The sound of tinkling could be heard in the blacksmith shop.
As soon as the hammer was hammered down, sparks flew everywhere, and the iron bar became flat, and a layer of gray-black impurities fell off. After a few hits, it was put back in to burn. It was repeated for who knows how many rounds before the iron bar had no impurities. Qin Huaidao did not give up and burned it.
The red iron bars were folded together, twisted into a twist, and continued to be forged.
After confirming that there were no impurities, Qin Huaidao flattened the iron bars with a small hammer, and then shaped them. Without a mold to finalize the shape, he used two iron bars to smash them on a wooden pier with a small gap, and then stuck the iron bars in the middle of the iron bars slowly.
Breaking it into an arc is a technical job. Don't do it too fast. If you do it too fast, it will deform and crack.
When breaking it off, you must first determine the center point, start breaking it off from the center, and make an elongated M shape. The ends at both ends are slightly raised, and the tail is slightly burned and a notch is made. The notch will be tied in the future.
For beef tendon, there needs to be a hole to fix it so that it will not fall off, slip, etc.
After the final shape was completed, Qin Huaidao supported the center of the bow's back and suspended it in the air to check whether the two ends were balanced. This step is called bow adjustment. If it is not balanced, the elasticity will be inconsistent in the future and the arrow will be deflected. Qin Huaidao observed while
Debugged until completely balanced and then breathed a sigh of relief.
After dinner, Qin Huaidao told Luo Zhang about the operation and asked Luo Zhang to stay in Qinjiazhuang tonight, then returned to the iron shop to continue processing.
The back of the bow is still soft iron. Soft iron has no elasticity and must be made into steel. Qin Huaidao continued to bake the steel using the steel-stewing method. He took advantage of the carburizing time to find hardwood and carpenter tools, and after one operation, he made a handle.
It is exactly the same shape as the center of the arched back and fits seamlessly.
The grip is used to be fixed at the center of the bow for easy gripping. It can also hold the steel bar in place and increase the elasticity at both ends. It should not be too long. If it is too long, the steel bar will get stuck and cannot be pulled. If it is too short, it will not hold tightly.
It also loosens easily.
Qin Huaidao had no experience in burning cement, but he was good at making weapons. Not to mention such a simple bow, he could even make guns and bullets by himself. Especially the bullets. The amount of gunpowder in them is very important. If there is too much, it will be heavy.
The bullets will not be the same when fired, and may even explode in the chamber. It is even worse if there are fewer bullets. A good special forces soldier basically processes the bullets himself, so you can use them with confidence. Of course, you must have tools.
After the grip is made, it still needs to be dried out, then coated with tung oil and baked slowly, which is all technical work.
He was busy until midnight. Qin Huaidao estimated that the carburization was almost done. He took out the back of the bow and quenched it. After cooling, he did not bother to polish it. He installed the tendon and tried it. It was impossible for ordinary people to pull it open, but for Xue Rengui
It was probably a bit light for me, so I could make do with it, so I handed it over to Xue Rengui, who had been impatient for a long time.
Xue Rengui tried it and said: "This bow can probably shoot about thirty feet. It would be better if it were harder."
Thirty feet is nearly a hundred meters away. It is indeed not enough for plain combat, but it is enough for jungle combat. Qin Huaidao said: "It is not difficult to make it harder. We just need to make the steel bars thicker and the whole body larger. Fifty feet is no problem.
Let's work together first, and it's up to you to defeat the bandits this time."
"Thank you, young master. With this bow, no one can get close, but there are no arrows." Xue Rengui said gratefully.
"Someone will bring it over tomorrow. It's getting late. Let's go back and rest."
The two turned off the fire and came to the ancestral hall.
Luo Zhang was still sharpening his knife. His eyes lit up when he saw the bow in Xue Rengui's hand. He took it and tried it. The strength was just right. He praised: "Uncle, this bow is different from other people's. The best one is the horn."
