Chapter 102 Artillery stereotypes [Thanks to the eyes, nose and mouth
The impact point of the cannonball was already a mess.
Zuo Menggeng and others rushed over anxiously, most concerned about the power of the artillery.
"Found it, the location is here."
Because the warhead contains gunpowder, it explodes into pieces. However, the precise impact point of the artillery shell needs to be carefully searched.
In fact, it's not difficult to find. The situation at the center of the explosion is always much more serious than at the periphery.
Kuri Xiangzhu and the artillerymen immediately began to measure, and the data was quickly obtained.
"Thousands of seats, the impact point of the artillery shell is three meters away from the actual target, and it is still within the controllable range."
There is a certain deviation between the actual impact point of the cannonball and the expected impact point.
Not to mention the artillery of this era, the artillery of later generations cannot guarantee that it will hit wherever it is pointed.
With a range of one thousand meters and an error of only three meters, this is definitely an amazing result.
"After firing a few more shots and obtaining more detailed data, we should be able to calculate the deviation of the artillery. Then you can adjust the launch based on this data."
What Zuo Menggen was most afraid of was that the artillery landing points were irregular. If that were the case, he would have to endure the deviation of the cannonballs' landing points.
But if the pattern of deviations can be found through multiple firings, it will be of great help to artillery.
Experienced artillerymen can adjust the artillery firing angle on their own based on this data and complete manual correction.
Of course, there is another important factor that affects artillery accuracy.
That's the wind.
The flight speed of black powder fired shells is too slow and is greatly affected by wind.
This is uncontrollable.
After measuring the deviation, the next thing to check is the instant explosion effect of the cannonball.
Because the fuse is used to explode, even if the scale marking method is used, there will still be various shortcomings.
Through inspection, it was found that the shell did not explode when it hit the ground. Instead, it bounced one meter with the help of inertia before the fuse detonated the gunpowder in the shell.
Because of the flight speed of the cannonball, even if there is only a little more fuse, the difference in the impact point of the explosion will be huge.
Bi Maokang was very dissatisfied with the result and asked the gunpowder craftsman: "Can the fuse be more accurate?"
The gunpowder craftsman had a sad look on his face.
"Director, there is nothing we can do. Besides, this is not just a problem with our production. The depth of insertion of the fuse and the cutting method of the soldiers will also affect the burning speed."
After all, soldiers are humans, not machines.
If you change the person, if the force of inserting the fuse into the cartridge case is stronger or smaller, the length will be different.
Furthermore, when receiving instructions to cut the fuse, even a one millimeter deviation in the position of the knife will affect the final explosion timing.
This is the disadvantage of using a fuse.
Tu Yixian dared to think about it.
"Qianzao, I have seen the firing of muskets. The flash cap used can detonate gunpowder with just one touch. Why can't it be used on artillery shells? We can make a small hole in the position of the warhead and install the flash cap here.
Anyway, the warhead of the cannonball touches the target first, so the force of the impact should be enough to detonate the cannonball, right?"
Good guy, after the enthusiasm of the craftsmen was stimulated, they dared to think of anything.
Even the trigger fuse was thought of.
Others also applauded and thought this was a good idea.
At the very least, if you use a flash cap to trigger it, you don't have to worry about the shell's explosion being delayed or advanced.
But Zuo Mengeng was not so confident.
"The trigger fuze is a good thing, but there are currently two problems. First, there is no guarantee that the flash cap will explode due to the vibration of the artillery when the gun is fired. This requires you to test and obtain conclusive data.
.Secondly, the current production volume of flash caps cannot keep up, so we can only prioritize the muskets. We have to deal with the artillery first."
This is the case with the local production of mercury fulminate, and the output is always a problem.
Even so, the dangerous production process gave Zuo Mengeng a headache.
From the beginning of production to now, six explosion accidents have occurred, causing more than 20 worker casualties.
In other words, human life in this era is not valuable and no one takes it seriously.
The families of the deceased and injured were grateful to him after receiving the pension.
If this were to happen in future generations, such violations and dangerous production would land people in jail.
Seeing that the application of flash caps to artillery was not feasible, everyone was sad and regretful.
On the contrary, Zuo Hua was able to see clearly.
"I said, isn't this shell just one meter or two meters away from the explosion? What impact can it have at such a small distance? After all, isn't it much better than the existing Folan cannon? As long as it can be used. Others
The problem will be improved gradually in the future.”
