1850 American Gold Tycoon

After finishing the day's chores, Liang Yao couldn't help but stretch and relax his body.

Walter, who had just settled in San Francisco, came to see Liang Yao with his invention.

"How's it going? Are you used to it these days in San Francisco?"

Liang Yao stood up and asked Walter with great concern.

Walter felt warm. Before this, no partner had ever cared about his life. They only cared about how many dollars they could earn from his patent.

"San Francisco is very good. The development here is better than I imagined." Walter showed a very happy smile.

"Thanks to your care, everything went smoothly. However, my wife felt that the manor was too spacious and hired a construction company to build some new buildings. But for me, as long as there is a research room for inventions and experiments, That’s enough, I’m very satisfied with life here.”

"If you need anything, just come to me and ask for it. Whether it's supplies or people, I will do my best to satisfy you. Even if what you want is in London or Paris, I will find a way to get it for you." Liang Yao said.

"I have a dedicated assistant and a dedicated painter. These are things that I never dared to think about before. I am still missing something. If I have to say I am missing something, I only lack creativity now!" Walter said very matter-of-factly.

"Creativity is exactly what I can't provide you." Liang Yao smiled, "How is Nobel lately?"

"Ever since you sent him a few barrels of a liquid called petroleum, he has been immersed in experiments all day long to purify this stuff. He is very interested in this liquid." Walter thought about the last time he went to Nobel. Said the scene of visiting.

"He said that as you said, the composition of this liquid is very complex, and a lot of new things can be extracted from it. I think he will have new research results soon. This guy is very talented and young, and he will definitely do it in the future. It can make a difference.”

"I am also very optimistic about him. He is both talented and hard-working. People like this are very rare. He is a young man with a bright future."

Liang Yao deeply agreed with this. He pointed to the wooden box held by the assistant behind Walter and asked curiously.

"What new invention have you come up with?"

"It's not a new invention. It's just a slight modification to the rifle invented last time at your request."

With that said, Walter turned around and took out the box and pried it open. He saw two brand new rifles lying inside the box and introduced them to Liang Yao.

"The caliber of these two rifles has been reduced from 15mm to 10mm according to your requirements." Walter said.

"Aren't you used to using imperial units?" Liang Yao was a little surprised.

"I'm used to using imperial units, but you seem to be more accustomed to metric units, so I'll just go with you." Walter smiled, "Did the Qing Dynasty also use metric units?"

The United Kingdom and its colonies and former colonial areas customarily use imperial units.

However, before the mid-19th century, there were not many countries that adopted metric units, mainly France, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy.

As for Walter's question about whether the Qing Dynasty used metric units, the answer was naturally no. It was not until the 34th year of Guangxu (1908) that the Qing Dynasty was about to fall, and the Qing government decided to partially adopt metric units.

Being accustomed to using metric units is just Liang Yao's personal habit.

The prototype gun Walter gave him before actually used Springfield's 85-inch caliber. It was just a matter of Liang Yao's personal habits. He was used to metric units. When he saw that the caliber was the same as Springfield's, he subconsciously converted it into metric units. .

"It's also because of my personal habits. I'm more accustomed to using metric units." Liang Yao picked up one of the guns and looked at it carefully.

"The one you are holding uses paper-cased bullets. Of course, you can also use linen-wrapped bullets. The cost is about $15." Walter introduced.

"If I remember correctly, the cost of the sample gun you showed me last time was 20 US dollars. Now you can actually reduce the cost by 25%. How did you do it?" Liang Yao was very surprised.

If the cost is $15, it is very advantageous compared to the Springfield M1842.

"Start with materials, but there is a price."

Walter said as he picked up another new gun with a metal shell version.

"The cost of a new gun using metal bullets is still US$20, but the materials are the same as before and are relatively solid. I have done experiments and comparisons. The new gun hammer and barrel using paper bullets have only the lifespan of the metal bullet version. Two-thirds of that.”

"That's enough. Let's go and try the gun!"

