In the earliest days, that is, during the Funiu Mountain period, Luo Zhixue and Sun Chengli at that time had a very unanimous opinion, that is, they needed a light artillery.
A kind of light artillery that can be maneuvered in the mountains, and can even be disassembled and carried by people when necessary.
At the same time, this small artillery needs to be able to hit enemy troops three to four hundred meters away.
Under these two tactical needs, the 600-pound artillery was developed.
This light field gun, which weighed only 600 kilograms with a total gun weight (barrel plus gun mount plus lead vehicle), almost perfectly met the tactical needs of the Baoxiang Army at that time.
However, after meeting the above two tactical requirements, this artillery is less powerful.
The shells fired weighed two and a half kilograms. The weight of the shells seemed to be quite large, but the diameter was not large. At the same time, because the barrel was relatively thin, there was not much charge.
At a distance of three to four hundred meters, the lethality is barely enough, but after a distance of more than five hundred meters, the lethality of the artillery drops rapidly. As for a distance of seven to eight hundred meters, the terminal kinetic energy of its shells is gone. I saw it...
If this kind of artillery is only used as support firepower for hundreds of people, that is, as support firepower for an infantry battalion, then it is naturally sufficient.
However, the Baoxiang Army directly used this artillery as a tactical field artillery, directly providing long-range fire cover for the entire army, often launching artillery bombardments on enemy formations from a distance of more than 500 meters or even 600 meters.
The result was that the shells were fired, but the lethality was insufficient. Even if they hit the enemy's phalanx, they could not kill many people.
This disadvantage was fully reflected in several large-scale battles after the Baoxiang Army went south.
Especially during the battle in the eastern suburbs of Yuzhou City, Zhang Malin once commanded the artillery troops to attack the enemy cavalry more than 500 meters away, and then crossed most of the battlefield to attack the enemy's left wing, which was six to seven hundred meters away. The human dragon department.
During the shelling process, the hit rate was actually quite impressive, but the damage caused was relatively limited.
It's just that all this was covered up in the face of the fact that the enemy was beaten without any means of counterattack, had low morale, and had extremely poor ability to withstand casualties.
If a strong army with a more determined combat consciousness were to come here, the opponent would probably be able to carry this level of artillery and kill them.
After the Battle of Yuzhou, Luo Zhixue wanted to build a more powerful field artillery.
The two-and-a-half pound field gun has its advantages and disadvantages.
Its future should be to go directly down to each brigade to directly provide medium-fire artillery support for infantry battalion-level troops, rather than as a higher-level field artillery that provides fire support for the entire battlefield and provides long-range fire cover for the own army. .
The field artillery tasked with providing long-range firepower for the entire army must be a more powerful field artillery.
Luo Zhixue said to Ding Gangyi: "Two types will be trial-produced first, one is a medium-sized field gun, the shells fired weigh about four to five kilograms; the other is a large field gun, the shells fired weigh about nine kilograms to ten kilograms."
"The standard effective range of these two types of artillery must be at least 150 feet. The hit rate and lethality within 200 feet to 250 feet must be maintained at a relatively high level. At a distance of 300 feet, it still needs to be Maintain a certain hit rate and lethality.”
"The new cannon can be directly cast from bronze. There is no need to think too much about the cost of raw materials. It can cost even one thousand taels of silver or even two thousand taels of silver."
"These two new types of field artillery must first follow one principle, that is, they must be able to accompany the infantry in marching maneuvers. Field artillery that cannot maneuver with the army is meaningless to us!"
"In addition, we should also try to trial-produce large-scale short-barreled artillery for use in sieges. Our two-and-a-half-pound cannons are currently too ineffective in sieges and cannot be used in large-scale applications. Even medium-sized and large field cannons may not be used in large-scale applications." ."
"We must have specialized super-large siege cannons for siege purposes. We plan to trial-produce medium-sized siege cannons and large-scale siege cannons. The weight of the shells fired by the medium-sized siege cannons is between sixteen and twenty kilograms. , we must be able to maneuver quickly with the army."
"The shotgun shells fired by the heavy siege artillery should weigh between forty-five and fifty kilograms. The power of this artillery is the most important. The maneuvering speed requirement can be lowered, but it must also be able to pull the march on the official road."
"The specific shell weight, artillery weight and detailed dimensions of these types of artillery can be gathered together to figure out later."
"In addition, we need to trial-produce a type of explosive shell for the heavy siege artillery. The iron shell can be filled with gunpowder and iron beads, which can be ignited with a match rope. The explosion of the shell can mainly kill the enemy's active forces on the city wall."
While Luo Zhixue was talking, he directly picked up a document from the table and handed it to Ding Gangyi: "I have listed the general requirements above. How to come up with them in the future will trouble Gangyi and the many technologies of the arsenal." personnel.”
Ding Gangyi stretched out his hands to take the document and glanced at it briefly. Some of the tactical requirements for the four types of artillery were written in detail, and even rough drawings were drawn...
