But this is not a real train gun, but a beggar version of a prototype train gun. In fact, these C80 howitzers are towed artillery, and they have wheels.
Tang Mo just produced some flat train carriages, and then simply fixed these artillery pieces on these flat carriages.
This ensured Tang Mo's flexibility in using these artillery pieces to the greatest extent, but it sacrificed the protective performance of the train guns.
Theoretically speaking, Tang Mo could build an armored train and install artillery and various weapons on it to surprise the enemy.
But you must know that armored trains do not consume a lot of steel, and their use is also very limited. In fact, Tang Mo was not able to fully utilize the advantages of armored trains.
In comparison, the method of saving steel is more in line with Tang Mo's current situation. After all, he now wants to use the limited steel production capacity in more useful places.
Because Tang Mo is now officially considering whether he wants to get involved in the distant oil-rich Black Dragon Island.
After all, oil, as the blood of modern industry, is very precious and the most important. Being able to grasp an oil producing area in advance is absolutely crucial to Tang Mo's planning and layout.
Now that he knows that there is a place like Black Dragon Island, he naturally hopes to hold this island in his hands.
In his plan to conquer and control Black Dragon Island, the navy is definitely the core combat force. With only his dozen or so sailing ships, it is tantamount to wishful thinking to dominate Black Dragon Island.
Even if he really occupied Black Dragon Island, those dozen small boats would not be able to support his maritime transportation, let alone defend his island assets!
Therefore, in Tang Mo's plan, expanding maritime power is actually very important and urgent.
Against this background, Tang Mo did not spend all his limited steel on the armored train option. Instead, he saved as much as he could and turned his train cannon into a simple model.
Where was the saved steel used? It was used on a brand new ship in the dock - it was a truly new steel warship, using steam power.
The design of this battleship is based on the famous cruiser Zhiyuan, but some minor modifications were made due to the times and Tang Mo's existing capabilities.
The first is the battleship's protective capabilities. Due to the lack of steel, a lot of cuts have been made. The originally more densely packed watertight compartments have been greatly simplified.
At the same time, the famous German dome horizontal defense was completely cancelled, and only a layer of steel plates below the deck was deployed for defense.
After all, the maritime battleships of this era still use muzzle-loading guns, and basically use solid bullets. Under this general premise, increasing the armor of steel battleships does not make any sense in itself.
After canceling the horizontal armor and reducing the internal defensive armor, the length of Tang Mo's battleship was increased by 10 meters, reaching an astonishing 89 meters long and 11.5 meters wide.
The main reason for such modifications is to save materials. In addition to ensuring the strength of the hull, the defensive design was eventually reduced.
Even the bridge, which could have defended itself against direct attacks from large-caliber artillery, was reduced to half of its original armor thickness.
Because so much less steel was used, the ship's dead weight was reduced and the center of gravity of the design was unstable. Therefore, some of the hulls could only be expanded and the reserves of self-sustaining drinking water and coal mines inside were added - used as ballast stones.
For this series of improvements, Tang Mo also deliberately hired nine master craftsmen who designed ships at a high price, and used the computer in his mind to conduct simulation calculations before completing the ultimate improvement of the ship.
Therefore, the self-sustainability of this improved Zhiyuan battleship at sea has been greatly improved, and its speed has also increased to a terrifying 40 kilometers per hour.
In order to facilitate calculations, Tang Mo did not stubbornly use the unit of calculation "knot", but still used the unit of length on land, kilometer, at sea.
40 kilometers per hour is roughly equal to a speed of about 22 knots. This is the advantage brought by the weight reduction of the new warship and the use of more mature steam engines.
In order to deal with the problems of more advanced boilers and greater heat generated by steam engines, this battleship installed another chimney in the middle of the growing hull.
Because there is no need to design so many watertight compartments, there is enough coal, and there is enough fresh water, the living standards on the battleship have also improved a lot, they can carry more food, and they have more spacious living conditions.
In terms of weapons, this improved Zhiyuan battleship, or a severely reduced battleship, has eliminated many novel things.
Tang Mo didn't have that many novel things to add to this battleship, so all the torpedoes originally designed to be used on the battleship were cancelled.
There is no way. Tang Mo doesn't even have a torpedo production workshop now, let alone torpedoes. He also has no way to start the production of so many weapons. His workers don't even know what a torpedo is.
Torpedoes cannot be manufactured, so the torpedo-related compartments can also be moved out and used as the crew's living quarters.
