017 Gun Development (1)
East Stellar Co., Ltd. has been busy since early morning.
While Peter and Henry Marauu learned about guns from Yi Hwan and studied how to make them, their sons were cutting down trees and trimming them to fit the architecture.
He also built an oven to bake bread and cut and dried ingredients bought from the Rotterdam market for easy storage.
Early in the morning, Lee Hwan was also explaining the parts of the rifle and the mechanism of firing to Peter and Henry.
Hwan Lee explained, pointing to each part with his finger.
“The heart of this rifle is the bolt. Pull it all the way back to open the chamber. At this time, the bullet from the bottom will come up and it will be loaded. And when the bolt is pushed forward again, the magazine spring will push the next bullet into the chamber.”
“It’s a little different from the rifle you designed the other day.”
“You could say it’s a version that has grown up a notch, right?”
Henry raised his hand.
As Lee Hwan nodded, he asked a question.
“Why is the shape of the bolt bundle different, but the size, strength, and shape of the chamber and barrel are all different?”
“That’s a very good question. If there was a difference between the white powder we are developing now and the existing black powder, it would be pressure.”
“Pressure?”
“Unlike the existing gunpowder, the white powder currently being researched produces a large amount of pressure because it gasifies and burns its constituents instead of producing little smoke. Because of this, if you put smokeless powder into a gun made for black powder and fire it, the barrel can’t stand it and it explodes.”
“Aha!”
“So, the idea was to first lay the groundwork for an older firearm and later develop a firearm suitable for smokeless gunpowder.”
Since the gun production had to be different depending on the gunpowder, Lee Hwan was developing the gun separately by dualizing the design.
Now that you’ve learned how guns fire, it’s time to lay the groundwork for mass production of them.
Today’s gun production takes longer than expected.
As in the case of making and using swords in the past, molten iron is poured into a casting plate, smelted, and molded to shape the gun.
Lee Hwan decided to abandon the old smelting method and introduce a modern steel smelting method.
“No matter what type of gunpowder you use, the iron must be hard. Therefore, the current smelting method has limitations.”
“Then how do you make it strong enough to withstand smokeless gunpowder?”
He decided to adopt the method of obtaining pig iron by putting iron ore together with limestone and coke and heating it to 2,000 degrees.
Lee Hwan made the two of them understand by drawing a picture on a stone plate with charcoal.
“Basically, iron is smelted through oxidation and reduction. Isn’t ironmaking ultimately about getting a little higher purity iron and making it stronger? Then we can make it stronger through a chemical reaction.”
“Ugh!”
Of course, it will not be possible to produce steel with the same strength as the iron extracted from the steel mills of the future.
However, if you work hard to create an environment similar to that, and devote yourself to creating a slightly higher level of output, you will eventually be able to taste the fruits of success.
If you make a firearm in this way, there is no need for quenching.
Even if you do this, the time it takes to manufacture the parts of the gun according to the specifications and assemble it to complete the gun is about a week or so.
Even if you put iron in a mold and print it out, trimming and assembling it is because you have to do it manually by hand.
Therefore, Lee Hwan devised a method to switch from the existing manual method to a semi-automatic method.
“Let’s change the way we cut iron after we cut it in the same way as above.”
“How do you mean?”
“It is very cumbersome to use human hands to cut wood and form iron. So I came up with this device. It’s a hydraulic cutter.”
“cutter?”
“Hydraulically, with just a few pedal strokes, what would take an entire day can be done in just 10 minutes.”
“Oh oh!”
The rubber hose connected to the hydraulic system was supposed to transmit power to the circular teeth, which enabled the use of rotational power by transferring the power to the sandpaper or cast iron saw used by craftsmen.
Although it is not as good as modern high-speed cutters, it is different from grinding iron by hand because it generates hydraulic pressure by stepping on the pedal.
Peter and Henry were very excited.
“… … How in the world did you have all these skills!”
“Okay then, let’s get to work.”
They decided to start step by step by building a hydraulic system and a furnace.
***
It has been 70 days since the first work started.
Now, they have succeeded in developing a satisfactory iron that can withstand some pressure, and they can make barrels and produce rifles.
Lee Hwan randomly mixed the finished parts and assembled them to complete the gun.
shudder!
He retreated and advanced the bolt of the rifle that had been assembled, and then pulled the trigger.
damn it!
If the ball had the hammer working properly and the magazine was properly inserted and fired, it wouldn’t be a problem for the bullet to fire.
“Good! The parts were perfectly compatible.”
“Oh oh! Really this is possible! I can’t believe it even with my own two eyes!”
“This is just the beginning. If white powder is developed, we can make more advanced firearms.”
Lee Hwan entrusted Peter’s daughter Amelia and Ruger’s Robert with the task of making ammunition.
Lee Hwan, who had already been prepared to produce ammunition since he came here, entrusted a gunpowder specialist to develop white ammunition.
While the two were developing the ammunition, they also started making and modifying the black powder for the cartridge rifles that are being made now.
The strength of black powder also varies depending on the formulation.
That is why they were working hard to create a powerful black powder to be used before the white powder was developed.
Not long ago, Robert and Amelia succeeded in researching cartridge shells and warheads according to the specifications of black powder.
The two showed Lee Hwan their first product.
“As the president said, we made a new bullet with the effectiveness of black powder.”
