Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 174 The whole army should be equipped
Hearing Xu Da say that this grenade looked like an iron grenade, Lu Jin rolled his eyes and immediately gave a warning.

"It just looks like an iron grenade, but it can't really be used to hit people. The grenade in front and the wooden handle are glued and screwed together. If you really use it to hit people, you will probably break it."

Xu Da and Zheng Yuchun both nodded, but when they looked at each other, they couldn't help but regard it as the Iron Bone Flower, it really looked too similar.

But we can't blame them, because the grenade designed by Lu Jin was an imitation of the first wooden-handled grenade in German history. The prototype was the German 1913 spherical cast iron grenade with a firing pin fuse. Later, a wooden handle was added to it during the war.

What Lu Jin imitated was the structure after adding a wooden handle, and then changing the firing pin fuse into a fuse.

A total of three types were made. One was a spherical bomb with a diameter of 100 mm and a smooth round appearance. It was actually a shell from an -jin cannon. It had no wooden support and was directly equipped with a fuse to be used as a bomb.

The other two types also have spherical shells with pre-made broken grooves cast on the surface. They are divided into large and small models, one with a diameter of eight centimeters and the smallest with a diameter of six centimeters, and are equipped with a wooden handle at the back.

The bottleneck of the grenade's spherical shell is cast with a male thread, the head of the wooden handle is hollowed out halfway with a woodworking lathe, and a female thread is engraved at the connection. Although lathes for cutting iron parts cannot be made now, lathes for cutting wood can still be made, so this wooden-handled grenade with a threaded connection was produced.

The front half of the wooden handle is hollowed out, and a small bag of lime is stuffed at the bottom of the middle section to prevent moisture. Then a circular notch is opened on the side, and the fuse of the iron mine is led out from the notch and fixed with fish bladder glue. Finally, a layer of oil paper is glued to the outside of the fuse to prevent moisture.

When needed, first tear off the waterproof oil paper, then light it with a fuse, and then throw it out. The detonation time is generally about six seconds.

The detonation time of a modern grenade is generally four seconds. The time that Lu Jin added to four seconds is actually to allow time for the detonating cord.

Xu Da and Zheng Yuchun looked at the grenade in front of them and couldn't help asking, "Marshal, how should this be used?"

Lu Jin pointed at the three types of bombs in front of him and introduced them, "This is actually a cannonball for a 8-jin cannon. It has a cast iron shell filled with gunpowder. There is a fuse on it. Just light it with a matchlock and throw it out. I don't think it's very meaningful to equip you with this, but you can make some."

"Why?" Zheng Yuchun asked puzzledly.

"Because the spherical one is not easy to throw, the average soldier can only throw it about ten steps away even if he tries his best. But this thing is filled with a large amount of gunpowder and has amazing power. It can still injure you even from ten steps away. If you don't believe it, you can try it." Lu Jin explained immediately.

Xu Da and Zheng Yuchun looked at each other. They were both battalion commanders of the auxiliary troops and grenadiers of the chariot battalion. This weapon would be one of their main weapons in the future, so of course they had to give it a try.

The two men came to the test site outside the factory and hid behind a dirt wall at the designated shooting range. Looking at the big pit in front of them, Xu Da asked in confusion, "Marshal, is this thing really that powerful?"

Lu Jin pointed to the wooden board next to him and said, "If you don't believe me, put some wooden boards as targets and throw them in the middle of the targets. See if the iron pieces can penetrate the targets."

The two men immediately did as they were told and placed a circle of wooden targets around the crater. They then walked back to the bunker and lit the fuse. When everything was ready, Zheng Yuchun took the fuse and used it to light the bomb in Xu Da's hand.

The dark red spark touched the fuse, and it immediately emitted a hissing burning sound, accompanied by wisps of white smoke. Seeing this, Lu Jin immediately shouted, "Throw it away!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Da immediately threw the bomb out with one hand, but the bomb bunker was twenty meters away from the crater. He thought it was enough to throw the thing into the crater, but he didn't expect that the bomb only flew a dozen meters before plummeting to the ground, rolling twice on the ground, and barely rolling to the edge of the crater.

Seeing that the bomb could not roll into the pit, Lu Jin pushed the two men under the shelter. Then there was a loud bang, as if a thunder had fallen near the three people.

When they looked up again, they saw a large column of white smoke rising from the edge of the crater in the distance. When the smoke cleared, they saw that several targets at the edge of the crater had already fallen to the ground in a mess. The nearest target was blown to pieces. The power was so amazing that Xu Da and Zheng Yuchun were both stunned.