At the same time, Tang Mo, the large number of Hotchkiss rapid-fire cannons equipped on the Zhiyuan, could not be used at all.
The original Zhiyuan ship had 8 Hotchkiss 57mm single-barreled guns and 6 37mm caliber rapid-fire guns... Tang Mo couldn't directly get such a bunch of things to equip the warship.
Whether they are useful or garbage, Tang Mo is not going to pursue them, because after all, he has not seen their combat scenes, but it is true that he does not have a production line for these weapons.
It was also impossible for Tang Mo to deliberately reopen the production lines of two special weapons for one battleship.
Each of his production lines is precious now, and he must take care of the army's usage needs as much as possible, and at the same time, he must consider future sales promotion, so it is impossible for him to get some useless 37 mm caliber navy-specific cannon.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Therefore, this battleship ultimately used 10 75mm caliber rear-loading field guns that Tangmo could produce...
The firing range of these artillery is very limited, and they are all deployed on the sides, so they cannot provide any firepower to the bow of the ship.
However, relying on the terrifying speed of this warship, it can calmly adjust its attitude beyond the range of enemy warships and use its side with the most powerful firepower to meet the enemy.
The artillery used in the bow and stern of the ship is actually not the 210mm large-caliber main gun of the Zhiyuan ship that has insufficient fire rate. Instead, it is a directly improved 120mm-caliber field gun for use.
After all, these days, there are no naval guns that can fire more than 5 kilometers. A 120 mm caliber cannon that can fire high-explosive bombs is completely crushing at sea.
What's more, the advantages brought by the reduced caliber are even more obvious. This improved battleship is equipped with a triple-mounted turret on the bow and a double-mounted turret on the stern!
Therefore, the overall design of this new ship has five 120 mm caliber guns and 12 75 mm caliber secondary guns as its main weapons. The number of guns alone is much more powerful than that of a destroyer.
However, because the searchlight technology was not yet mature, Tang Mo had no choice but to cancel the searchlight design. Therefore, this giant ship, like other naval warships, did not have naval combat capabilities.
In addition, the dozen old-fashioned Gatling machine guns originally equipped on the Zhiyuan ship were also canceled by Tang Mo. They were replaced by 6 Maxim water-cooled heavy machine guns with more powerful firepower.
Because the development of machine guns has not yet been completed, when the new ship was built, only the bases of these weapons were retained and not installed.
Also because there is no need for key ammunition protection, most of the ammunition depots are designed to be dispersed near the artillery positions, so the total weight of the overall firepower system is reduced, and the speed of retrieving artillery shells is also increased accordingly.
The lack of defensive power is actually offset by today's taller opponents. Those solid shells that can only hit less than one kilometer are impossible to penetrate the thin side armor and smash into the ammunition compartment of the ironclad.
In fact, this giant ship with a displacement of 3,700 tons is definitely the most advanced and powerful battleship in the world. Today's sailing battleships from various countries are simply no match for it.
Although it still has many imperfections, its birth will still be recorded in the annals of history, and its appearance will still rewrite the naval battles of the entire world.
Tang Mo is very confident that after this battleship is launched, he will be able to maintain his maritime transportation line.
At that time, starting to build Heilong Island became a top priority. Therefore, it was necessary for him to inspect Heilong Island first and let the sailors master the skills of long-distance navigation.
Therefore, he looked at Roger and others and asked about the activities of his fleet: "What's the situation over there with the fleet?"
Roger immediately answered his question: "We sent two ships south with 1,000 K1 guns and 50,000 rounds of ammunition. If everything goes well, they can sell these weapons."
Leo also added: "They have only been south for more than a month, and there is no news back."
"If we can sell the needle gun, we can send all the ships south together next time." Roger continued.
"This is good news." Tang Mo nodded.
After half a year of training, his fleet finally began ocean-going activities. On the one hand, this can train sailors, and on the other hand, it can also bring more profits to Tang Mo.
Simply tossing around in the Wright Kingdom obviously cannot satisfy Tang Mo's expansion ambitions. What he needs is to control more trade routes and sell more things.
"Before they come back, this is not good news." John on the side reminded: "Sea trade is a very dangerous thing."
He looked at Tang Mo and frowned: "You look more like a man. On this trip to Beiling, are you..."
"Don't make blind guesses!" Tang Mo glanced at John with a smile and explained, "It's good news that our sailors have the courage to fight on the ocean."
"If we don't send them out, they may die of obesity in the port." Bernard, who was in charge of the navy, told a joke.
