Traveling Back to the 1960s: The Entire Internet Teaches Me How to Build Missiles

Everyone has a responsibility

After receiving the blueprints, all the welders and level-eight fitters in the lathe group were mobilized and worked around the clock in the workshop.

The welding torches in the welder's hands flashed and shone continuously, like tireless fire dragons.

Looking at the unique scene before him, Zhou Yunxiao couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.

These level-eight fitters, if you pick any one of them and put them anywhere, they'd be workers that everyone would be fighting over.

Now, they are all working together for a common goal, willingly and anonymously working as small cogs in the 596 Project on this plateau at an altitude of 3,000 meters.

Their achievements may never be known, but everyone accepts them without complaint, and even finds them fulfilling.

Within three days, 36 elastic steel wire rope vibration isolation rings were manufactured, with all tolerances controlled at the millimeter level and the error between them not exceeding five percent. They came fresh off the production line in the workshop!

Li Difeng and the technicians from the Second Department rushed over upon hearing the news, only to find Zhou Yunxiao directing the loading of steel wire ropes into the box. Then He Chenggong drove up in a Yuejin brand truck.

Engineer Li leaned closer and asked, "Comrade Zhou, what are you doing?"

Zhou Yunxiao said, "Due to limited resources, we can't build a large shaking table that meets international standards, so we can only use makeshift methods to test the effectiveness of this 'suspended vibration damping base'."

"You mean, use trucks instead of moving carriages? Isn't that a bit extreme? After all, trains have tracks."

Even if it's bumpy, it's still more stable than a truck on a washboard road, right?

Zhou Yunxiao smiled; "We should consider the worst-case scenario; what if the train derails along the way?"

This left Engineer Li speechless, and he could only watch the experiment from the sidelines.

Due to the tight schedule, Zhou Yunxiao and He Chenggong decided after discussion that the simulation experiment should be as accurate as possible.

With the help of a truck crane, the "suspension shock absorber base," which consists of an outer layer of grid-shaped steel leaf springs, a middle layer of vulcanized rubber pads, and an inner layer of steel wire rope vibration isolation rings, was welded onto the base of the pickup truck's cargo box.

Immediately afterwards, a huge box was hoisted up.

Li Difeng's eyebrows twitched. "Could there really be a detonation lens inside?"

As Zhou Yunxiao directed the driver, he nodded, "That's right, where am I supposed to get you a fake one?"

"Aren't you afraid it'll explode?"

"It's alright, it's just a defective product, used for testing. It only contains twenty kilograms of explosives, so it doesn't have that much destructive power."

Li Difeng nervously swallowed. "Is twenty kilograms not enough? Does the driver know he's carrying a box of high-energy explosives that could explode at any moment, conducting an experiment on a washboard road?"

Zhou Yunxiao was silent for a moment, then nodded again. "He knew that their motor transport class had all come voluntarily by drawing lots, before they left..."

He had written his will beforehand. Strict orders stated that if he died during the experiment, he would be posthumously awarded a first-class merit.

Li Difeng sighed and said nothing more.

Soon, the box containing the explosive lens was secured to the suspension shock absorber base on the truck bed.

The explosive lens is different from the ignition neutron source in Box 1 and the highly enriched uranium-235 hemisphere in Box 2. It is the main structure of the atomic bomb made of a hard aluminum shell, accounting for more than 80% of the weight.

Furthermore, it can be manufactured and assembled quickly, possessing considerable mass production capability, unlike the Uranium-235 hemispheres, of which only four have been produced by the gaseous diffusion plant in the past few years.

After the preparations were complete, He Chenggong stepped forward, grasped the driver's hand, and carefully instructed him: "Please, Master Wang. Don't worry about the car later, it's okay if you break it. The important thing is to fully test the shock absorption effect. Go wherever the washboard road is difficult to drive on, and don't slow down when you're on the gas pedal—"

Zhou Yunxiao stepped forward and solemnly said, "This journey is fraught with peril, and we will always remember your contributions."

