Wang Zheng is responsible for the gears and chains of the bicycle, while Bo Jue is responsible for the frame, rims and bars. The former's work is very precise, while the latter's work cannot be careless.
Especially for bicycle rims, Bo Jue has only seen the wheels of horse-drawn carriages and other models. For bicycle wheels that need to be embodied, everything can only rely on the imagination of the brain.
The picture album drawn by the prince was very lifelike, but it was another troublesome thing to actually do it, because Bo Dacaizi had never come into contact with similar objects before.
The wheel is divided into an outer tire and an inner tube. Since the outer tire has to be in contact with the ground, it must be hard and elastic enough to prevent stones from wearing down the tire and buffer the reaction force from the ground.
The inner tube must store air, and maintaining absolute air tightness is the most critical factor, especially the vital valve core, which requires careful craftsmanship by jewelry craftsmen.
There is no need for a certain prince to worry about sealing. The rubber will play the relevant role after it solidifies. However, in this era, we cannot hope that the tire will be molded at once.
"First boil the rubber, then cool it after it boils. The cooling water is divided into several temperatures. This way you can test the corresponding effects of the rubber at different cooling rates."
Yaoji was not very familiar with the characteristics of Malay rubber during the Great Rebellion. He had eaten bananas produced in Malay, but they were useless for making bicycles.
At present, we can only slowly conduct various tests and select the two most suitable ones from various samples as the designated templates for inner tubes and outer tires.
It is more troublesome to make an O-shaped tire with a C-shaped cross-section. Due to the influence of gravity, the liquid rubber will fall no matter it is injected into the mold from any direction.
It is even more impossible to stand the mold up for pouring. It can only be made into a solid mold with an O-shaped tunnel dug inside.
After the rubber cools down, its appearance is modified, and the more important task is to hollow out the interior so that its cross-section becomes a hollow C-shape.
This will make it easier to install the inner tube. Although a certain prince has never made a bicycle, he still has some experience in repairing bicycles.
The manufacturing process of inner tubes is also similar, except that it is best to make the knife edge as small as possible. After cutting, you need to apply another layer of glue and let it dry before bonding to avoid increasing the pressure at the knife edge due to the infusion of gas. And a flat tire.
Before I accumulate enough experience, I can only do this for the time being. If rubber really doesn't work, I have to use wooden wheels instead.
Except for the very poor shock absorption, everything else is fine. Moreover, if imported rubber is not used, the cost will be significantly reduced. Maybe it can be made into a reduced version for mass production.
"Your Highness, can this thing be replaced with a wooden wheel?"
After being reminded by the prince, Bo Jue also thought about the difficulty of making rubber wheels and thought of a substitute.
"Of course you can, but the comfort will be greatly reduced."
Those who can afford bicycles are wealthy customers, and appearance and comfort are the aspects they value most.
As long as you can make it, even if it costs a thousand taels of silver per car, many people will come to try it.
However, excessive pricing will inevitably significantly reduce sales, so it is important to find a balance between performance and price.
"No problem, no problem, just take a ride!"
Bo Jue will not dislike the low-end version. He also wants to use the bicycle to test the immortal energy he has accumulated after practicing for many days.
In his opinion, his immortal energy has reached the limitless level. Compared with ordinary people, he is like standing out from the crowd. He can easily control it by riding on the immortal chariot.
When Yaoji saw Bo Jue's daydreaming look, he couldn't help pouring cold water on him. The bicycle didn't have chains or gears, so it was just a decoration.
Even if you make two 24K pure gold wheels and press them on, won't you still be unable to ride on them?
When Lao Wangtou's side is completed, your car will be considered completed.
Including the replacement parts, Lao Wangtou will have to make at least a hundred chain pins and bushings of roughly the same shape and size.
This is definitely a skill-testing job. The chain pin is only as big as a little finger, thin at both ends and thick in the middle, used to fit the bushing.
The eye on the shaft sleeve must fit tightly with the pin head of the chain pin and cannot be too loose. Even if there is a problem with only one pair, the chain will fall off.
This very small machine is not simple. The maker must have the patience and perseverance to make royal jewelry to make it well.
Blacksmith Bo can handle low-complexity parts like this one by himself, without the help of craftsmen at all.
"This handlebar needs to be painted, otherwise the wood will rot if it is exposed to rain!"
Yaoji touched the smooth wooden handlebar with his hand. It felt very good, and seemed to be inferior to mahjong tiles.
"Your Highness reminds me, what color does Your Highness like?"
Bo Jue kept in mind every instruction from the prince, which was of great benefit in building the fairy car.
In fact, a certain prince was overly worried. Bo Dacaizi would move all the parts into his room so that they would not be exposed to rain.
For these treasured objects, Bo Jue should be much more interested in them than the wife he might marry, so he almost fell asleep with his arms around them.
