Chapter 94

"Ah! Fifteen zhang... Where can we find such a large piece of timber?!" Wen Laoer was completely stunned by Hong Tao’s words. Fifteen zhang is over forty meters long. To make a keel for a ship that size, they would need a tree over sixty meters tall, and they would only use the middle part. Are there even trees over sixty meters tall in the world? Wen Laoer had never seen one.

"Hehehe, the keel doesn’t necessarily have to be a single piece. It can be joined together. I know the method. Once this ship is built, we can gradually try out how to join the keel, okay?" Hong Tao wasn’t sure about the shipbuilding techniques of the Song Dynasty, but he assumed they didn’t know how to join keels, or perhaps the Song Dynasty ships didn’t place much emphasis on the strength of the keel and the hull. At that time, there was no need for long-distance voyages or intense naval battles, so there was no demand for such research.

Hong Tao had carefully observed the keel structures of the Danjia people’s connected boats and Luo Youde’s bird ship, and concluded that the overall strength of Song Dynasty ships was insufficient. This was a technical limitation that prevented them from undertaking long-distance voyages. For example, Luo Youde’s bird ship, nearly 25 meters long with a displacement of almost 150 tons, had a very small main keel, only about 20 centimeters square, made of pine wood. It had no ribs, only eight whole bottom compartment partitions and two secondary keels.

This structure resembled a cage, with forces distributed evenly throughout, making the internal space of the ship larger and more suitable for carrying more cargo. However, it had a fatal flaw: insufficient redundancy. If one part was subjected to too much force, the entire structure would collapse, leaving no chance for repair.

Moreover, Song Dynasty seafaring ships relied heavily on the hull planks to withstand the torsion and tension of the entire ship, similar to modern unibody cars, which lack a frame and rely on the body panels to serve as both the skeleton and the skin. The advantage of this design was that it was lightweight and cost-effective, but the disadvantage was that it lacked the robustness to withstand significant jolts and twists. Therefore, true off-road vehicles all had non-unibody chassis, with the body simply sitting on a frame, which became the load-bearing component.

However, the design of Song Dynasty seafaring ships was well-suited to the current maritime needs. The Song Dynasty had no powerful naval nations around it and no urgent need to sail to more distant waters. Most people believed that the southern barbarian countries were already at the edge of the world. Since these ships could reach those places, why bother researching more expensive, harder to build, and more robust ships? It would be more practical to use the money and time to build more cargo ships like the Fuchuan, Guangchuan, and bird ships.

But Hong Tao couldn’t think that way. He needed to awaken everyone, making them more aware of the ocean and more dependent on it, so he could always stay one step ahead by leveraging his knowledge of the sea. He would then use this advantage to obtain everything he needed and desired. Others could be lazy, but he couldn’t. As a leader, he had to run fast, and he wasn’t even truly leading yet.

The technique for joining wooden keels came from the Pujol brothers, who had gone with him to salvage sunken ships in his previous life. These two old men had thoroughly studied the Spanish treasure fleets, not only knowing the history of the fleets but also the intricate details of the Spanish galleons. While resting on the Ratman Superhero, Hong Tao had discussed shipbuilding with the two old men. At the time, he thought that ancient ship keels were always made from a single large piece of wood, and to build a large ship, one had to find a large tree. This earned him a good laugh from the Pujol brothers.

It turned out that after the 15th century, European shipbuilding techniques had made tremendous progress. Although the Crusades ultimately failed, they brought Northern European ships into the Mediterranean. When the Southern European countries saw this, they realized that the Northern European ships were different from their own. They began to exchange knowledge, and the shipbuilding techniques of the Northern Europeans (Norwegians and Swedes) and the Southern Europeans (French, Italians, and Greeks) merged. They also learned some techniques from the Arabs, and the Venetians were the first to build a more suitable and larger sailing ship for long-distance voyages. At this point, the problem of keel size, which had previously limited ship size, was solved.

The Europeans used a diagonal mortise and tenon structure, combined with an outer and inner keel, to create a three-layer composite structure. This successfully turned a single-piece keel into a three-segment joint, without losing any strength and even making it stronger. This allowed sailing ships to no longer be limited by the size of the keel timber, and European galleons became larger and more advanced, gradually dominating the seas and beginning their colonial era of resource plundering from around the world.

The Pujol brothers not only had diagrams and evidence of this keel construction method but also conducted experiments to prove it. After meeting Hong Tao, the two brothers personally demonstrated how to join a 14-inch square timber into three segments. The results left Hong Tao speechless. The diagonal mortise and tenon joint did not compromise the strength of the keel and, in some ways, made it even stronger and more economical. One could choose higher-quality timber for the joints, avoiding the flaws that might be present in a single large piece of wood. Timber that was previously unsuitable for a large ship’s keel could now be used as part of the keel if it was of sufficient quality and thickness, significantly reducing costs.

Finding this method so interesting, Hong Tao had to try it himself. Although he lacked persistence in most things, his hands-on skills were excellent. He only failed once and didn’t even need to ask the Pujol brothers for help. By deconstructing their finished product, he managed to create a three-segment keel on his own, with excellent results.

Hong Tao had another talent: he never forgot anything he was curious about or liked. He could remember it for a lifetime, but he wasn’t as good with serious matters, often forgetting them the next day or even the next moment. With this experiment and the experience of successfully creating the keel, the diagonal mortise and tenon joint method had become a part of his memory, something he would never forget as long as he lived.

So why didn’t he use this method for the Explorer and the second new ship? It was simple: Hong Tao wasn’t entirely confident in the Wen family, especially Wen Laoer and his family. Like the sea chart, he would teach them bit by bit, using time as a test to see if they were reliable and aligned with his goals. These techniques could change an era, and if they fell into the wrong hands, it would be a significant problem. While he supported the spread of technology, it had to be on the condition that he could control his own fate first.

"Follow your lead... add!" Wen Laoer was completely overwhelmed by Hong Tao’s wave of new technologies. If he wanted his children to learn, he couldn’t oppose it. He gritted his teeth and agreed, even though it pained him.

"Just thickening the ribs isn’t enough. I’ve figured out why the planks at the bow of the old ships were often torn off by the waves. They were too thin and too long, and the glue and nails weren’t enough to keep them attached to the ribs. My suggestion is to thicken and shorten the planks at the bow, and also thicken the planks along the hull." Hong Tao felt that just agreeing to thicken the ribs wasn’t enough, so he made another demand that made Wen Laoer grit his teeth.

"How thick?" Wen Laoer, having already made one concession, didn’t mind making another.

"Six inches!" Hong Tao, fearing he wasn’t clear enough, even picked up a rib timber to demonstrate.

"Six inches for the ribs and six inches for the planks?" Wen Laoer couldn’t help but argue again.

"Let’s thicken the ribs to eight inches, but reduce the number of bulkheads to two. This way, we won’t waste too much timber. What do you think?" Hong Tao, fearing he might upset Wen Laoer, also made a small concession.

"If we reduce the bulkheads, what if the ship leaks?" Wen Laoer was not only concerned about the timber but also responsible. The bulkheads were watertight compartments, and reducing them would mean fewer watertight compartments, which he believed would compromise the ship’s buoyancy.

"Look, we’ve more than doubled the number of ribs and thickened the planks by half. If we add too many bulkheads, the ship will be too heavy and won’t move well. A good ship needs to balance strength, seaworthiness, speed, and maneuverability. No single aspect should be overly emphasized, as it would sacrifice the performance of other aspects."

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