novelAbuy Chapter 31 Imitation Oil Drums
Chapter 31 Imitation Oil Drums
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"I'm talking about the oil leak, General." Thorne picked up the English oil drum on his left:
"This is the 4-gallon oil drum we use; to put it simply, it's just a metal box."
"Because its welds are located at the eight corners where it is prone to collisions, it is easy for oil to leak during transportation due to mutual collisions."
"In addition, there is the issue of thermal expansion and contraction in the desert. We all know that the temperature difference between day and night is huge in this godforsaken place."
（上图为英军1942年使用的2、4、4P加侖便携油桶，其中4P指4plus，意为4加侖的加强版比4加侖稍多。它们没有对焊缝和热胀冷缩特殊处理，在运输和储存中极易泄漏，基本无法重複使用）
Montgomery seemed to understand: "You mean, because of the welds and thermal expansion and contraction, we're losing 20% to 25% of our fuel?"
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Degangan beside him, who had always been in charge of logistics and supplies.
Degangan nodded, his expression slightly embarrassed.
"Actually, it's not just that proportion, General."
The reason is...
"The leaked fuel could easily cause a fire, and if we include the damage from a fire, our losses could exceed 30%."
"God," Montgomery said, scratching his forehead. He took a couple of steps, turned back, and asked Degangan in a questioning tone:
"You mean, we lost nearly a third of our fuel because of the oil drums?"
"And I only found out about this today?"
"You actually allowed this to happen? Right under our noses?"
"But we've always been using 4-gallon oil drums," Degangan explained. "These losses are considered normal!"
These words seemed to awaken Montgomery, who turned his gaze to Thorne: "Then, what about the German oil drums? Did their oil drums have the same problems?"
Thorne picked up the standard German oil drum on his right, exposing its flank to Montgomery:
"Look at these welds, General."
"The Germans' design is ingenious; they stamped the oil drum into two halves."
"This not only makes production easier, but also hides the weld seam in the middle recess."
(The image above shows a standard 20L German-style oil drum, which has a large capacity and is easy to carry (a British 4-gallon drum only has 18.184 liters). More importantly, it features specially treated welds and side grooves to prevent thermal expansion and contraction. This type of oil drum is still in use today.)
Montgomery's gaze fell on the weld in the middle of the German-style oil drum, and he instantly understood its advantages: "The weld on this type of oil drum is hidden in a recess, so it won't break due to collisions, is that what you mean?"
Montgomery thought about it more and more and it made more sense.
When transporting oil drums, the truck will inevitably sway from side to side, especially near battlefields with poor road conditions.
Therefore, the oil drums stacked together must have collided with each other, and the impact was prolonged and intense.
British oil drums obviously couldn't withstand the pressure, while German oil drums, due to their special design, didn't need to worry about this.
"And here too." Thorne pointed to the grooves on the side that resembled ninja stars: "These are designed for temperature changes; they can easily bulge or contract to counteract the pressure caused by thermal expansion and contraction."
Montgomery suddenly realized, and when he looked at the British 4-gallon oil drum next to him, he immediately looked disgusted.
"You're right." Montgomery shook his head. "Our oil drums could burst instantly when the temperature changes."
As he spoke, he turned his gaze back to Degangan.
The latter nodded silently, looking helpless.
So the matter was no longer in doubt. Montgomery, leaning on the German-style oil drum, looked at Thorne:
"You're in charge of this, Captain. Make as many copies of these oil drums as possible."
"I need to replace all the oil drums in the military within a month."
"Is it possible?"
"I will do my best, General." Thorne hesitated. "Replacing them all within a month might be difficult."
"No matter what it takes," Montgomery said firmly, "we'll get it done, even if it means buying it from the black market."
I didn't know that before, but now that I know these drawbacks of British fuel tanks, it's like putting a time bomb in my fuel depot.
"Yes, General," Thorne replied.
After Thorne left with the oil drums, Montgomery sat back down in his chair, looking exhausted. He remained silent for a moment, then abruptly asked Degangan beside him:
"You've always known all this, haven't you?"
"What I mean is, you know there are better oil drums that perfectly avoid leaks."
Degangan hesitated for a moment, then finally admitted, "Yes, General."
"Tell me why." Montgomery gritted his teeth, his gaze fixed on his friend beside him.
This is not just deception, it could even be described as betrayal.
Degangan answered truthfully:
"You're oversimplifying the problem, General."
"A significant portion of the production of oil drums is controlled by oil giants."
"If they don't want to invest in upgrading their equipment..."
Montgomery interrupted him: "Just unwilling to upgrade the equipment?"
Degangan realized he couldn't hide it from Montgomery:
"Of course, there's also profit, General."
"Because British fuel drums are not durable, the military has to keep spending huge sums of money to buy them repeatedly. Wasting a third of the fuel means that the military has to buy more fuel to meet its needs."
"German-style oil drums can be reused, which worries oil giants..."
Montgomery jumped to his feet, angrily berating Degangan:
"So, they're letting us lose a third of our fuel consumption for the sake of profit?"
"Could some of them have even died in the fire?"
"On the battlefield, soldiers fell in droves to enemy fire because they couldn't get fuel in time?"
Montgomery slammed his finger down on Degangan's chest: "You've colluded with them, Brigadier General. You're no different from them!"
The fact that he used "Brigadier General" instead of "Freddy" as usual indicates that Montgomery was genuinely angry.
Degangan laughed:
"You overestimate me, General."
"I am just a brigadier general; I have no right to associate with them."
"They're bribing the people who make the decisions, and you know who I'm talking about!"
Montgomery suddenly realized that it was the members of parliament sitting in the council chamber, and... his superior, the commander of the Middle East theater.
Then Degangan added:
"There is a risk in what you are doing, General. The oil giants may reduce fuel supplies as a result."
"They will make up excuses, such as insufficient production or insufficient funds."
"And we are at a critical moment; if Malta runs out of fuel and is unable to attack German supply lines..."
Montgomery was stunned; he hadn't expected this.
But in the end, he gritted his teeth and made a decision: "If they dare to do that, I can only suggest increasing the amount of fuel imported from the United States."
Prior to this, the British government had always adhered to the principle of using British fuel whenever possible, and although American fuel was of better quality and cheaper, imports were always limited.
Montgomery believes that if oil giants dare to put their own interests above national security, then there is no need to be polite to them anymore.
Even at the risk of affecting the course of the battle!