Chapter 721 1885 Heavy Machine Gun
“Da da da…”
Under the operation of the operator, the Maxim machine gun perfectly "crushed" the target object. Its powerful firepower and stable performance made Constantine feel dazzled.
The official name of the East African imitation Maxim machine gun is the Type 1885 heavy machine gun. It is basically a replica of the Maxim machine gun, while some details have been improved.
This is similar to the MG08 heavy machine gun that Germany imitated the Maxim machine gun in the past, or the Russian M1910 heavy machine gun, both of which are extended versions of the Maxim machine gun.
"The rate of fire of our domestically produced 1885 heavy machine gun is between 400 and 450 rounds per minute, which is basically the same as the British Maxim machine gun. It is slightly inferior, mainly due to the material and fine processing. This is the disadvantage of East Africa as a latecomer country. However, the Institute of Metal Research is currently vigorously developing new materials, and it is expected that these slight gaps can be made up within two to three years."
Constantine said: "The 1885 heavy machine gun was completed almost at the same time as the British. This is your credit. It shows that our military manufacturing industry can at least catch up with the European military industry. The gap is not big. Technically, it is indeed our disadvantage, but this disadvantage is not because we Germans are not as good as the British, but because we in East Africa have a short time and are a latecomer to the world's major powers. Therefore, learning from advanced countries is not a shameful thing. Only by admitting shortcomings can we better make up for them."
“Your Majesty is right. Although there is an element of ‘borrowing’, the ability to break through this technology in a short period of time is still due to the huge investment made by the kingdom. This investment is not only in terms of funds and resources, but more importantly in terms of talent.” said the director of the Mbeya Arsenal.
"Before the Maxim machine gun was officially launched, we in East Africa had been improving and researching machine guns for more than ten years. The Gatling machine gun was launched in 1861 and was tested in the Paraguayan War. Our factory has developed as many as seven or eight improved models of the Gatling machine gun. This is just the Mbeya Arsenal. Other units should be no less advanced in machine gun research, such as the Dar es Salaam Firearms Research Institute."
The Gatling gun is the world's first practical machine gun. In fact, the Montigny gun was invented in France as early as 1851. However, its use is very laborious and requires a series of operations such as opening the chamber, loading, loading, locking, firing and ejecting. It can make soldiers tired to death and can only fire intermittently. It is as heavy as artillery, but its range and power are not as good as artillery.
The Gatling gun also had serious problems, but before the Maxim machine gun appeared, it was the best performing machine gun in the world. It had participated in many wars and had been tested by the flames of war. It was used in the war between East Africa and Portugal. Its actual combat record was not outstanding, but it caused great psychological harm to the Portuguese black vassal army and often became a breakthrough on the battlefield.
"In special areas, especially some narrow military passages, sometimes a 1885 heavy machine gun can completely suppress the enemy's firepower, achieving the military effect of one man blocking a thousand. With a firepower of hundreds of rounds per minute, it can be said to be a deterrent weapon second only to artillery." said the director of the Mbeya Arsenal.
"If it is in an open area, it can also serve as a good fire support point, and a few machine guns can form a dense fire network to suppress the enemy. If hundreds of them are concentrated, it can even deal with large-scale group attacks."
Constantine also began to think along the lines of what he said. He thought that such a scene might actually happen on the European battlefield, especially in the Franco-Prussian War and the Austro-Prussian War.
Of course, when the war was fought in East Africa against extremely backward African kingdoms such as the Ndebele and the Zulu, if there had been a few Maxim machine guns, the enemy's army would probably have been defeated in one round.
Constantine asked: "What are the advantages of the Maxim machine gun compared to the Gatling machine gun?"
"Your Majesty, it is obvious that the Maxim uses gunpowder gas to load the ammunition automatically, and no external force is required to complete the automatic shooting. The Gatling type uses external force and must be loaded manually using a crank. In addition, the shooting process is highly affected by subjectivity, such as emotions, strength, and other external factors. The Maxim is much better."
"This is the most intuitive. The specific advantages can be summarized as the Maxim machine gun has a fast and stable shooting speed, a more complete mechanical structure, a lower failure rate, and a water-cooled barrel, which theoretically will not overheat. Since the barrel moves on an axis instead of moving horizontally in space, the shooting accuracy has been greatly improved. It uses a canvas belt, which is much more stable, portable, and versatile than the gravity-fed Gatling gun."
Therefore, Maxim is a groundbreaking product compared to Gatling. Of course, Gatling's shortcomings can be improved, but under the current conditions, the Maxim machine gun is more cost-effective.
For example, with the advancement of electric motors and advanced technology and processes in the past, Gatling gun was reborn. However, it is definitely impossible for East Africa to equip the Gatling gun with a separate motor to drive it.
Afterwards, Constantine visited a rifle shooting demonstration. The Mauser rifle was the main weapon of the East African army. It has been improved over the years, but the overall change is not significant.
The Mauser rifle was promoted in East Africa during the economic crisis. At that time, East Africa introduced a large number of advanced equipment, so the performance of the East African Mauser rifle could be guaranteed.
However, the Mauser rifle in front of him had undergone tremendous changes, which caught Constantine's attention.
"Your Mauser rifles don't produce thick black smoke. Is this new technology?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. In 1884, France invented smokeless gunpowder to replace black powder, but the power was increased three times. What you see in front of you is our East African experimental rifle. Similarly, I heard that Germany's M1888 rifle has been completed and will soon be mass-produced."
"What about our East African Army?"
"It is currently in the small-scale experimental stage. As for mass production, it is unlikely because we are facing a different environment from Germany. Germany faces the threat of the French and must follow up quickly. Therefore, the M1888 rifle is only a temporary product developed by Germany. We introduced its samples from Europe, but there are too many problems. This is mainly due to the hasty development."
"The rifling design of the M1888 rifle is very bad, causing the barrel to wear out quickly. The excessive chamber pressure generated by the new barrel causes the barrel to rupture, and the second bullet may be loaded before the first bullet in the chamber is fired, causing the breech to explode. Therefore, we are still in the research stage for this new rifle in East Africa."
Germany and France are like two lions, ready to bite each other to death at any time. So even though the hastily developed M1888 rifle has extremely unstable performance and great safety risks, Germany can only bite the bullet and go ahead. After all, France is also a world-class land power.
East Africa, which is located in a remote area of Africa, obviously does not have such pressure, so it can continue to focus on refining its technology and launch new rifles and equip them in large quantities after the problem is completely solved.
As for the war that may break out at any time in South Africa, the equipment of the East African Army is completely sufficient, because even the strongest country in the "Triple Alliance", Britain, is actually at the same level as East Africa in terms of army weapons, or even inferior. Portugal's national strength has been declining and it is still a maritime power. Its army equipment is even more terrible. It has been on the road of "it is better to buy than to make" and there is no turning back. The Transvaal people have no defense industry at all.
(End of this chapter)
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