Liang Yao doesn't plan to use the new paper-shell version of the gun with his troops, as long as it has better performance than the Springfield M1842.

He mostly uses this kind of gun as a transitional weapon. He still focuses on the Dresser striker gun as the infantry's standard light weapon.

Firearms fired by bolt-action firing pins are the future trend.

If the air leakage problem of the Dresser striker gun had not been solved well at this time, Liang Yao would not be interested in this gun.

Liang Yao took the gun to the manor shooting range to test the gun. After the caliber was reduced, the charge of the bullet was also reduced, and the recoil was also reduced accordingly.

It is much easier to use than the previous 85-inch (7mm) caliber prototype gun, but of course, its power has also been reduced.

But after all, it is a 10mm caliber, and the reduction in power is only relatively speaking. The power of rifles in this era is sufficient, and some even have serious excess power.

What guns in this era need to improve is not their power, but their reliability, rate of fire, and accuracy.

After several rounds of trials, Liang Yao was very satisfied with the performance of both guns.

So some soldiers and officers were called to test-fire the new gun.

Soldiers equipped with Springfield m1842 rifles are full of praise for the performance of this new gun, especially the rate of fire of 6 to 9 rounds per minute, which is not a bit better than muzzle-loading guns like Springfield.

Compared to the Dresser needle gun, the rate of fire is only slightly slower than the Dresser needle gun.

Even the Prussian officers spoke highly of this gun, especially the new gun that used a metal cartridge with a pin-edged bullet. They believed that metal bullets were more reliable than paper-cased bullets and linen-wrapped bullets, and could shoot in more places. Use in bad weather.

Liang Yao was very satisfied with the performance of the gun and decided to test it for a few more days before officially putting it into production after the production line at the Sacramento Arsenal was set up.

The predecessor of the Sacramento Arsenal was the Sacramento Ordnance Institute, which was mainly responsible for repairing damaged ordnance. This time Liang Yao came back from the east not empty-handed, but brought a large number of gunsmiths and workers with him, and a large number of machine tools. and equipment.

The Sacramento Ordnance Institute has replaced guns with cannons and has become a large arsenal with more than 700 gunsmiths and workers.

The Sacramento Arsenal is also the only arsenal in the western United States that is capable of manufacturing standard firearms. It can be said that it is a scorpion's shit - the only one.

"This gun hasn't been named yet. Give him a name." Walter said to Liang Yao.

Walter was very happy and proud that the weapons he designed and manufactured could be recognized by so many people and put into mass production.

Walter had also provided Colt with the design of a firearm before, which was a lever-action rifle that he was proud of. However, Colt believed that Walter's design was too complicated, and the lever-action rifle he produced was The cost is too high.

For the military, where even the $13 Springfield M1842 is too expensive, this lever-action rifle has no appeal.

In fact, Colt's judgment was not wrong. The U.S. military later considered the cost and power issues and did not purchase lever-action rifles on a large scale.

This fast-shooting gun later accidentally became the darling of the civilian market, especially by the police and western cowboys.

It has even become a symbol of Western American culture.

It’s just that Walter’s design concept was too advanced, and contemporaries could not keep up with his unbridled thinking.

Liang Yao thought for a while and said: "Let's call it the Walter M1852 rifle. The version that uses paper shell bullets and linen bullets is called the Walter M1852E."

(The U.S. Army standard numbering system uses the letter M as the type indicator for various types of weapons and equipment. M is the abbreviation of Model. Perhaps it is easier to understand if it is translated as Type.)

"Named after me?"

Being able to name a rifle that is about to be mass-produced with his own name makes Walter feel excited and considers it an honor.

"Yes, this is the rifle you invented, and it should be named after you." Liang Yao said with a smile, "Test it for a few more days to see if there are any minor flaws. If not, it will be officially put into production when the production line at the Sacramento Arsenal is set up. , 3,000 units of each version will be manufactured first. If there are any minor problems, they will be improved and resolved before being put into mass production."