Chapter 25 025 A good gun that cannot be mass-produced, but with a high reward
Chapter 25 025 A good gun that cannot be mass-produced, but with a high reward (Part )
In fact, Solovyov did not like Tsar Paul's regulations very much, because some of the content in it was completely redundant. His current gun holding posture was a bit awkward. When he held the rifle, he preferred to hold the gun on his left shoulder, but according to the regulations and the habit of queue shooting, he had to hold the gun on his right shoulder.
But he was still confident in his shooting ability, and his accuracy was always the result of the bullets he had been fed at the shooting range. He had fired quite a few shots, and the amount he had fired with the old flintlock rifles was more than the amount of training of the British army, which had the most ammunition at the time.
It is just a bit troublesome afterwards because the bullet casings have to be recovered, checked for deformation, and then reloaded with gunpowder.
Even in Peshawar there are no such hand-made magical rifles. If it were in Africa, there might still be hand-rubbed smoothbore AKs that can actually fire. These are things happening today. It is easy to make guns, but sometimes bullets are more troublesome.
Therefore, Solovyov only prepared 50 rounds of bullets for this rifle, and he also needed to be able to reload gunpowder and solve the problem by himself. After all, processing a cartridge case is more troublesome than making a gun. Mr. Madsen complained a few words when making the gun, which is reasonable. Your technical indicators have more "technological penalties" than others, and you have directly skipped the percussion cap gun and paper cartridge case. The earliest patent for paper cartridge case was applied for in France in 1808. It is not too difficult to catch up with it, but the rifle with copper cartridge case is a story after the Civil War. Using the method of military industry behind enemy lines during the War of Resistance Against Japan, the production of bullets cannot keep up, that is, you should be thankful if you can rub out the cartridge case.
The priority demonstration is the firing rate of a super powerful single-shot rifle. If we really want to mass-produce it, this thing will definitely not work. Even if it is deployed to the troops, it will have to be changed back to the form of paper shell bullets.
We even need to change our habits of firing in formation. If we have such a rifle, many of the original commands can be changed.
When Solovyov loaded the first bullet into the weapon, Tsar Paul became interested. Breech-loading weapons appeared early, but the copper-cased bullet was put in completely. Regardless of the material of the bullet, this novel thing was already quite attractive.
Moreover, the first shot, along with a crisp gunshot from the steel plate serving as the target in the distance, declared a hit, and it should have been quite accurate.
The Guards soldier who reported the target raised a red flag, which meant it was a hit, and a white flag, which meant it was not.
"That's not bad, let's see what this guy is going to do next."
Then he saw Solovyov push open the magazine, eject the spent shell, and it fell on the lawn in a graceful parabola.
At the shooting range, a Guards soldier soon came up behind him. For this weapons test, Tsar Paul actually asked the designers to write down the performance characteristics of their weapons. This made it a bit like a formal weapons bid, and when Solovyov drafted the content, it really looked like a bid.
Regarding weapon performance and confidentiality principles, he also specifically explained the firing principle. For breech-loading rifles, soldiers need to be arranged to collect shell casings on site and put them in cloth bags. This is for the purpose of weapon confidentiality and shell casing recovery.
The Guards soldiers responsible for recovering the shell casings put them in a cloth bag like caddies on a tennis court, and then waited by the side. After all, this was a continuous shooting test.
Tsar Paul himself was an impatient person. He did not have the patience to read through such a long-winded operating procedure that was even more detailed than the instruction manual. Moreover, the writing was too plain, unlike the guys with smoothbore rifles mentioned above who liked to find someone to use gorgeous words to exaggerate the subject in accordance with the traditional art of the Russian court.
This approach is actually more rigorous. In fact, the moody Tsar Paul is easier to control than his mother and his two sons who became tsars. All he has to do is make him happy.
As for the firing of the second bullet, Paul himself sat there and watched. He thought that a rifle that could shoot accurately in the hands of a well-trained shooter was good enough. He had never expected that the grenadier lieutenant would soon load the second bullet, and it was the Guards soldier who reported the target and hit it again.
"Father, this is a quick-firing rifle, but the shell is made of copper. As you know, the cannons we use also use copper. If we equip them in large quantities, it will take up a lot of copper."
