The Australian Revolution of 1828

Designing a rifle suitable for the Hanyang army based on the Dreiser M1841 needle gun was not difficult; the challenge lay in solving the various problems exposed by this gun.

The firing pin and gas tightness issues are particularly important, affecting the deployment of breech-loading rifles.

The firing pin issue stems from the fact that the detonator of the M1841 ammunition is located in the middle of the projectile's base, requiring the firing pin to be very long to ensure it penetrates the detonator.

If the Dreiser firing pin is too long, it will frequently come into contact with the hot gunpowder, causing damage to the firing pin.

Regarding chamber gas tightness, this is another major challenge that needs to be addressed for breech-loading rifles. Breech-loading ammunition is both an advantage and a disadvantage of the M1841.

Because the chamber and barrel of the Dreiser M1841 needle gun are not integrated, and the chamber is movable, the airtightness of the chamber is very poor, and the leaking gunpowder gases will interfere with the shooter's aim.

In severe cases, it can even burn the skin, a common problem with early breech-loading rifles. Even with a time traveler like Han Qingyun, it's impossible to solve the problems encountered in the development of breech-loading rifles with bare hands.

Ultimately, advancements in materials and precision machinery are needed to change this situation.

However, given Hanyang's technological capabilities, the accumulation of such technology would require time. As for Europe, forget about it; neither Britain nor France possessed such a rifle.

Designed by Dreiser in 1836, it wasn't finalized and put into production until 1841, with five years spent resolving issues with the Dreiser firing pin and its airtightness.

It's easy to imagine how difficult this rifle was to make.

Even if Han Qingyun was impatient, he understood that the breech-loading rifles copied by the arsenal could not be produced today and equipped to the troops tomorrow.

Considering the actual difficulties of breech-loading rifles, Han Qingyun did not urge them, but instead followed Yang Yi to the ordnance factory office.

The offices of most industrial and mining enterprises, such as arsenals and shipyards, were designed in the style of modern architecture, with a three-story structure made of concrete and bamboo strips.

Currently, the only buildings with a traditional Chinese structure are mostly government offices located in the inner city.

This approach is not due to Han Qingyun's modern ideas, but rather because the development of industrial society requires a minimalist model to improve productivity, such as the work efficiency of the Engineering Department.

Only with high work efficiency can a city be built in five years and a three-story building in two or three months.

Otherwise, given Hanyang's large population, if its productivity continued to remain at the average level of feudal society, then Hanyang would have no chance of development.

At this moment, in the office of Deputy Factory Director Yang Yi, Han Qingyun did not hold a symposium for all employees like the shipyard did, but instead had a frank discussion on management issues.

After all, everything that needed to be said had already been said at the shipyard, and many issues were simply communication problems between the shipyards.

After gathering all the managers of the arsenal, Han Qingyun got straight to the point without much preamble, saying, "Before coming here, I visited the shipyard."

"To put it simply, the arsenal was just a side trip because the shipyard gave the Governor's Office some good news: our steam paddle steamer was completed."

"The rest is to deliver the vessels to the inland waterway fleet and conduct sea trials that will last for several years. Through these trials, the shipyard will identify the problems encountered by the steamships and resolve them one by one during these years of trials."

The ordnance factory managers present listened without interrupting.

Yang Yi, on the other hand, is a young and energetic man, full of competitive spirit, especially with his old friend Deng Jian.

Regardless of what the other managers on site thought, Yang Yi, as the deputy factory director in charge of production, stated directly, "The ordnance factory is no worse than the shipyard, it just lacks such an opportunity."

"Sir, I request permission that the arsenal not take several years or even ten years; just give us one year..."

"No, just give us six months, and the entire staff of the ordnance factory will produce a breech-loading rifle with no shooting problems, ensuring that the troops can officially equip it."

It will take several years to resolve the technical problems that have surfaced; these are all old issues with no discernible pattern.

Now that Yang Yi had brought it up, Han Qingyun couldn't ignore it. He inquired about the ordnance factory's proposed solutions, asking, "How does the ordnance factory intend to resolve this?"

To be honest, Yang Yi didn't really have any plans at this time.

After all, the breech-loading replica rifle had only just begun to take shape, and Yang Yi hadn't really thought about solving these problems yet. He stammered, "This subordinate hasn't figured it out yet, but will definitely find a way to solve it!"

