The next day at noon, the group followed Youpi to the Mechanical Factory Two in the industrial district.
After a brief explanation of their purpose, Youpi's older brother, Lafi, showed a keen interest. He took the buqiang handed over by Fanna and fondled it with fascination. "Is this really possible? I used to be just a miner, and now I mostly do rough work like grinding and cutting. What if I accidentally break it..."
"Brother!" Youpi coughed twice.
"It's not a big deal if it's just one or two. After all, qiangxiè will also be damaged during regular practice," Fanna said frankly. "If it exceeds this number, it can only mean that my idea doesn't work, and I won't blame you."
"I understand," Lafi nodded excitedly. "Then please leave it to me! But the machines in the factory may not be free. I'll try to make time to help you complete it."
"Your brother seems to really like firearms," Cat's Claw whispered, tugging at Youpi.
"That's no surprise," Rodney chimed in. "Who doesn't like powerful weapons? It used to be swords and spears, now it's firearms and cannons."
Fanna wholeheartedly agreed. It was after witnessing the power of the twelve-pound field gun that he gradually shifted his fondness from boiled eggs to this responsibility. Opening the leather bag carried by his companion, he took out a metal tube removed from a scrapped heavy jiqiang and said to Lafi, "Then let's begin."
...
The buqiang barrel was disassembled and fixed on the drilling machine.
Lafi turned the switch, aimed the drill bit at the marked position, and carefully brought the two closer. The moment the drill bit made contact with the tube, silk-like metal shavings scattered in all directions.
For Fanna, this was not a new scene. Although he knew that both steam engines and fortress cannons were made from processed metal ingots, it was his first time watching so closely. The seemingly indestructible steel was gradually changing its shape under the drill bit, as if its hardness no longer existed. This experience was truly amazing.
According to Lafi, some of the machine tools in Mechanical Factory Two had been replaced with third-generation machines driven by "Dawn One," which were much easier to use than the steam engine-powered machines of the past. Both vibration and noise were greatly reduced, and they could be started at any time. With good skills, some veteran craftsmen could even carve flowers on iron rods the size of fingers.
However, Fanna didn't need such superb craftsmanship. After a night of thinking, he had sorted out his entire idea. In short, it was to achieve the goal with the fewest steps and a handful of resources. After all, this modification had to be simple and easy to use, and it couldn't hinder the normal production of the factory. To this end, he specifically brought the gas tube of the Mark I, in order to simplify the difficulty and save processing time.
With the key parts already formed, the first step of extracting huoyào gas was no longer a problem. The focus was on how to achieve continuous qiangzhi firing.
In fact, Fanna had long been interested in the heavy jiqiang of the firearm battalion. He had also played with the anti-aircraft squads' treasures in the artillery positions during the Northern Expedition. One thing he was sure of was that in order to accommodate a complex ammunition feeding and recoil mechanism, the Mark I's gun body buqiang was much larger, and the way the ammunition belt entered the chamber was also different from the dànjia. It was unrealistic to move the whole thing over.
Even if this was feasible, it would mean that the heavy jiqiang, which already had a low output, would have to allocate some parts for artillery use. Even if Brian remained indifferent, Iron Axe would definitely give him a good scolding.
The best way was not to make any changes to the gun body and to concentrate all the changes outside the gun body as much as possible.
"It's about right like this..." Lafi cleaned the drilled hole and faced the sunlight outside the window to check the buqiang barrel and the gas tube. "If we cut off the extra section of the latter, the two tubes should be able to align."
"Don't rush to connect them," Fanna took out a piece of white paper from his pocket and laid it flat in front of the other party. "Next, I'd like you to process a part like this."
On the paper was a rather simple drawing, shaped like an arc, about one finger long and two fingers wide, with a groove hollowed out in the middle.
"What is this?" Everyone curiously gathered around and asked. "It doesn't look like a part of a gun."
Fanna was also quite unsure, after all, this was just his personal idea and had not been verified in any way. However, in front of his subordinates, he couldn't show any timidity. "Ahem... If everything goes well, this thing will replace our hands."
...
Five days later, the First Army's shooting range gathered many soldiers from the artillery battalion.
They learned from their respective officers that a repeating firearm specially designed for artillery soldiers was being tested. Unlike the equipment currently used by the army, this weapon was not made by Roland himself, but an idea from Battalion Commander Fanna. This statement naturally aroused everyone's interest. Even though they were still on vacation, they wanted to see what the new weapon looked like.
To everyone's surprise, the weapon placed on the test platform, although it occasionally jammed and malfunctioned, could indeed achieve continuous firing when operating normally. As long as the trigger was pulled continuously, it could empty all the bullets in its belly in a short time!
Moreover, compared to the five-round loading of a revolver buqiang, the new weapon could load twenty rounds in one go. If several were set up, it would be comparable to a heavy jiqiang.
"I didn't expect you to actually make it," Cat's Claw exclaimed in admiration. "I understand why Iron Axe chose you as battalion commander."
"This is actually Roland's credit. Doesn't he often say that we should combine what we have learned with practice? I just made a small attempt." Fanna said triumphantly. He didn't expect it to be so smooth. In just five days, he had pieced together a usable weapon, and the predetermined goals were basically achieved. After some minor adjustments, the artillery battalion could obtain enough firepower to protect themselves with very few resources.
"Excuse me, are you Battalion Commander Fanna?" Someone suddenly asked.
"That's right, you are..." Fanna turned his head to look.
"I am a member of the Precision Shooting Team, my name is Danny." The man smiled slightly. "I saw that it was quite lively here while on duty, so I came to learn about the situation... I wonder if I can try the new weapon you designed?"
"Precision Shooting Team?" Youpi was stunned, then winked at Fanna. "Boss—"
Fanna naturally knew the origin of this team. Each precision shooter was an outstanding warrior carefully selected by Brian from the firearm battalion. Soon after its formation, it became famous in the Coldwind Ridge battle against the church and was awarded the Sharpshooter Medal by His Majesty, which could be said to be the elite of the elite. Moreover, judging from the other party's clothing, their status in the team should not be low. If such a person could be made to envy the artillery battalion's qiangzhi, wouldn't that mean they could completely overwhelm the firearm battalion?
Looking at the expectant expressions of Youpi, Cat's Claw and others, Fanna slowly raised the corners of his mouth. "Of course, please go ahead."