When everyone heard this, they all smiled bitterly.
"Haha, that's right, it turns out we are the ones with the devil."
"Indeed, this artillery is already very good."
Because of the atmosphere brought about by Zuo Menggeng, Houying pursues excellence in the manufacturing field and cannot accept any shortcomings.
This spirit is certainly a good thing for scientific research and manufacturing.
But when it comes to the army, they don't care so much.
The Zuoying artillery has many shortcomings, but today's Zuoying doesn't even have artillery. Of course, we need to use it first.
Everyone's inner demons were removed, they felt relaxed, and the laughter returned.
Accuracy, after the explosion time, what needs to be observed is the explosion power.
Because the impact point is off by three meters, the place where the shells cause the most damage is on the periphery of the target group.
The three wooden targets located on the right side near the center of the explosion were completely destroyed and scattered everywhere.
The targets further away were not broken and were still stuck in the ground intact. However, these targets were covered with many fragments and gravel, and the cotton armor was completely penetrated.
If there was flesh and blood inside the cotton armor, it would definitely be dead.
There are about seven or eight such targets, and the farthest one is about ten meters away from the center of the explosion.
Targets beyond this distance are intact and not affected by the explosion.
This shows that the effective killing range of the artillery shell is about ten meters.
Is this powerful?
Obviously not big.
But for a small cannon like the Zuoying Cannon, it is already very gratifying.
After all, with a range of more than a kilometer, it can also cause range damage, which is something that artillery pieces of the same era absolutely do not have.
After the shell fragments were collected, another problem was discovered.
"There are too few shell fragments caused by the explosion, which is also a reason for the lack of lethality."
The fragments produced by this warhead were only about thirty pieces in total. Although they were scattered in all directions, the insufficient number obviously could not kill too many enemies.
Many enemies may be stunned by the shock wave of the explosion, but will not be harmed by shrapnel.
This shortcoming must be corrected without delay.
Zuo Mengeng thought for a while and asked Yang Gui: "Is there any way for you to carve such a shape inside the warhead?"
He took a pen and paper and drew a brand new diagram of the inner shape of the cartridge case.
The originally smooth and flat inside of the bullet case was turned into countless small squares by Zuo Mengeng.
Everyone doesn't understand what this shape is used for.
Zuo Menggeng explained: "Iron is relatively brittle, and the explosion will definitely break it. But the original warhead is a whole, and there is no guarantee how many fragments it can become. After the shape is carved inside the warhead, once it explodes, it will automatically disperse into
It’s in pieces.”
This is the concept of the melon grenade.
The only difference is that the fragments of the melon grenade are on the outside, while the warhead can only be on the inside.
Yang Gui grabbed the blueprint and gathered together with several blacksmiths to mutter for a long time.
"We can't guarantee it. We have to go back and try. We may need to improve the tools. The current boring tool will definitely not work."
Zuo Mengeng didn't expect them to come up with a solution all at once.
Moreover, this newly emerged problem was an unprecedented one. Zuo Menggeng had no choice but to rely on the creativity of these craftsmen.
But anyway, the first test firing of the Zuoying Cannon was very effective and has been approved by all the officers.
A cannon weighing more than 500 kilograms can be pushed away by two soldiers in an emergency.
In this way, there is no need to pick the terrain. In most places, if it is not possible, the soldiers can carry it through together.
It has a long range and a range attack, which is definitely a killer weapon in the field.
Later, Li Xiangzhu led the artillerymen to test fire several more times. The longest one even hit the ultimate range of 1,450 meters.
In other words, this small steel cannon can compete with the red cannon.
Overall, the Zuoying Cannon was very successful.
The rest of the details can be corrected slowly in the future.
Under everyone's eager eyes, Zuo Mengeng announced in public.
"From now on, Zuoying's artillery will be put into production immediately. I hope you will work hard so that one day our rear battalion will go to the battlefield without artillery support, causing the soldiers to suffer casualties."
Bi Maokang, Tu Yixian and others saluted and accepted the order, wishing that work could start on the same day.
The artillery matter here has just been settled, Zuo Fu and Zuo Gui have returned from their travels, and they also brought an unexpected situation.
"Qianzuo, Xu Yaqing is not in Dongping Water Village."
