After Li Zhi was promoted to defense officer, the number of soldiers in Fanjiazhuang was also increased. Originally, the number of soldiers in Fanjiazhuang was only fifty-seven, but now there are one hundred and twenty.
Logically speaking, with such a large number of troops, we can receive corresponding monthly pay. However, in the late Ming Dynasty, finances were tight, and the court often did not send military pay. Coupled with the officialdom in the late Ming Dynasty, the military pay was so low that the geese were overwhelmed.
After a lot of deductions, very little was obtained. According to the standards of Tianjin Town, the 120 people in Fanjiazhuang should have received 240 taels of military pay per month. However, when the first military pay came in mid-February, Li Zhi took command of the guards.
The military pay received by the envoy was only seventy-two taels, which was less than seven cents per soldier.
Seeing such dismal military pay, Li Zhi secretly thought that the grassroots military attachés of the Ming Dynasty could not afford to be greedy for much money. Even if they were to take empty pay, they would not be able to earn much.
Soldiers who were not paid enough had no morale to undergo high-intensity military training, and the army they eventually produced could only be weak soldiers. Fanjiazhuang originally had twenty-seven old and weak soldiers, four of whom were recruited and transferred to Li Zhi's army
There are still twenty-three people left in the selection group. With so little military pay, it is impossible for Li Zhi to recruit a full hundred and twenty people, so he can only recruit thirteen more.
These thirty-one soldiers were paid by Li Zhi two or two months a month, which just used up all the monthly salary. Li Zhi usually asked them to train the defense of the city wall every day, and then they could help the selected vanguard group to defend the city. Others
At that time, this unit patrolled the city, playing a role similar to that of the armed police.
Since the military pay was so low, Li Zhi had nothing to do about the shortage of troops. If the superior officer came to inspect, Li Zhi would just find more than a hundred soldiers from the front regiment to make up the number.
After finishing these things, Li Zhi went to take a look at the five gunsmiths captured in Yanshan.
After returning to the city for a month, Li Zhi asked the five gunsmiths to build an artillery workshop in the city. I don't know how the construction is now.
When Li Zhi walked to the cannon workshop in the east of the city, he found that the furnace had been built and five blacksmiths were busy making clay molds for the cannon.
Seeing Li Zhi coming, the five gunsmiths quickly knelt down and said, "I've seen the defense master!"
Li Zhi said: "No courtesy! How is your progress?"
The five gunsmiths replied: "The tools and furnaces have been built, and the clay molds are being made to prepare the first bronze cannon. It has been a long time since we have made a cannon. The first cannon is going to be a small one."
Li Zhi thought for a while and asked: "You use clay molds to cast cannons. What do you do with the moisture in the soil? As soon as the high-temperature copper water is poured in, as long as there is a trace of moisture in the clay molds, it will immediately evaporate in the copper cannons.
Bubbles are formed in the cannon. These bubbles are a serious hazard to artillery, and can easily cause the cannon wall to become weak and cause explosion!"
The five gunsmiths did not expect that Li Zhi knew such a professional issue. They looked at each other and Cao Yu, the head craftsman, said: "Sir, you are wise! Clay molds are indeed easy to store water, so we have to dry them for a month after making them.
But even so, there is still some slight moisture that makes the copper cannons form a hornet's nest. On average, only one of ten cannons is usable!"
"Only one out of ten cannons is usable? How much useless work does that have to do? Li Zhi smiled, remembering the cannon casting methods he had learned in later generations, and said: "What if instead of clay molds, cast iron was used as the mold! Cast iron
There is no water inside, no bubbles will form, and the yield will be greatly improved! Moreover, the inner and outer walls of the copper cannon produced by using cast iron molds will be smoother, which can reduce the workload of surface cleaning and boring and milling of the inner bore!"
Hearing Li Zhi's words, the five gunsmiths were stunned. They had been making cannons with clay molds for ten years, but they had never thought of using cast iron to make iron molds.
However, they were experienced casters after all. When Li Zhi prodded them, they immediately reacted and felt that using cast iron to make molds had great benefits.
Without bubbles, wouldn’t every forged gun be usable? There wouldn’t be so many scraps anymore!
How come this defensive master knows everything?
Touching the back of his head, Cao Yu asked with a smile: "Master Defender, if cast iron is used to make the mold, how will the mold be separated from the bronze cannon?"
Li Zhi knew that the gunsmith would ask this question. Recalling a little about the casting knowledge he learned in later generations, Li Zhi said: "When casting a cannon with an iron mold, first brush the inner surface of the mold with fine rice husk ash and fine
A paint made of sand and mud mixed with water, and then a second layer of paint made from very fine coal powder, then tighten the iron mold, bake it, and pour in copper water. After solidification, immediately take off the iron mold, and while the gun body is still
When red hot, remove the burrs and get the finished product.”
After hearing Li Zhi's words, the five cannon makers fell into silence, thinking carefully about Li Zhi's words.
China is the first country in the world to use metal mold casting. As early as the Warring States Period, iron molds were used to cast pig iron agricultural tools and tools in batches. The use of iron mold casting with double-layer coatings, etc. is also a conventional skill in traditional casting. Five gunsmiths ago
I've heard about it too. At this moment, Li Zhi asked, and they immediately figured it out.
After thinking for half a minute, Cao Yu figured it out and said:
"Sir, you are very wise! This casting method is really good!"
Li Zhi accepted the compliment from the gunsmith with a smile, and explained to the gunsmiths in detail:
"First make a clay cannon by dividing the copper cannon into five sections. Then make an iron mold according to the number of sections of the cannon. Each section of the clay model is divided into two pieces. The inner surface is rotated with a lathe to make the surface smooth and regular. Then it is dried and ready for use.
.Put a prefabricated handle into the clay mold, and cast it into one piece with the iron mold during pouring."
"When turning a clay mold into an iron mold, first place the muzzle section upside down on a clay flat plate, fill one of the sections with mud, dry it, cover it with a clay flat plate, tighten the mold, and after pouring, you will get the third
One segment of the iron mold is one segment. Then remove the filling mud and cast another segment of the iron mold in the same way. By pouring the segments segment by segment, you can cast a complete set of iron molds with layers of mortises and tenons. "
After listening to Li Zhi's explanation, the other four blacksmiths also figured it out. They were shocked by Li Zhi's method, and looked at Li Zhi with awe and a hint of admiration.
There were actually military attachés like this in our Ming Dynasty!
Li Zhi added: "You first make a copper cannon according to the method I told you. After success, we will make a cannon with an iron core and a copper body. The cannon with an iron core and a copper body is stronger and lighter!"
Is there a better technology?
This defensive master knows more than the Fran Machine Cannon Master under Mr. Sun Yuanhua!
Cao Yu's eyes lit up when he heard this, clearly showing the craftsmen's admiration for technology.
Thanks for the 5 tips from Mucha Qingwei, thank you.