Don’t underestimate the power of black powder. This thing was used for mining before Nobel’s invention of dynamite. How could the power of gunpowder used for mining be small?
What's more, this iron shell bomb with a diameter of ten centimeters contains more than 630 grams of black powder, while the common palm-sized firecrackers on the market only contain eight to ten grams of gunpowder. This grenade is equivalent to detonating more than 60 firecrackers at the same time!
If this were to be lit in a residential area, all the glass below the sixth floor would be shattered, and car alarms within a two-kilometer radius would sound.
Xu Da and Zheng Yuchun were so shocked that their heads were buzzing. The power of the previous cannons was not as strong as this one. Perhaps the power was consumed in the barrel of the gun. Even the sound was transmitted in the direction of the muzzle. It was not as strong as the feeling of directly detonating the bomb this time.

When Xu Da thought about the thing that was in his hand just now, his arms couldn't help but tremble. Damn, if he didn't throw it out in time, I'm afraid all three of them would be killed on the spot.
"Master, this is a grenade fired from a 8-jin cannon. If we use a cannon to fire it, how far can it reach?"

Lu Jin thought for a moment, "I haven't tried it either, but this grenade is much lighter than a solid iron bullet. An iron bullet weighs eight pounds, and this one with the wooden support weighs less than five pounds. It should be able to hit three or four miles away."

Zheng Yuchun swallowed his saliva and said with emotion, "If this thing hits the enemy from three or four miles away, the enemy formation will definitely collapse after one round. No one can maintain their formation in front of this thing. Even if they are wearing armor and can't be killed by it, the noise alone can scare people."

"That's true, but you two are getting off topic. As you can see, this thing can't be thrown very far. In fact, Xu Da's one-handed throwing action just now was incorrect. This kind of spherical bomb should be thrown with both hands. However, this action is easy to be hit by enemy arrows, so I am still hesitating whether to equip you."

As Lu Jin spoke, he imitated the shot-throwing action he had in the physical education exam, and then said, "This kind of bomb is expensive, so we should first supply the artillery. If there are any extra, I think we can leave some on the city wall. Although this thing can't be thrown far and can easily blow up our own people, it's no problem to throw it down from the city wall to blow up the enemy. What do you think?"

Zheng Yuchun said immediately, "This thing is so powerful. It would be a pity if we don't equip ourselves with some. We never know when we might need it."

Xu Da shook his head and said, "Well, the Marshal is right. Although this thing is very powerful, it is far less effective than using a cannon to fire it. It is a waste to throw it to attack the enemy from a distance.

"Even if the supply of artillery is met, I suggest not leaving too much for the city defenders. Supply it to the navy. The navy probably needs it more in battle."

Lu Jin nodded when he heard this, but soon said, "The main weapon of the navy is artillery, and they have a lot of howitzers. There is no need to equip them with hand-thrown bombs. Let's leave them to the city defense troops.

"There are two more. You can try again. Our production capacity is limited, so we can only choose one for mass production. Making two models at the same time will waste a lot of manpower, so we can't change it after this selection."

Upon hearing this, the two men immediately looked at the remaining two sizes of wooden-handled grenades. The small one weighed less than one kilogram, with an iron shell bullet with a diameter of six centimeters in front and a total charge of 75 grams. The wooden handle was 23 centimeters long, and together with the iron bullet it was nearly one foot long.

The larger size has a diameter of 8 centimeters, a charge of 220 grams, and a total weight of less than three pounds. Although the diameter is only two centimeters larger, the charge has tripled. There is no way, the volume of the sphere is here. "Marshal, why doesn't this have a fuse?" Xu Da asked, looking at the wooden-handled grenade in his hand.

Lu Jin pointed to the moisture-proof paper wrapped around the front of the wooden handle and said, "The fuse is here. There's a layer of oil paper used to make umbrellas stuck on the outside to prevent moisture and collision. If you insert it into your belt at other times, the fuse will inevitably bump against something and may even ignite accidentally. Wrapping it in a layer of paper won't be a problem. It can prevent scratches and is moisture and waterproof."

"It's really ingenious. The craftsman who made this grenade took a lot of effort." After looking at it carefully, Xu Da suddenly found an extra piece of paper. He tore it along the dotted line and the fuse inside leaked out.

“Do you also light this and throw it away?”

"Yes." Lu Jin nodded and explained, "The length of this fuse has been tested, and it is generally five to six seconds. If you don't know how long one second is, I'll teach you a trick. Count, 'one thousand and one, one thousand and two'. Each number is one second. If you don't throw it out after counting to five, it will explode in your hand."

Xu Da nodded secretly, indicating that he had learned a new trick, and then he made preparations and found the fuse to light the fire. Then he discovered another advantage of the wooden-handled grenade.

The spherical bomb thrown just now was too heavy, weighing four or five pounds, and it was difficult to hold it steadily with one hand. If you hold the bomb with one hand and light it with the other hand, and it accidentally slips out of your hands and falls at your feet after it is lit, the consequences will be unimaginable.

