CHINA'S MAIN PRODUCTION BATTLEMECHS 1995-2025
First Generation
TINMAN
OVERVIEW
A 3 meter high Chinese mech with simple steel plate armour and a relatively small high output Diesel motor.
The several hundred built between 1995 and mid 1998 and were used as test units. The Chinese used them to fully integrate the technology reversed engineered from the remnants of the Cylon equipment discovered around a crashed starship, in Tibet.
The Tinman's range is very limited and the Diesel engine has a tendency to quickly overheat under full load conditions, such as running at Maximum speed or lifting at rated limit.
Most of these prototype test units were converted to the standard configuration above and sold around the world. They retained the arm mounted machine guns, and the 40 mm grenade lunchers, but most purchasing country's converted local heavy weapons for their mech's optional ”hand weapon”.
Several nations allied with China and Russia copied the Tinman design and purchased the artificial muscle fibers from Russia or China putting many minor variants of this design into local production often with improved armour or heavier weapons all locally produced variants lacked the cold fusion power plants of the later Chinese and Russian designs.
After the Russian designed ?_name_? became available to China and Russia's allies along with it's associated spare parts stream most Tinman mecha were modified to be interchangeable with the similar Russian design and often had explosive active armour panels retrofitted to the simple metal armour of the Tinman.
Second Generation
IRONMAN
Overview:
A 4 meter high Chinese battlemech the first to have the superarmour, the first to be mass produced, the first to have versions with the invasive neuro interface and the first to have a cold fusion power-plant.
The Ironman prototype was tested under diesel power in late July of 1998 and it was put in mass production in early 1999, complete with a cold fusion power plant and 40% containing the invasive neuro interface.
The Chinese continued production of this model, mostly for sale to allies with minor improvements for the next 30 years, both with and without the Neuro interface control system.
The Chinese version originally often carried a 125 mm "hand" cannon with a 5 round clip of armour piercing saboted shells and two extra 5 round clips of mixed high explosive and saboted shells. This weapon was not known for accuracy and most of China's allied nations preferred conversion of smaller higher accuracy weapons or small caliber gatling mini-guns.
After 2005 limited numbers of early production model Ironman mecha became available complete with Cold-fusion and superarmour. China adopted the policy of only selling Ironman mecha that were at least 5 years behind current production units.
Third Generation
DRAGON
Overview:
A 5 meter high Chinese battlemech this version sacrifices the jump jets and one arm replacing both systems with a 125 mm cannon cut down to fit the mech, the cold fusion power plant is smaller and more powerful than the second generation Ironman version.
The Dragon prototype was first tested in late June of 2002, without a main weapon, and was put into limited production in late 2003 with a heavily modified 125 mm cannon replacing the problematic magnetic rail gun.
The Chinese version often carried a 25 mm "pistol" auto-cannon or a type 3 General missile tube platform with a mix of eight anti-tank and anti-aircraft heat seeking shoulder fired missiles.
ULTRA DRAGON
Overview:
Twelve UltraDragon variants were completed with the still experimental magnetic pulse rail guns in 2004, but major problems with this weapon limited UltraDragon production to prototype levels of 4 to 6 a year until around 2015. when the major flaw of excessive barrel wear was finally solved and the recharge and overheating problems greatly improved.
The Ultra class or UltraDragons
is just over 2 tons heavier than the Dragon with the added weight coming
from the addition of a slightly larger cold fusion power plant and an
increase in the super armour and the addition of active armour plates
and brick-lets. The 20 mm magnetic pulse gun along with it's superconductors
and electronics is actually a half ton lighter than the 125 mm cannon
of the Dragon, but until 2015 excessive barrel wear and super-conductor
burnout, along with shock damage limited the weapon to less than 50 shots
before replacement of the weapon was required. The weapon has the energy
equivalent of a 12 inch gun with the penetration ability comparable to
a 16 inch gun and even with far heavier recoil systems and 2 tons added
weight each firing of the weapon required the Ultradragon to take several
back-steps to remain standing.
The Ultradragons main weapon's
magnetic fields prevented the retrofitting of a russian designed electromagnet
spike under it.
Several of the 20 Dragon class mechs used in the raid on Fort Knox were the Ultra Dragon version of China's battlemechs