Seeing this, Ding Gangyi wondered whether the general in front of him was more proficient in mathematics and mathematics than himself. Otherwise, how could he have mastered these things?
After Ding Gangyi took it, Luo Zhixue in front of him still didn't stop. He picked up the tea cup and took a sip of water. Luo Zhixue continued: "This is probably the end of the artillery matter, and the muskets have to continue. I heard that the countries in Thailand and Western countries Muskets that could be fired by flint ignition were already used.”
"Have you ever heard of fortitude?"
Ding Gang said resolutely: "I have reported it to the general, and my subordinates have also heard about it!"
After saying this, Ding Gangyi hesitated for a while and then said: "According to what my subordinates know, the ignition rate of the flintlock gun is quite low compared with the matchlock gun. Ten guns can only fire five or six shots. On the contrary, the matchlock gun can only fire five or six shots if the soldiers are properly trained." , if the matchlock is kept well and protected from moisture, it can produce nine out of ten shots, and no matter how bad it is, it can still produce eight shots."
"Flint is hard to find. In the event of a large-scale war, it may be difficult to secure the supply of flint!"
Luo Zhixue said: "I am also aware of the many flaws of the flintlock gun, but this gun can be used in strong winds and cold weather. At the same time, this type of gun does not have a match rope, and it can also make the musketeers queue closer!"
"The flintlock gun has a bright future!"
Ding Gangyi listened to these words of Luo Zhixue, but he still didn't quite understand. It was an advantage to continue firing in windy and humid weather, but fighting in bad weather was rare!
In windy weather, no one would be foolish enough to run out for a decisive battle!
Wet weather is nothing more than the rainy season in the south, such as the plum rainy season in the Jiangnan region. When the plum rainy weather comes, what should be considered is not whether the musket can be fired, but whether the road can be muddy and whether it can be marched on a large scale. The problem of transporting supplies
If you have to fight in the Jiangnan area during the rainy season, marching and logistical transportation can directly drag an army to death.
It is especially deadly for an army like their Home Guard Army, which is equipped with a large number of artillery and baggage carriages.
Therefore, the flintlock gun Luo Zhixue said could fight in strong winds and cold waves, but Ding Gangyi felt that it was not of much use.
It would be great if the flintlock gun could still be used in heavy rain, but it's a pity that the flintlock gun doesn't have that ability!
As for making the musketeers' queues closer, he couldn't imagine the use of the musketeers' queues being closer. Anyway, the musketeers are now dispatched under the protection of the spearmen to continue to output firepower and perform queue rounds. shoot.
There are advantages to forming a tighter formation, but the benefits are not that great.
In Ding Gangyi's view, the two small advantages of the flintlock gun being usable in some bad weather and being able to form a tighter formation can be completely ignored compared to the disadvantage of the current flintlock gun having a relatively low firing rate. .
Not to mention that the industrial department of the Baoxiang Army does not know much about flintlock guns, but the technology of matchlocks is already very mature.
Taking into account the production cost issue and the flint supply issue that Ding Gangyi had mentioned at the beginning, Ding Gangyi felt that if the person sitting above him was not Luo Zhixue, but someone else told him that flintlock guns have great potential, he would be called a fool. …
But, it was Luo Zhixue who said that the flintlock gun had great potential. Even if he felt contempt in his heart, he couldn't show it. On the contrary, he tried his best to think about why Luo Zhixue said that.
However, Ding Gangyi just read a few more Western books translated by Xu Guangqi and others, and understood some things like mathematics and machinery.
More importantly, Ding Gangyi is not a soldier!
It is difficult for him to consider the advantages of the flintlock gun from a tactical perspective!
At the same technical level, what is the biggest advantage of a flintlock gun compared to a matchlock gun?
Range? No, in fact, the two are just different in the firing mechanism, and what affects the range more is the barrel quality and caliber.
power? This thing is the same as the range, and the firing mechanism has little impact.
Under the same technical conditions, the range and power of a flintlock gun are not much better than that of a matchlock gun.
Rate of fire? The shooting steps of the two are similar. The theoretical rate of fire of the flintlock gun may be a little faster, but the speed is very limited. The actual rate of fire between the two is not that different.
What affects the rate of fire more is the training level of the soldiers themselves. Ordinary musketeers can shoot two rounds per minute, while elite musketeers can shoot three rounds per minute. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a flintlock gun or a matchlock gun!
Accuracy? They're all the same scum...
Judging from the range, power, rate of fire, accuracy and other key performance data that measure the quality of a gun, in fact, the flintlock gun does not have any obvious advantages over the matchlock gun.
There are even many flaws, such as a lower firing rate than a matchlock gun, more troublesome flint supply, and even higher production costs.
Not to mention the many costs such as technology research and development, production line modifications, and troop replacements.
However, there is one advantage of the flintlock gun that is unforgettable for the matchlock gun!