"Uh... let's paint it green, symbolizing vitality and vitality. By the way, the frame can be painted green and the handlebars can be painted with clear paint. In order to be more comfortable when riding, there is room for improvement in your saddle. . Wrap a layer of leather on the outside and put some soft cotton or other materials on the inside, so that it feels good when riding."
Yaoji thinks that he will never see someone riding for a long time. The quality of the initial chain is likely to be substandard, and the chain may fall off anytime and anywhere.
It can be said that the time spent pushing the cart is much longer than the time spent riding it. This is completely a super luxury craft that is time-consuming, laborious and expensive.
"I have taken a note, Your Highness, why are the handlebars so wide? Isn't it just right to be shoulder-width apart?"
Bo Jue didn't understand the huge handlebar. This handlebar was so big that it was very different from what he had imagined. It seemed that it was not easy to drive.
"The handlebar is like giving Aiqing a bamboo pole to maintain balance when walking on a balance beam. Unlike the bamboo pole, the handlebar also has a steering function. When Aiqing rides, she will understand the meaning of wide handlebars. Good thing. I am just explaining the mechanics here. If Aiqing wants to push a stone mill, the longer the push rod, the easier it will be for Aiqing to push. Otherwise, it will be very difficult. This is the relationship between strength and moment arm. The larger the moment arm, the smaller the force required to push the object to move. Otherwise, the smaller the moment arm, the greater the force used. The same is true for controlling handlebars. In the future, I will gradually tell Aiqing about physics. Some knowledge. The bicycle is just a carrier to enhance Aiqing’s cognitive level, and then there is the airship. Once Aiqing finishes developing the airship, she will feel that her knowledge has far exceeded that of her peers!”
Yao Ji doesn’t want to spend thousands of taels of silver a year to hire a blacksmith and carpenter who is disguised as a scientist. That is really a scam...
By building bicycles, talented people can be exposed to mechanics and mechanics.
By developing airships, you can upgrade to more high-end power and chemical engineering.
Then came the telegraph and steam engine, which would open up a whole new world for Bo Jue.
After finishing all these novel things, Bo Dacaizi will really be able to turn those whimsical things into real objects.
"His Royal Highness is knowledgeable and has great advice for me. He is like a good teacher. I am deeply grateful. If you have any instructions, I will never give up!"
Bo Jue knew that he could learn a lot of unheard of knowledge from the prince's side. Even if he just listened to a cup of tea, it would be enough for him to go back and digest it for a while.
All the prince's requests are not a problem for Bo Jue, and he will obey unconditionally. He is also most keen to discuss strange things with people like the prince who are much more knowledgeable than himself.
"In this case, Aiqing has achieved great results these days, but her complexion is not very good. I think she must not have a good balance between work and rest. Since it is getting late, let's go back and rest early!"
Finally, I waited for an excuse from the other party and kicked Bo Jue out. Otherwise, he would still be shamelessly squatting here in this palace and cheating on knowledge.
Get a bunch of parts and put them together but you can't ride them. Why do you want me to look at your sister?
Go back to bed quickly and get up in the morning to boil the rubber. This is your business.
"...I obey!"
Bo Jue glanced at the sky. The sun had already set. It would be disrespectful to stay in the East Palace. Although he was unwilling to do so, he could only find another chance to make a comeback.
Bo Jue never cares about his face when it comes to exploring new knowledge and things. As long as the prince is willing to receive him, he dares to stay in the East Palace indefinitely.
Bo Jue had seen the progress of Senior Wang. It would take a long time just to make the chain pins. Bo Jue thought about helping.
But when I saw that making hundreds of identical little things would make me sick to death, I gave up the idea.
Although boiling rubber also requires patience, Bo Jue's curiosity can offset most of the annoyance for a new gelatinous thing.
He can also take the opportunity to study the thermometer made by the prince. This is an object he has never seen before. It turns out that the temperature can also be measured.
Now the maximum temperature during the day can rise to 25 degrees. This is the data that Bo Jue specially recorded. He has to record the daily temperature for emergency needs.
According to this calculation, in midsummer when the weather is the hottest, the temperature will definitely climb to more than 30 degrees.
I heard from the prince that there is a refrigeration machine in the fairy world. It can not only make ice, but also blow out cold air.
It was a super treasure in midsummer. Bo Jue was also very sad about it and hoped to study it in his spare time.
However, just boiling rubber in front of him can make Bo Dacai a mess.
But in order to be able to ride his favorite bicycle as soon as possible and become the first rider in the Ming Dynasty, Bo Jue had no choice but to ask for directions.
When he went to court the next day, Wang Zaijin gave the officials a big surprise.