The attitude is good, but I don't know if a solution can be found in a short time.

Considering the various problems that actually exist with breech-loading rifles, Han Qingyun did not show favoritism and told Yang Yi all about the shipyard's plans.

Meanwhile, in order to ensure that the Patent Law applied to all factories in Hanyang, Han Qingyun also intended to involve the Ordnance Factory, saying, "Since you two are good friends, don't hold back. Let's handle the technical issues of both factories together!"

"Regarding the experience and skills of the employees in each factory, the munitions factory and the shipyard should communicate well and come up with a set of regulations that are in line with the technological accumulation of each factory."

This authority is quite extensive; it essentially means that the two factories jointly drafted a "Patent Law" that aligns with the technological development of each factory in Hanyang.

It would be unrealistic to say he wasn't secretly pleased. Besides, Yang Yi wasn't one to hide his joy; the corners of his mouth unconsciously betrayed his happiness as he said, "I guarantee I'll complete the mission!"

Han Qingyun didn't say much about it.

As the saying goes, a young man who is not reckless is not a true youth, and Han Qingyun is looking for that kind of fearless spirit in young people.

Now that everything that needed to be said had been said and Yang Yi's assurance had been obtained, Han Qingyun saw no need to stay any longer. Before returning to Hanyang City, Han Qingyun wanted to take another look at the prototype gun.

Following Han Qingyun's instructions, Yang Yi ordered someone to bring over the sample gun.

The prototype rifle was practically perfect, from its firing mechanism to its rate of fire. However, this perfection came at the cost of safety, which was sacrificed in order to enable rapid reloading.

Han Qingyun glanced at it briefly before deciding to give it a try, asking, "Can this gun fire?"

As a staunch practitioner of the prototype gun, Yang Yi naturally knew about its problems and said, "It can be fired, but only in mid-air. It cannot be aimed and fired to prevent eye injury."

"Also, the shooting distance is not ideal, only about 200 meters, and the effective range is only 150 meters."

The prototype gun had just been built, and the gas tightness of the chamber had not been well resolved. The performance of various components had not yet reached their optimal values. However, the kill range was already perfect.

Since Han Qingyun could give the shipyard time, he was naturally willing to give the arsenal time as well. After the attendant fired a shot in mid-air and experienced the firing process of the prototype gun, he said, "I won't give you a year. I'll give you two years. You must overcome this problem."

The Dreiser rifle was designed in 1836 and it took five years, until it was officially finalized in 1841, to resolve these problems.

The ordnance factory is different. The workers there have experience in making guns. As long as this force can be integrated, Han Qingyun believes that the problem can be solved within a year.

A year later, if this rifle can be deployed to existing army units, it can easily defeat the invading Sydney Expeditionary Force and is not afraid of the Indian Ocean Fleet landing.

It wasn't that Han Qingyun was exaggerating, but rather that the advantages of breech-loading rifles were simply too great.

Taking the Indian colony as an example, the British Indian Army at that time did not use the Burke flintlock rifle, but the Brownbes flintlock rifle, which was developed and produced in 1797. This rifle used friction flint to ignite.

The current price is £2.3, approximately 17 grams of gold. Based on the silver-gold exchange rate in Hanyang, this is roughly equivalent to 4 taels of silver or 8 silver dollars, with the following parameters:

Name: Brownbes flintlock pistol

Caliber: 19.05mm

Weight: 4.53 kg

Length: 1070 mm

Bullet: 56 grams

Loading method: Front loading

Rate of fire: 2-3 rounds/minute

Effective range: 100 meters (beyond 50 meters, it's all guesswork)

The rifles used in Britain were Burke flintlock rifles, which were not yet issued to the British Indian colony troops.

Name: Burke flintlock pistol

Caliber: 15.3mm

Length: 1160 mm

Bullet: 35 grams

Loading method: Front loading

Rate of fire: 2-3 rounds/minute

Effective range: 200 meters

It can be said that neither the Brownbes flintlock musket used in the colonies nor the Burke flintlock musket used in the homeland could match the rate of fire of a breech-loading gun.

The Hanyang Arsenal's Dreiser rifle, a copy of the Dreiser rifle, had a rate of fire of 10-12 rounds per minute, which was far superior to the 2-3 rounds per minute of all other muzzle-loading flintlock muskets. It was a complete domination.