It was normal for Alexander to say that. Many of the cannons of that era were copper cannons. Especially since Tsar Paul himself attached great importance to artillery and was preparing to start mass production of Unicorn cannons, the materials and production capacity available for the new rifles were very limited.
It was also a good thing for Paul that his son was willing to think deeply, especially when making suggestions based on the current national conditions in Russia. Only in this way could he be a qualified crown prince of the Russian Empire.
At the same time, this rifle was like meeting his wife to Paul, because Solovyov fired more than ten shots in a row with superb accuracy, and the white smoke produced by the burning black powder did not affect the accuracy like ordinary shooting.
Anyway, this gun can be used and its status is very clear. When bidding, Solovyov said in his instruction manual that it was a "Model 1797 Jager Rifle" and its purpose was to be used by the Jager Regiment.
For this purpose, he had previously visited Prince Bagration, and he had also proposed what kind of weapon the hunters needed. It did not necessarily have to be very fast, but it must maintain accuracy.
The harassment mission that the hunters are responsible for in skirmishes requires them to be more accurate. This type of light infantry often starts exchanging fire before the line infantry encounters them.
If this thing also fired in a formation, the scene would be really beautiful. Considering that rifled guns have a naturally higher hit rate, the possibility of concentrating the enemy is greatly increased. Originally, it might have taken four or five hundred shots to effectively kill the enemy. Now, the efficiency of killing on the battlefield has been greatly improved.
"Send over that Lieutenant Soloviev. I want to ask him something."
Paul was not only eager for quick success, but also moody. However, when he calmed down, he could still listen to others. The Tsar was also happy to be with young officers. He reformed the treatment of the army and was supported by the soldiers. Those who wanted to overthrow him were always the conspiring opposition officers, which made people panic.
This situation is not obvious now. The first thing to do in military reform is to improve the treatment of soldiers. Therefore, among the soldiers, their emperor is still very loved and supported.
Solovyov came before Tsar Paul. He was in a good mood today and therefore looked very friendly. Just as Frederick the Great had said, he was kind and upright by nature. Although he had a bad temper, he was very tolerant in many ways.
When you are in a better mood, you will be more tolerant.
"Your Majesty, I am here to present to you this 'Jäger Rifle Model 1797'."
The Tsar himself felt very satisfied after holding this rifle in his hands.
"It is this gun that has such a miraculous rate of fire. I am more interested in the bullets used in your gun, Solovyov. I was worried just now that you would use up all the bullets."
"No, Your Majesty. I have prepared the number of bullets necessary for a battle. I just counted them and found that I have fired 15 rounds. These shells can still be reloaded with gunpowder."
"That's an excellent idea, Lieutenant. Are you a grenadier?"
"Yes, sir, in the Moscow Grenadiers, but I have been an adjutant ever since, and I have followed my commander to Petersburg." "I know, it is Dmitri Volkonsky, he has come to the Commission, and I think you are a little under-qualified for an adjutant."
Paul couldn't let go of this rifle, and with just a word from him, he could give a junior officer a fast track to promotion.
"I think that genius ideas are always inseparable from down-to-earth craftsmen. Without their hands, these ideas cannot be turned into reality."
These words made Paul even happier, as he himself believed that people should possess virtues and that new moral standards should be implemented for the nobility.
"Humility is a virtue, and that's good."
Then Tsar Paul signaled a eunuch to come over. Of course, it was not one of those with a title, but a real servant. In the Russian court, it was not like in France. In the Palace of Versailles, there were also masters who provided lighting when bringing the urinal to His Majesty. Of course, now that the Bourbon dynasty had been overthrown, there was no such job.
Paul decided to reward the craftsmen and appoint them to positions at the Tula Arsenal, but Solovyov did not want to make any demands. It was not because he was afraid that this place would become a Tongrentang, but at his age, it was difficult to make any arrangements other than the bonus he deserved, because the Russian army also pays attention to qualifications. Even if you are promoted exceptionally, your family background and years of service will also be considered.
Now it was the Tsar himself who spoke up and raised the issue.
"You did a good job, but you are too young and you are only an adjutant. Apart from the bonus, even if I give you a promotion, I can only let you continue to be an adjutant in another place."
To put it bluntly, his current position means he will be an adjutant forever. No wonder some people in Russia sometimes say that being an adjutant has no future and he should find another job.
