Condor cannons were cast from more than two hundred clay molds!
His Majesty once said: "If you cast a cannon from a clay mold, you can get two out of ten. If you get three out of ten, you will be called a national expert!"
Thinking of these words, Tiripi simply had a look on his face. Obviously, if you can get one from ten clays, you are a rare craftsman blessed by God! He generously promised his craftsmen and apprentices, "As long as you can get one from ten clays,
If a qualified Eagle Cannon is cast in the mold, no matter what its original identity is, it will be directly promoted to a first-level divine priest!"
And it took him two years to promote 8 people and cast 10 cannons! Yes, out of 10 cannons, he cast 2 of them himself.
Chalape looked at His Majesty who was talking excitedly to himself, and then at his younger brother who kept giggling. He didn't know what to say for a moment. He approached Bertard carefully and asked softly.
"Dear Holy Eagle Warrior Commander, should we call your Majesty..."
"Shh!"
Bertard reached out and stopped, shaking his head slightly. A pure smile appeared on his face.
"Let Your Majesty be happy for a while longer."
"Yes, you are right!"
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! The two of them were waiting quietly in the test firing range. There were 3 Condor cannons, 3 Tiger squatting cannons, and more than 30 people in the gun range.
The craftsmen operating the cannon. Outside the gun range, there are five hundred personal guard warriors, closely guarding the surroundings. Farther away, there is a squad of warriors responsible for patrolling, driving away businessmen or villagers who try to approach.
After a long time, Shulot finally calmed down. He walked out from behind the protective earth wall, stepped forward in person, and touched the 2-pound eagle cannon. The inner and outer surfaces of the eagle cannon were polished smooth, glowing with the golden light of bronze. He carefully
After looking at it for a while, he asked seriously.
"Tiripi, have you estimated the lifespan of this condor cannon?"
"life?"
"How many rounds can the barrel fire?"
Tilippi blinked his eyes, thought for a while, and smiled.
"Your Majesty, we have tested hundreds of rounds, and there is no damage to the barrel of this Condor Cannon. It seems to be more stable. It is estimated that there will be no problem if it fires more than a thousand rounds!"
"More than a thousand rounds?"
Shulot thought for a while and nodded. The artillery in front of him was only 2 pounds, the charge was only 2 kilograms, and the barrel length was only 1.2 meters. The barrel pressure of the artillery was not high, the barrel was extremely thick, the bronze quality was very good, and the smoothbore gun
There's no need to worry about rifling wear...it's really no problem to shoot more than a thousand rounds.
Although the current poundage of bronze artillery is still very small, it has formed a comprehensive crushing advantage over the wooden cannons used by the Alliance. The range, accuracy, and service life of bronze artillery are much higher than that of wooden cannons.
Wooden cannons, on the other hand, have low air tightness, large kinetic energy attenuation, and a lifespan of only a few dozen rounds. The distance is no more than a hundred or ten meters. They are simple temporary firearms. In general, the two are not products of the same era at all.
"Tiripi, what is the success rate of cannon casting now? How long does it take to cast a qualified condor cannon?"
"Your Majesty, the current success rate of cannon casting is...about one in ten. But the craftsmen are making rapid progress."
Although Tilipi complained about His Majesty in his heart, he did not dare to show it at all. At this moment, he lowered his head slightly and looked respectful.
"As long as there is enough copper, we can start working on dozens of clay molds at the same time...On average, can we produce one condor cannon a month?...Ah, no, if we work overtime, two cannons will be no problem!"
Seeing His Majesty's eyebrows raised, Tiripi quickly added.
Shulot thought deeply and nodded slowly.
"1 in 10 success rate...2 doors per month..."
In the early stages of a technological leap, the success rate of manufacturing is always very low. After all, this is the first successful attempt to cast a cannon in the entire Mesoamerican civilization! As long as there is zero breakthrough, technical experience will continue to accumulate, and the success rate of manufacturing will also decrease.
will steadily improve.
"Tiripi, you just said that the weight of this condor cannon is 500 kilograms?"
"...Yes, Your Majesty."
"Can you make it lighter? A 500-pound cannon is too difficult to carry with the army. I'm afraid it will cause problems when crossing mountains and ridges."
Shulot frowned slightly. Now that we don’t have a reliable alpaca, we can’t let the alpaca pull the cannon, right?
"Your Majesty, the bronze workshop can try to reduce the weight of the cannon. But we must first ensure that the barrel will not leak..."
Tilippi looked embarrassed and replied carefully.
Hearing this, Shulot understood. The kingdom's technology and craftsmanship levels were not up to par, and it could only develop in a stupid, big, black and crude direction. This is the way for future generations to make money. If movement and cost are not taken into consideration, the god
The eagle cannon has been expanded exponentially, and can be built up to four thousand kilograms, and a 10-pound and a half-long barrel cannon can also be produced. Of course, as the weight of the cannon increases, the molten bronze will cool down step by step, and the difficulty of casting will increase exponentially.
.So far, the 2-3 pound bronze cannon should be the technical limit of the kingdom.
During this era, the "terrible" 18-pound culverin and 10-pound half-barreled cannon (Demi-culverin) had appeared in Europe, and iron bullets were used to replace stone bullets, which were used in fierce battles for fortresses.
The standard 18-pound long-barreled gun weighs 4,500 kilograms, has a caliber of 13-14 centimeters, and a gun length of 3.5 meters. One shot "erodes" twelve or three miles. Of course, the effective aiming distance is only about three miles. And the common 10-and-a-half-pound gun
The long-barreled gun weighs 3,000 kilograms, has a caliber of 10-11 centimeters, a gun length of 2.6 meters, a maximum range of 9 miles, and an effective range of 1.5 miles. These are the most advanced artillery manufacturing levels in Europe, and they are continuing to make rapid progress.
However, for the poor terrain of Central America, there is no need to worry about these European "heavy artillery". The difficult rain forests and complex mountains will turn all heavy artillery into immovable scrap metal.
At the beginning of casting the cannon, Shulot had a clear idea. The empire's future artillery must be mainly light infantry cannons. Thinking of this, he looked next to the Condor cannon again. There were three 0.4-meter-long cannons with a caliber of 4
Centimeter, weighing 100 kilograms, short and lightweight tiger crouching cannon. The tiger crouching cannon body is clamped with copper hoops and equipped with fixed copper claws. The casting difficulty of this kind of cannon is much easier and more expensive than the long-barreled cannon.
Easy to carry.
"Tiripi, how powerful is this tiger crouching cannon?"
The king asked with a smile.
A confident smile appeared on Tilippi's face. He stretched out his hand and pointed at the earth wall behind him.
"God bless you! Your Majesty, please retreat behind the earth wall. I will let the gunners test-fire the Rain God Tiger Crouching Cannon!"
"Okay! God bless you!"
The long wind blew, bringing the smell of gunpowder smoke in the air. The king took a few sniffs and showed a sincere smile. This smell is so intoxicating, full of the power of light and justice!