Reiwa Chemist Yōko Takatsukasa Reincarnation: Saving Japan with Plastic Material

When One Door Is Shut, Another Is Open

"Do you want to sell glass winders?"

Michael Owens from the Michael Owens Glass Company responded to the caller with this question. He had successfully developed glass winders for making glass fibers in 1893 and had exhibited glass fiber woven with silk at the Columbian Exposition of that year. To be honest, he was dissatisfied with the results, and the audience was actually disappointed because the fabric was not transparent despite being made of glass. Since then, glass fibers had been forgotten, and Owens himself had been focused on developing a fully automatic glass manufacturing machine, which he completed in 1907 according to historical records. So, he couldn't quite understand why someone would suddenly show interest in a "failed project" from over ten years ago.

"Yes. Based on our company's tests, we have found valuable properties in glass fibers made from quartz glass. We plan to set up a production system and move towards commercialization."

"Oh..."

It was hard to believe all of a sudden, but since the caller expressed interest, Owens agreed to sell the glass winders to the caller on the other end of the phone, who represented a company known as "Teijin" that had recently been selling stockings like hotcakes nationwide.

. . .

In October 1905, at the Toyama Military Academy, Colonel Hiromichi Takatsukasa, Lieutenant General Kikuzō Ōtani, Lieutenant General Naomichi Ōsako, and Lieutenant General Kōsuke Ijichi gathered.

"This is a prototype made by my daughter's company," Hiromichi said, taking out a Type 30 rifle to show the three of them. There was nothing particularly unusual in its shape, but the parts that were originally made of wood had been replaced with milky-white resin material.

"That... isn't walnut wood. What's that? Resin?"

"I've heard it's made from PA66, the same material used in Teijin stockings. If you heat it to over 200 degrees Celsius, it can be molded into shapes other than fibers."

"So, this transparent fabric-like part is not PA66; it's the part that reinforces the fabric, right?"

"Yes, that's correct. I've heard the fabric itself is woven from glass."

In other words, this Type 30 rifle was a prototype that substituted wood with Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic (GFRP). Since there were no injection molding machines available, parts were created by hot-pressing glass cloth and PA66.

"Glass? Why again?"

"It seems that this significantly improves strength and rigidity. Please, give it a try."

When Hiromichi said that, the three lieutenant generals each held their modified Type 30s, examined the feel, and tried aiming them.

"What is this lightness? I can hold it for hours."

"It's made of resin, but it feels incredibly solid."

Ōtani and Ōsako praised their modified Type 30 rifles.

"I see. Using this new material, we can make it lightweight even with a semi-automatic mechanism."

"That's right, Lieutenant General Ijichi. The modified Type 30 rifles there weigh less than 3 kilograms without bayonets... so we might be able to finish them at around 4 kilograms."

"If it's too light, it might not control the recoil during rapid fire. Around that weight should be just right," Ōtani added to Hiromichi's estimate of the weight. He performed "rifle manipulation during battle" with his modified Type 30 and carefully checked its handling.

"An infantry rifle with rapid-fire capability to enhance close-quarters firepower, an 'assaulting rifle' ...In trench warfare, we knew the Type 30 rifle was too long to handle easily, so we hastily equipped them with Nambu pistols, but we were dissatisfied with their firepower. Some even said they were a hindrance since they were useless in field battles."

"It's better to have fewer types of ammunition and equipment from the standpoint of supply and production. Developing an infantry rifle that can handle both field and close-quarters combat, while also overwhelming enemy soldiers with firepower, is urgent."

Ijichi agreed with Ōsako's reminiscence.

"The ammunition consumption is expected to skyrocket even more. To address this, we need to improve the treatment of logistics units and promote motorization."

"We managed to get through the siege of Port Arthur thanks to Kondratenko's stupidity, but if we couldn't engage in a war of attrition even after capturing Hill 203, we would have had no choice but to break through the eastern front with firepower. In that case, our country's supply capacity would have led to ammunition shortages, and we wouldn't have been able to sustain the offensive."

Ijichi reflected on the siege of Port Arthur. While the world credited him as the "God of Strategy" and attributed the capture of Port Arthur to his brilliant tactics and the leadership of "Holy General" Maresuke Nogi, Ijichi himself saw it as a battle in which Kondratenko's self-destruction, with hasty troop movements and unnecessary consumption of reserve forces, played a significant role. Luck played a substantial part in that battle.

"That's where the Karafuto we captured this time is going to be useful."

"We can obtain oil from northern Karafuto. With oil, we can power automobiles."

"But we also need to build those automobiles."

"Exactly, 'Karafuto is Japan's lifeline' in this world."

Hiromichi voiced the words he had heard from his daughter. In the original timeline, the said "lifeline" was Manchuria, but in this world, Sakhalin (also known as Karafuto) took on that role.

"In any case, in our country at present, we cannot afford to fight a modern war of attrition. We need to do something about this."

"This is a problem that cannot be solved by the Army alone. We need to work with related government agencies, starting with the Ministry of Finance, to fundamentally overhaul Japan's industrial structure."

"There will be fools trying to take advantage of this situation, so we must also be vigilant. We have a lot of work to do."

"I can approach the House of Peers from my end. Please let me know if you need anything."

And so, the key figures in the victory of the Russo-Japanese War began preparations for the next war using every means at their disposal.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, the GFRP was put into practical use earlier than OTL and used to develop an assault rifle.

In the typical Syosetu light novel template, they would raise concerns about the low power of the 6,5mm round and quickly upgrade to the 7,7mm round to avoid logistical complications. However, Yōko took inspiration from modern small-caliber, high-capacity doctrines and chose to keep the low-recoil 6,5mm round for infantry rifles, uplifting infantry equipment all the way to assault rifles without developing specialized ammunition. While the insufficient power and range of the 5,56mm round are frequently discussed, she keeps in mind the movement to adopt the 6,5mm round as a solution.

To address theexisting issue of inadequate supply capacity, they push for motorization in thelogistics units. The reason they secured all of Sakhalin, not just the southernpart, was to obtain the oil-rich region of North Sakhalin.

- Toshitsugu Utei