But if he holds the bomb in both hands, another person is needed to ignite it, just like Zheng Yuchun helped him light it just now. However, the battlefield is so tense that if two people carry out precise ignition coordination, it is very likely that they will fail to ignite it after several attempts, or if it is lit, they will not throw it out in time, causing serious consequences.

But this wooden-handled grenade is different. You can hold the wooden handle in one hand and use the fuse to light it with the other hand. One person can operate it. Although it is only a small difference, this advantage is very prominent in wartime. No matter how panicked one person is, it is better than two people holding the fuse and fuse and poking each other.

Xu Da immediately told Lu Jin about his idea. Before Lu Jin could express his opinion, Zheng Yuchun nodded in agreement.

"That's right. Soldiers on the battlefield are in a panic. It's really difficult for two people to face each other and light the fuse. So let's not equip them with iron ball bombs. Leave them to defend the city. We'll use these with wooden handles."

"Well, you two are right, but you both have tried it yourselves today, and you can't go back after this." Lu Jin reminded.

Xu Da immediately affirmed, "Let's use this one. We really can't use an iron ball without a wooden handle. I think this one is not much smaller. This one should be enough. Marshal, this one should be able to be thrown with one hand, right?"

Lu Jin nodded, "Yes, throw it out with one hand, diagonally upwards, use as much force as you can."

Upon hearing this, Xu Da took a deep breath and prepared himself. He held the grenade in his right hand and lit the fuse with his left hand. When he saw the fuse start to smoke, he immediately swung his hand with all his strength and threw the grenade out.

Lu Jin told him to use all his strength, and Xu Da did not hesitate. The large grenade weighed nearly three pounds and was thrown more than fifty meters by him. Before it hit the ground, a loud bang was heard in the air. Lu Jin immediately pulled the two of them to hide behind the bunker. When they looked up after the explosion, they found a cloud of white smoke floating in the air. The wooden handle was blown into the air and took a long time to fall to the ground.

"Oh my goodness, I feel like this isn't much less powerful than the iron ball bomb just now. It's my turn, it's my turn. I'll try this."

Setting off firecrackers is a man's favorite thing to do, and Zheng Yuchun is no exception. He immediately picked up the smaller one, tore off the oil paper, lit the fuse, and threw it out just like Xu Da did just now.

boom--

There was another loud bang. This time, the grenade was thrown more than 80 meters by Zheng Yuchun before it exploded in the air. However, the three people obviously felt that the power was much smaller this time.

Zheng Yuchun was immediately puzzled and asked, "Marshal, this one doesn't seem much smaller than the previous one, why is the power so different?"

"Is the difference big? Maybe you threw it too far, but the gunpowder in this small one is indeed only 30% of that in the previous one." Lu Jin explained.

"Only 30%? How could there be such a big difference?" Zheng Yuchun felt it was a bit outrageous.

Xu Da also said, "Marshal, I think this medium-sized one with a wooden handle is a little too big. If I put it in my belt, it might hurt. The small one has too little gunpowder. Can you make one in between, with only 60% of the gunpowder of the large one, and not too big?"

Lu Jin touched his nose and seemed to hear Zhou Shuren's whisper, "Chinese people generally like to compromise."

"Not impossible, let me calculate."

Lu Jin immediately took out a pen and paper. The cast iron shell of this grenade is 8 mm thick and the grooves on the outside are 4 mm deep. If the outer diameter of the iron ball is 7 cm, then after removing the outer shells on both sides, the volume of the chamber is a sphere with a diameter of 5.4 cm. According to the sphere calculation formula, the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 5.4 is 82.8cc.

The density of black powder with high burning rate is 1.65 g/cubic centimeter, so the charge is approximately equal to 137 g. The charge is 75 g for a diameter of six centimeters. The diameter is one centimeter larger, so the charge is doubled. This size is acceptable.

He then put down the paper and pen and said, "Okay, the iron ball is somewhere in between the two, and the charge is exactly 60% of the larger one, with a total weight of just over two kilograms. How about that?"

Xu Da and Zheng Yuchun nodded immediately, "That's great. I think this iron ball is just about two inches long, and it's neither too big nor too small to be worn on the waist. Each person can carry at least two. And it's so convenient to use. If it's not too expensive, I think our entire army can be equipped with some.

"Each person in our car camp can carry two, and we can carry more on the cars. I think each person in the musket camp in front can also carry one. When the battle starts, we can throw a few hundred bombs at them first, which will surely blow up the enemy army."

"Well, let's talk about this later. It's not easy for musketeers to carry grenades. It's not that we can't let them use them, but it will affect their reloading rhythm. If we really have to use grenades, I think it's better to send the chariot camp to the front." Lu Jin shook his head and said.

(End of this chapter)