“Um, good! How about the stability of gunpowder?”
“It is difficult to say that it is 100% perfectly stable yet, but I think there is no problem with the percussion as it is matched to the formulation the boss told me as much as possible. The generation of bullets was also significantly suppressed.”
“All right. Shall we shoot one more time then?”
Guns were not so precious in this day and age, but this was the first time I had seen a rear-mounted rifle like this.
People decided to watch the shooting scene with half anticipation and half concern.
Lee Hwan went directly to the shooter and took a shooting stance.
The rifle was fitted with a shell and the bolt was retracted and advanced.
shudder!
It’s still a bit stiff, but the lubricating oil did its job, so loading shouldn’t be a problem.
With Lee Hwan taking his stance, the Ruger and Mouser families had a slightly strange expression on their faces.
“Was your boss originally a catcher?”
“I don’t think it is. I heard that you came to Europe at the age of 16, and you would have to have been in the military for at least five years to learn marksmanship like that.”
“What, then, that I enlisted at the age of 11… … ?”
“Hey, isn’t there a country that uses that little boy as a soldier?”
Amidst all sorts of suspicions, Lee Hwan picked up his breathing after holding the rifle’s butt properly.
No one knew what kind of future Lee Hwan would create in the future with these five bullets, which Lee Hwan is shooting.
He stirred up the future of the two families and even his own ambitions.
Taang!
The rifle then spewed out warheads and flew away.
Lee Hwan clearly aimed at the center of the round target, and there was no shaking in his breathing.
Whoops!
It was a satisfactory accuracy and destructive power.
When the target that had been set up 50 meters in front of it shook, the people were startled and hurrahed.
“Oh, right! It’s a hit!”
Without being shaken by it, Lee Hwan immediately retreated the bolt again and ejected the cartridge with the clip.
Chunkyung!
If not a fully automatic rifle, it was equipped with the appearance of a cartridge rifle capable of firing five rounds.
Although the bullets were quite tight, the shortcomings of the black powder were well compensated for, so there was no problem in firing immediately.
Taang!
The artisans opened their mouths at the sight of Lee Hwan shooting in succession.
“Huh! Are the bullets really coming out one after another?!”
“… … I’m sure I can hold on to a part of this, right?”
Indeed, it was fortunate that these two families met Lee Hwan.
Wasn’t the technology that was almost a century ahead of them unfolding before their eyes?
Lee Hwan continued to use up all five bullets ever since.
bang! bang! bang!
After a perfect shot, Lee Hwan pointed the rifle’s muzzle toward the sky and checked for any remaining ammunition.
shudder! shudder! widely!
Also, only the sound of the ball moving was heard.
Lee Hwan walked straight to the target and found out how the shooting was going.
“Uh… … . Should I get some more zero points? Anyway, the tanchak group has been formed, so I passed!”
I haven’t adjusted the zero point yet, so the rifle’s impact force was fairly stable.
It was said that even if an ordinary person shoots, it is possible to kill a person from at least 150 meters away.
The artisans ran towards Lee Hwan.
“president! It’s a complete success! Haha, this is enough to even come running to the US to buy a rifle! How dare we make guns like these monsters! The hard work is worth it!”
There was a lot to be done in a short period of time, from digging the steel wire into the barrel to the smooth movement of the bolt, but Peter and Henry never gave up and endured for nearly three months without sleeping.
Such efforts have produced the results they are today, so their feelings were new.
Lee Hwan smiled proudly at the craftsmen running around excitedly.
That evening.
The factory workers rode out to a nearby village to slaughter a pig and six chickens.
Although the salt was not properly seasoned, they were happy enough just to taste the meat.
“Thank you, boss! Thanks to you, I try to eat all of these meats!”
“It was nothing. Let’s have a party with our better meat later.”
Alcohol is not to be missed at the party. Although it was cheap rum, it tasted quite good when eaten with meat.
‘… … This is life!’
Now, Lee Hwan too has grown into a muscular young man with a height of 190 cm.
It was said that the time had come to enjoy life with alcohol.
They ate and drank and played for a long time, and they heard their voices.
“Are you there?!”
Everyone stood up from their seats, wondering what kind of person they were in this quiet neighborhood.
Then a man who pretended to be popular came and asked.
“Is there any CEO Lee Hwan here?”
“Yes, I am Lee Hwan.”
“I am Christopher Grava of Ben Heren Corporation.”
“At the Benheren fleet… … ?”
“Prince Ben-Heren has sent a message.”
“A scorpion?”
After receiving the letter with the seal of the Ben Heren family, Lee Hwan read the contents.
The content of the letter was that Ben-Herren would be holding an investment meeting soon, so be prepared and come to Amsterdam.
Lee Hwan, who has already established the foundation for mass production with the development of a manual hydraulic system, decided to send an answer directly to Ben Heren.
“Can you send me a letter on the way?”
“Anyway, the Master told me to come and get a reply.”
On the spot, Lee Hwan borrowed ink and a nib and started writing a reply.
In the reply, he wrote that the preparations for mass production had already been completed and that he could perform any number of demonstrations.
After completing the writing, Lee Hwan stamped his engraving with ink.
“Please pass it on.”
“all right. See you later in Amsterdam.”
Also, Ben Heren was good in action.
Now, Lee Hwan had an intuition that he had an opportunity to finally become a colossus.