The "six-barrel version" was named "Gatling Rapid-Fire Weapon Type I", the "Ten-Barrel Version" was "Type II", and the "Miniature Version" was "Type III".

The order in which they are named corresponds to the order in which they were designed and manufactured.

There are three types of magazines, the slender one is the "Gatling Rapid Fire Weapon Feed Hopper I.", the cylindrical one is "II.", and the oblate one is "III.".

"Ammunition hopper"?

Guan Zhuofan thought to himself, Mr. Gatling, no wonder you hit a wall everywhere when you sell your "continuous rapid-fire weapons", the term "continuous rapid-fire weapons" is vague enough, and you also add an inexplicable "ammunition hopper" - who knows what it means?

Gatling said that theoretically, the three types of "ammunition supply hoppers" can be used universally in the three types of "continuous rapid-fire weapons," but under normal circumstances, the "ammunition supply hopper II" is not suitable for the "continuous rapid-fire weapon Type III." The reason is that the "ammunition supply hopper II" is too large, and the "continuous rapid-fire weapon Type III" is too small, and when firing, the gun body vibrates continuously, and it is not easy to maintain balance.

Hey, three types of "ammunition hoppers" can be used universally on all three models of "even rapid-fire weapons"?

That's a terrific improvement! Guan Zhuofan vaguely knew that at the beginning of the birth of the original space-time Gatling machine gun, between the "ammunition supply hopper" and the chamber of the gun, all kinds of strange and ridiculous things, so when he acquired the patent, he specifically requested that the ammunition supply should be "standardized" and a "general module" should be established.

That's what Gatling did, yes, yes.

Gatlin continued: It must be pointed out. The "Rapid-Fire Weapon Type III" has a shorter barrel. Range as well as accuracy. It's not as good as "Type I" and "Type II".

Of the three models, the most powerful is the "Type III" of the "ten-barrel version", with a theoretical rate of fire of up to four hundred rounds per minute.

400 rounds per minute? I...... Depend on!

Let me do the math:

A single-shot firing pin breech gun, an average qualified shooter, can make about five shots in a minute.

The Spencer Repeater, the average qualified shooter, can fire all seven bullets in the magazine in twelve seconds - if precise aiming is not considered. But. It's not like you can shoot 35 rounds in a minute, because you have to change the magazine, which is a small tip. Well, in one minute, an average qualified shooter can shoot about three magazines - that is, twenty-one rounds.

That's not ...... A "ten-barrel version" of a Gatling machine gun, worth eighty single-shot firing pin breech guns, or twenty Spencer repeaters?

King Xuanjun couldn't help but be moved by the color.

"Your Royal Highness," Gatling said. "I must say, four hundred rounds per minute. It's just a 'theoretical rate of fire', and in actual combat, it can't be maintained for a long time - otherwise, the barrel will overheat, mechanical failure will occur, and in the most severe case, there will be an explosion accident. ”

Guan Zhuofan didn't care. To talk about the "theoretical rate of fire", five rounds a minute for a single-shot shot-type breech gun and twenty rounds a minute for a Spencer repeater gun are also "theoretical rate of fire". Whether it is a single-shot firing pin breech gun or a Spencer repeater gun, ordinary soldiers cannot maintain the "theoretical rate of fire" for a long time -- people can't stand it, guns can't stand it, and they will overheat, jam, blow up, and all kinds of malfunctions.

"However," Gatlin continued, "the probability of malfunction and accidents with 'rapid-fire weapons' has become lower and lower as a result of continuous improvements, and I think it has reached a level that is tolerable and acceptable." ”

After a pause, he said, "I've made improvements in two main areas—"

First, the original bullet used by the Gatling machine gun was a paper shell mini bullet, which inevitably caused the problem of gunpowder gas leakage, and the special feeding method of the Gatling machine gun made its chamber and chamber designed to be separated, which further aggravated the leakage of gunpowder gas.

Gunpowder gas leakage, in addition to reducing the speed and accuracy of the bullet, accumulates to a certain extent, and may also lead to explosion. In order to solve this big problem, Gatlin improved the locking mechanism on the one hand, and on the other hand, he "drew wages from the bottom of the kettle", completely abandoned the paper shell bomb, and adopted the metal fixed ammunition that had just been developed at that time.

This idea is similar to the design idea of the Spencer String Gun.

