The protective testing of new cotton armor begins.
Draped on a wooden model, I first used a flash cap to test it.
From fifty to two hundred meters, the bullet penetrated completely.
From two hundred to three hundred meters, the bullet penetrated the front, but did not penetrate, and the wood was intact.
From 300 to 400 meters, only the front fabric of the cotton armor was damaged.
Four hundred meters away, there was no damage to the front of the cotton armor.
Tests have shown that the new cotton armor has the ability to protect flash cap guns...
Basically useless.
If you can't protect yourself from bullets within fifty to two hundred meters, it means you have no protection.
But the problem is that only the new army in the world uses flash cap guns!
Next came the flintlock musket.
Within fifty meters, the cotton armor was penetrated.
Fifty to one hundred meters, the cotton armor was not penetrated.
Over a hundred meters, the cotton armor was safe and sound.
This result greatly satisfied everyone.
This is still a flintlock gun made in Shandong. Its quality and effectiveness are nowhere better than those of the same era.
Even Shandong's flintlock guns are powerless against the new cotton armor from fifty steps away, which is enough to prove the excellence of this cotton armor.
The experiments with bows and arrows were also quite surprising.
Ordinary riding bows cannot penetrate cotton armor beyond ten meters, and the heavy arrows used by the Jurchens also need to go within twenty meters to penetrate.
The walking bow doubles the distance.
But the problem is that this distance is completely within the coverage of the New Army's muskets.
The cavalry charged at full speed and stabbed with long iron spears. The cotton armor had no protection at all and was directly pierced.
But the problem is, facing such a cavalry attack, let alone cotton armor, even mountain armor cannot defend it.
The cavalry's saber could not cut through the cotton armor. It would only cause a long gash in the front, causing cotton wool to fly, but it would not hurt anyone.
This is a steel saber produced in Shandong.
If they faced Mongolian or Arab cavalry, they basically had nothing to do with cotton armor.
After the overall test, the new cotton armor has a very good protective effect in addition to heavy weapons. Moreover, it is easy to wear and does not affect tactical movements. It is definitely a powerful tool for protection.
"The equipment department is rushing to produce and must equip the entire army as soon as possible."
Zuo Dai was very happy.
Those who work on equipment are happiest when the equipment they develop is recognized by the military.
Zuo Dai took out the second, more important thing.
That's the helmet.
"Commander, everyone, this new helmet is made of steel, and its protective capabilities are several times that of the original helmet."
The new helmet created by the equipment department is still a flying saucer hat.
The difference is that the original wrought iron has been changed to steel. Lighter and thinner, but with better protection.
Although there is nothing you can do about being hit by heavy weapons such as hammers, sticks, and axes, you are definitely not afraid of being slashed by swords or stabbed by swords.
As for bows and arrows, even Hou Jin's heavy arrows could not be penetrated.
This new helmet is made of integral stamping and molding.
The thin steel plate is placed on the mold, and then a heavy forging hammer is dropped, and after several repeated stampings, it is finally formed.
If you are willing to invest the cost and tap the brim of the helmet, you will get a German-san helmet, which is the kind worn by shotgun troops.
But ordinary troops don't need to do this, flying saucer hats are enough.
Zuo Mengeng picked it up and inspected it carefully, and found that the craftsmanship of the new helmet was almost the same as that of later generations.
After stamping, the surface is sprayed with glaze and color to make the helmet and military uniform have the same color.
The inside of the helmet is also lined with cotton, and the holes on both sides are equipped with tethers that can be tied to the chin to fix it.
Ordinary New Army soldiers wear the same military cap and dress uniform cap.
The difference is that the hat is not held in place by a frame. Therefore, after wearing it a few times, it will become soft.
Although it doesn’t look good, it definitely doesn’t cut corners.
The soft top of the hat is to match the helmet.
During combat, soldiers only need to pick up their helmets and fasten them directly on their caps.
There is no need to take off the general's hat and put it away before putting on the helmet.
This suddenly saves procedures and is more conducive to combat.
The third thing Zuo Dai took out was completely designed by Zuo Mengeng.
Canvas fabric about calf length is formed into a tube shape, and the joints are covered with dense holes, with ropes running back and forth between them.
"Rebirth of the Great Era of Fighting Waves"
Zuo Dai picked it up and put it directly on his calf to demonstrate to everyone.
"This is called leggings, and it is used to replace straps. When marching long distances, the effect of using this is the same as straps, but it is very convenient to wear."
After Zuo Dai put the leggings on his calf, he grabbed the end of the rope and pulled hard. The originally loose leggings tightened around his calf.
And he only needs to tie the pulled rope and complete all the steps.
This is much faster than the straps used by soldiers in the past.
Banding is a technical job in the military and requires repeated practice to be able to do it well.
Now with leggings, it is not only more comfortable, but also faster, which greatly alleviates the soldiers' heavy tasks.
Zuo Menggeng called a soldier and asked him to put on all the equipment on the spot.
New combat uniforms, new leather boots, and cotton armor.
They were obviously fully armed, but they didn't feel bloated as before, and the soldiers looked very neat.
"Commander, I feel so comfortable."
The soldiers were very happy wearing their new equipment. The whole person ran around and assumed various postures without any hindrance.
"continue."
Soldiers have more leggings, backpacks, helmets and weapons.
When the backpack is full, it weighs almost twenty kilograms. But because it is integrated into a backpack, the soldier's reaction is not heavy.
Not only that, there is a cassette on the outside of the backpack.
After the engineering shovel that is not usually used is put in the bag, it can be inserted inside without affecting the movement of the soldiers.
"Commander, you see, we have specially designed the cotton armor here and added buckles. When fighting, the soldiers can take out the grenade belt and hang it directly here."
The New Army's grenades were carried in strips of cloth.
It used to be hung on the belt, but now that there are cotton armors, the belt has been cancelled.
Zuo Dai thought of the front and added some buckles on the front and outside of the cotton armor.
The grenade belt was hung on top, hanging down on the left side of the abdomen, but it still did not affect the movement.
The bayonet is hung on the left waist and the bullet box is hung on the right waist. They are both very convenient positions.
In this way, a fully armed New Army soldier is completed.
The generals circled around the soldiers, praising them.
"Good guy, you can get a lot of money for such a piece of equipment, right?"
Zuo Dai rubbed his nose, feeling pain himself.
"In total, the cost is forty-five taels of silver."
"Oh my God, doesn't that 100,000-strong army cost nearly 5 million taels?"
Lou Fu's exclamation represented everyone's thoughts.
No one would have thought that raising an army would be so expensive.