Lao Wangtou was energetic and solemn, and did not feel like he was about to die, as Feng Yuanbiao, the former Minister of War, despised.
Lao Wangtou was very unhappy when he did not see Feng Yuanbiao who had slandered him. If he was still in the court, Wang Zaijin would definitely have a quarrel with him.
There was another person who made him unhappy, and that was Yan Yingyuan, who had just been promoted by the prince to governor of Jizhen.
I heard that he was just an unofficial pian before, but it was really incredible that he could be treated with such courtesy by the prince.
If Hong Chengchou or Sun Chuanting were on the same level as him, it would be excusable. Let this junior come from behind, which would be really difficult for Wang Zaijin to accept.
The proud and arrogant old Wangtou compares himself to Xu Da, who has made great contributions to Emperor Taizu. Yan Yingyuan, who is standing next to him, can at best be regarded as Tang He and his ilk.
But on the surface, he didn't reveal anything at all, and he remained calm and composed. Because he hadn't been in court for a long time, there were still many political opponents who may despise his strategy in Liaodong, so he couldn't lose the big for the small.
After going back last night, Wang Zaijin roughly read through the "Jingshi Daily" published these days, paying special attention to the contents of the first few pages.
I found that it was roughly the same as what the prince said, so I felt relieved. At least the Liao salary problem could be solved, and the northern farmers were exempted from all taxes, so the resistance in various places would be greatly weakened.
Wang Zaijin admired the prince's approach of promulgating new policies, punishing borers, rectifying military equipment, and exempting land taxes. After reducing the burden on farmers, he could also increase annual income sharply, which was indeed very promising.
Before going to court, he briefly chatted with the first assistant Xue Guoguan and the second assistant Wu Di for a while. The two cabinet members introduced the current situation of the court to the governor.
It also gave Lao Wangtou a new understanding of the court structure after the prince took charge of the country. With the kind reminders from senior people in the industry, Wang Zaijin would not be discredited.
After everyone was in their places, Yao Ji spoke loudly: "Dear sirs, since I have supervised the country and reopened the court meeting, I have not given clear instructions on the most important northern border affairs. This is because I am responsible for the defense of Jizhen and western Liaoning. He is not in the capital. Now that Wang Aiqing and Yan Aiqing are both here, and the defense plans for both places have been formed, I will make the following arrangements for the various tribes in western Liaoning."
The chamberlain hurriedly brought over a giant Ji Liao map that was placed on a shelf so that most people present could see it clearly.
A certain prince will order the garrison troops stationed in Ningyuan and Jinzhou to reduce their strength to 5,000 in each city and to 1,000 in the surrounding small strongholds, similar to other places.
All the disbanded troops were transferred to Shanhaiguan on standby. On the one hand, they could reduce the consumption of food on the front line, and on the other hand, they could avoid being besieged and annihilated by the Donglu outside the pass.
The Ming army has lost the ability to win in field battles. As long as the city is besieged, the reinforcements will not be able to successfully rescue the siege, and the defenders will have only one fate.
It is expected that the total strength of the garrison troops at the three key points of Ningyuan, Jinzhou and Guangning, as well as various small strongholds, will be reduced to about 30,000.
The garrison strength of Shanhaiguan will be increased to 40,000. Outside the pass, it is said that there are 100,000 troops. The actual strength of 70,000 troops is already good.
In addition, the new governor of western Liaoning, Wang Zaijin, will train 10,000 new troops every year, with a five-year period, and the required salary will be provided by Liao's salary.
In terms of defensive facilities, Shanhaiguan was first strengthened to enhance the area's defense against Donglu artillery fire, and necessary counterattack weapons were added.
A large dock will be built in the coastal area of Nancheng to dock ships to facilitate maritime transportation and connection to ensure the absolute safety of the pass.
If necessary, the Guangning Zhongqian Institute can be expanded. It is estimated to cost 500,000 taels of silver. This is for filing and will not be implemented within this year and next.
The prince seemed to intend to abandon the two cities of Ning and Jin. After hearing this, Wang Jiayan, the Minister of War, asked worriedly: "If His Highness shrinks his troops in this way, he will be criticized by the government and the public, who think that His Highness is showing weakness to the Donglu!"
The news of abandoning Jinan has spread to Shandong, causing a great sensation. Of course, most of them are negative. Fortunately, the governor Yan Jizu is still able to handle the matter. He calmed everyone with his kind words and said that he would build a larger project in Ye County. city.
Many people still didn't buy it, but their arms couldn't twist their thighs. Not to mention the garrison in the city, even the officials began to move their families to Ye County. They stayed and waited to be slaughtered by pigtails, so they had no choice but to follow.
There has been controversy about this matter for a long time. Yaoji was too lazy to listen and asked with a smile: "Don't you think these two cities are the Achilles' heel of our dynasty?"