The driver grinned, darted into the driver's seat, locked the door, and waved to everyone. "The rise and fall of a nation is the responsibility of every citizen. There's not much I can do, but driving is no problem. Don't worry, even the foreign planes at Chosin Reservoir couldn't bomb me, this little thing definitely can't bring me bad luck!"

"If anything really happens—remember I'm from Huangzhuang, Tongcheng. I have an old mother at home. If any of my brothers ever pass by my house on a business trip, please kowtow to my mother for me. I thank you all in advance."

"That's all for now. I'll be going now. Good luck, everyone!"

The driver rolled up the window and started the truck.

The engine roared to life, black smoke billowed from the rear of the car, and then the accelerator was floored as it sped onto the washboard road.

Everyone stared silently at the large truck that was recklessly driving on the washboard road, their palms sweating with anxiety.

Zhou Yunxiao felt particularly heavy-hearted.

There was no other way. Living in such an era, with a completely backward industrial base, they couldn't even build a vibration test platform, so they had to risk their lives to conduct experiments.

This is a helpless situation, and it should be etched in our hearts.

The truck driver drove on the washboard road for a full three hours, deliberately choosing remote trails, potholes, and other obstacles. He also followed Zhou Yunxiao's instructions to brake or accelerate suddenly every few kilometers.

Whenever the screeching sound of brakes echoed on the washboard road, everyone was on tenterhooks, fearing that a burst of flames would erupt into the sky at any moment.

Fortunately, even when the truck came to a sudden stop at a speed of over 60 kilometers per hour, the vibrations from the vehicle body were filtered out by layers of leaf springs, rubber, and steel cables, and the detonation lens inside the box remained as stable as a rock.

Finally, Zhou Yunxiao nodded to He Chenggong, who immediately ordered the messenger to wave a small flag to signal the drivers on the washboard road.

The truck then slowed down and leisurely drove back to the factory.

As soon as the driver got out of the car, the comrades from the motor transport team rushed forward and lifted him up high as if welcoming a hero.

Zhou Yunxiao, He Chenggong, Li Difeng, and others also laughed.

In addition to testing the shock absorption by towing a detonation lens with a car, Zhou Yunxiao also arranged shock absorption tests in high and low temperature environments.

The Jinyintan base did not have large-scale high-temperature and low-temperature laboratories, so experiments were conducted in the cold storage of the cooking squad and in the paint drying room.

Then, following the same method, they found two strong and powerful comrades, dressed them in protective suits, carried rubber hammers, and went in to smash the suspended shock-absorbing base under the detonation lens.

The other person squatted to the side, observing the changes in the pointer of the impact sensor.

The rest of the people waited anxiously for the test results in the distance.

Everyone was only worried that the base wouldn't be able to withstand such a violent impact, but no one ever suspected that the two men would lie about the data.

Zhou Yunxiao only nodded in satisfaction after the suspended shock-absorbing base passed the high and low temperature environment tests in turn.

After discussing with Li Difeng, He Chenggong, and others, he concluded that the conditions for the long-distance transport of the backup missiles had been met.

Yan Baoguo immediately reported to Director Chen and notified the Dongfeng base and all support units along the transportation route that the moment to go all out was approaching!

Time has come full circle to April 10th.

According to the requirements of Operation 501, to ensure that "Qiu Xiaomei" arrives in Jincheng safely and reliably without any mishaps, the car,

The train should travel at a low speed throughout the journey to avoid any unnecessary bumps or swaying.

Therefore, what was originally a week's journey will now take two weeks to complete, making the 10th a suitable day to depart.

On the morning of the 10th, the seven members of the 501 Special Task Force finished their last meal at the Jinyintan base and lined up at the base entrance.

He Chenggong, a nuclear expert, also joined the escort team to check Qiu Xiaomei's physical condition throughout the process.

After waiting for a few minutes, a whistle blew, and Yan Baoguo shouted in his loud voice, "Attention, everyone! Turn left and right! Run!" A team of fully armed soldiers ran towards the 501 Squad and lined up in two rows behind them.

Staff Officer Xu asked, "Yan Ling, who are these people?"