The bow is made of beef tendons and glued together. It took a long time to make one, but my uncle actually made it in half a day. It looks almost as strong as an ox horn bow, which is amazing."
"The production process is different, do you like it? I'll help you make one later." Qin Huaidao said with a smile.
"Forget it, I'm not good at archery."
Xue Rengui held the bow and couldn't put it down, saying: "You go to bed first, I will polish it tonight."
Qin Huaidao reminded: "Don't grind too much, you will easily lose your center of gravity. Just treat the surface a little. It doesn't have to look good, the key is to be easy to use. Although the grip has been waterproofed, you can also wrap it with cowhide to make it comfortable to hold. No need to
The bow string can be removed when the bow is in use to prevent the tendons from breaking and the bow from deforming over time."
"Understood, thank you young master!" Xue Rengui said gratefully.
"Have the arrangements for escorting the convoy been arranged?" Qin Huaidao looked at Luo Zhang.
"I told Luo Ying, there should be no problem. It's just that the prince's side is difficult to deal with. I took action today and drove him away according to your order. I'm worried that something will happen tomorrow, and none of us will be here." Luo Zhang reminded.
Qin Huaidao thought for a while and said: "Tomorrow morning you tell Luo Ying that you can pull it if they want, remember the amount, and I will go find him to settle the bill later. It is impossible to give it away for nothing, but I can't take care of it at the moment.
"
"Okay, I'll tell you right now, lest I forget!" Luo Zhang left in a hurry.
The ground was covered with a thick layer of straw, and on top of the straw were hay and bedding, which were soft when sleeping and heated by the fire. Qin Huaidao got into the quilt and fell asleep. He was so tired during this period that he soon fell asleep.
the next morning.
Qin Huaidao was woken up by the sound of voices. When he opened his eyes, he saw that it was bright. Breakfast was mutton noodle soup. He drank a big bowl of mutton soup. When he went down, he saw the three brothers Cheng Chumo and Yuchi Baolin coming on horseback. One had two horses and the other had another horse.
Dragging weapons and dry food in bags, he asked: "You came very early, have you eaten?"
"No, I'll rush here early in the morning." Cheng Chumo said.
"Mother Yun, could you please help me order a few bowls of noodles?" Qin Huaidao said to the woman cooking next to him.
"It's no trouble, I'll do it." The other party agreed quickly.
After everyone chatted for a while, Qin Huaidao ran into the ancestral hall to change clothes, tied the dog-leg knife to his calf, and wore a round-collared robe, which could be completely covered. He held the long knife in his hand. It was not suitable to use a horse knife for jungle warfare. He had no plans.
For fighting, two knives, one long and one short, are enough. With Xue Rengui holding a bow, there is no need for a crossbow.
There were three long knives made and three dog-leg knives. Qin Huaidao divided the remaining knives between Xue Rengui and Luo Zhang. They followed Qin Huaidao's example and tied them to their calves without using horse straps.
Cheng Chumo and others all brought horse bows and a horizontal sword. Yuchi Baolin threw an arrow pot to Xue Rengui. There were thirty arrows in it. He pointed at the horses and said: "There are seventy more in there, a total of one hundred.
I’ll use it first, and I’ll get some more for you later when I get a chance.”
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Xue Rengui caught it.
"You're welcome, Huaidao treats you as a brother, that is, our brother." Yuchi Baolin said solemnly.
Xue Rengui looked at Yuchi Baolin, then at Qin Huaidao, and felt warm in his heart. He said nothing more, but kept this friendship deeply in his heart.
The few princes in front of me are either heirs who will inherit the title of Duke in the future, or they are officials of the sixth rank of the imperial court, who are on the same level as the county magistrate. They have prominent family backgrounds and noble status. To be able to call them brothers and sisters is to condescend to make friends and treat them with the courtesy of a national scholar.
After everyone finished eating, Qin Huaidao and everyone got on their horses and shouted: "Brothers, let's go!"
"drive--"
The war horses roared away, rushed out of Qinjiazhuang, and quickly disappeared into the cold and windy wilderness.