Paul, on the other hand, could have said it directly, but he insisted on writing it down. Not only did he make Solovyov anxious, but even Crown Prince Alexander and Grand Duke Constantine standing beside him became anxious. He could have just spoken, but he insisted on writing an order.
If someone knows that you are going to reward the young man in front of you handsomely, then those who don't would think that you are going to issue an order to send this young adjutant down to do the "micro-management".
After all, there was no room for a general staff in his military reform. There had been such a thing for a while in the Empress's era, but then it disappeared. In the army of the 18th century, there might have been more adjutants, but the Russian army was really not very good at staff work.
When Solovyov was an adjutant, he made his superiors happy, not by flattery and interpersonal relationships, but by handing over maps and other things when needed. Flattery is actually different from high emotional intelligence. It should be said that it is more about the ability to express oneself.
Whenever he arrived at the shooting range, he always carried a briefcase with him, and it was obvious that he was an adjutant.
"To the Pavlovsky Grenadiers?"
For Solovyov, this basically meant that he was transformed from an ordinary grenadier regiment into a special unit. When this regiment was formed, a lot of troops were drawn from the Moscow Grenadier Regiment.
The regiment is currently composed of 6 companies, including 1 grenadier company and 5 musket companies. The reason why Paul wrote it down was to do an experiment and assign a chasseur company to the grenadiers.
"Yes, Lieutenant. It's not surprising to have a company of Jagers in the Grenadiers. It's the same with the Musketeers. I want to see the formation and training of this company in person. You will be the company commander. And you are not suitable to be a grenadier at this height. You are a little taller to be a Jager."
Other time travelers would be so excited that they would bow down to anyone they met, but Solovyov had to show the highest respect to Paul. In addition to receiving the winning prize, he was also directly promoted to captain and company commander, and received a letter of commission from the Tsar on the spot.
But as he bowed, Paul saw the two pistols in his holsters.
Paul was relatively tolerant towards young officers and soldiers, and his series of policies made him very popular among the soldiers. After all, his edict clearly stated that "soldiers' wages must not be delayed." However, it was still difficult for these soldiers to understand what Paul was doing.
Although this Tsar had a bad reputation in the future and his five-year reign was often shrouded in mystery because he was murdered, many of the military regulations he established during this period are still in use today, but generally no one notices that the shadow of his military reforms can be seen in the footsteps of the standard-bearers and soldiers on duty on Red Square.
Therefore, Solovyov, as well as other officers and soldiers participating in the test, were allowed to bring personal weapons to the parade ground.
These two pistols caught his attention.
"Captain, this is also a newly made pistol, right?"
Arakcheev on the side winked at Solovyov, and he understood that the Tsar knew about this.
The artillery general then said, "Captain Solovyov, since you also clearly stated the performance and purpose of this 1797-style revolver officer's pistol when you bid, why don't you present it to His Majesty as soon as possible?"
Soloviev then took both pistols out of their holsters and handed one of them at the muzzle to Paul, while the other was placed on the small table where the tea service was placed, and Alexander took this one.
"It doesn't look bad. This gun is not loaded with ammunition. Does it use the same bullets as your 'shotgun'?"
"No, Your Majesty. If this also uses copper-jacketed bullets, Mr. Madsen will have a harder time, and we don't have the time to complete the design of these weapons. The one we finally adopted is the old method, but the lead bullets are pre-loaded. Your Majesty, that's it. If you think reloading is too slow, you can prepare more pre-loaded detachable magazines, and the speed of changing bullets on the battlefield will be greatly accelerated."
While explaining to the Tsar and the grand dukes, he began to load gunpowder. However, the firing method has been improved. It is no problem to directly load the cartridge case and firing pin according to the jäger rifle. However, considering the cost issue, it may be upgraded to paper shell bullet in the future.
This time, Solovyov showed off in front of the royal family. He held two guns in each hand and shot quickly. If someone was really a time traveler, it would be perfect if he changed it to two 20-shot guns in his hands.
Paul was very happy about this and awarded Solovyov the Order of Saint Anna, third class, to recognize his design contribution in the development of firearms. And he could add this mark on his sword as an "honorary weapon". This came from a "secret method" when Paul was still the crown prince to issue medals to generals and officers around him, in order to prevent the queen from noticing. In fact, the queen knew, but she pretended not to know.
(End of this chapter)