It's just that Guan Zhuofan heard the words "metal fixed ammunition", and couldn't help but gasp a little: According to the rate of fire of the Gatling machine gun of 400 rounds a minute, how much yellow and clear copper do you have to knock out of me!

Where is my copper mine?

In modern warfare, the war is fought with industrial capacity, and this statement is not bad at all.

"Second," Gatling said, "the chamber and chamber are independent of each other, but they must be coaxial, otherwise the bullet will not be delivered accurately into the chamber and will cause the case to jam." For this reason, I improved the design of the barrel, the diameter of the rear part of the barrel is slightly larger than the diameter of the front part, so that the bullet will enter the chamber more smoothly, and during mechanical rotation, even if the chamber and the chamber are not 100% coaxial, it will not affect the delivery of the bullet in the chamber into the chamber. ”

Guan Zhuofan didn't understand this passage very clearly.

Guan Zhuofan has seen a gun, the chamber and the chamber are all one, and he can't imagine what it looks like to "chamber and chamber are independent of each other" for a while?

While trying to move into figurative thinking, Gatling spoke again: "However, there is a disadvantage in doing this, the diameter of the barrel is too large, and the warhead will intensify the tumbling during flight-"

After a pause, he said, "This affects the accuracy of the shooting on a certain distance. I am trying to find a solution, but I have to admit, Your Highness, that the best of both worlds has not yet been found. ”

Hearing him say this, Guan Zhuofan was relieved: I am not a technician, so I don't have to understand all the details so clearly. And this Mr. Gatlin, who is not only smart, but also honest, is - very good, very good.

"Mr. Gatling," said Kwan Zhuofan with a smile, "'Rapid-fire weapons' are different from rifles - they are used for different purposes, and accuracy is not the first requirement for them. Besides, I'm sure you'll find the best solution after all. ”

"Thank you for your understanding and trust, Your Highness!" Gatling's eyes lit up, "'Rapid-fire weapons are used differently than rifles, and accuracy is not the first requirement for them' - this insight of yours is very enlightening...... Instructive! ”

Guan Zhuofan thought to himself: Lao Jia, you are quite good at sycophants.

"These days," he smiled, "my generals, have been arguing about this for a long time. However, let's take a look at the power of the 'Rapid-Fire Weapon' for the time being! ”

The "debriefing performance" officially began.

The "performance" was divided into two parts, one part was a "demonstration of shooting density and accuracy," and the other was a "demonstration of the ability to deter the enemy."

"Shooting density and accuracy demonstration" is relatively simple: shoot at a single target and see how many bullets are fired and how many bullets are on the target in a minute under normal circumstances?

"Normal" means shaking the crank of the Gatling gun at a constant speed of "normal force".

The first demonstration was the "Type I" of the "six-barrel version" with the slender "Ammunition Hopper I."

Gatling operated the handle himself, and an assistant held the magazine.

The machine gun roared.

The barrel and handle of the gun rotated at a dizzying speed, and the muzzle of the gun was shrouded in smoke.

Spencer's "Lianzhu" is just an adjective, and the gunfire at this moment is really called "dense as a bead"!

Guan Zhuofan's palms were slightly sweaty, and his blood was full of blood.

In just a dozen seconds, a magazine with a capacity of 60 rounds was exhausted.

The speed of changing the magazine is much faster than Guan Zhuofan imagined. The two assistants, one for dismantling and the other for loading, were not much slower than the Spencer repeater to change the magazine - of course, all the operations of the Spencer repeater were done by the gunner himself.

The machine gun roared again.

In one minute, Kankan had exhausted three magazines, or 180 rounds.

Gatlin asked His Royal Highness to inspect the target himself.

After careful counting, one hundred and sixty-six rounds were on target.

The hit rate is more than 90 percent, which is quite acceptable for a machine gun.

Also, this number jù is basically the same as the series of demonstrations and real yàn that Gatling did after he arrived at the port, and it is not a "super level play".

However, looking at the yellow and clear bullet casings all over the ground, Guan Zhuofan couldn't help but feel a little pain.

He immediately remembered that all these shells had to be recovered.

It's okay, it's okay.

Next, there was the "Demonstration of Deterrence Capability Against the Enemy", which was handled by the "Type II" of the "10-barrel version" and the cylindrical "Ammunition Hopper II" - that is, the one with the largest ammunition capacity.

*(To be continued......)