Several dubious sources and none of which says they have the technical knowledge of building a starship. Again 30 years is pointless since knowledge of building something like a starship is restricted.
Except to, apparently, random rogue traders.
The simplest answer would be the BT follow the guidelines set down by Guilliman and so get assistance from the AMs. Much more simpler than your solution.
Except that the BT's don't follow Guilliman's 'guidelines' is the keystone of their identity a space marines and a core part of their fluff.
I've cited sources from Armada regarding why lances would be a no-no. We all agree with me that AM control the knowledge of such things as starships and technology that goes into it which is based on GW fluff and even you will agree with that. So what more do you want? Again that is the structure of the 40k universe. Do you have anything to disprove it? That AM are the ones who control such knowledge?
I would posit that their control is not absolute, and that as 'lesser tech heresy' (such as invention, building, and repairing things without admech approval) is rife on most hive worlds (see
Creatures Anathema, pg 14) This is opposed to 'Greater Tech Heresy' such as building thinking machines, anything powered by the warp, certain brands of genetic engineering. It's made clear in
Anathema that the admech only calls for exterminatus for things like building androids (recreating the men of iron) or constructing large scale warp devices. That last one also leads other organizations to call for exterminatus. Largely the level of 'lesser' tech heresy that a given world allows is at the discretion of the local planetary admech temple. (same source, same page)
No, synchronizing a series of ammofeeds are not harder to pull off compared to installing a power supply for the lascannons. It's not a simple matter of a single high voltage connection and a group of capacitors. Where are you going to get the source of the energy for the capacitors? It obviously needs something large and separate from the engines. Otherwise, we're talking about a really big engine. Then you're going to have to wire that source correctly inside. Compared to that synchronizing bolters is simpler.
Your argument might have weight except that the engines in a sentinel walker can power one. The much larger and more advanced engines in a land raider would probably have no problem driving the vehicle forward as well a powering lascannons. And the wiring of an alternator to an engine to produce electricity isn't that complicated. And, yes, looking at every lascannon GW has ever produced, it's a single high voltage connection hooked to a capacitor. (what do you think those things are that the IG use in the field when they have a man portable lascannon?)
I know how to fix my car but I sure don't know how to build one. You're statement is correct though that if you know how to build one, you know how to fix one. If you still can't see the difference after this, then again, I can't give you any better example any more.
I would suggest then that there are a lot of things that you don't know how to fix on your car then. If you can replace a panel, or weld a frame, replace your electrical system, or swap out the engine, you can probably build a car. If you doubt it, go to any hotrod show.
So you can build a drone carrier but would you want an idiot to handle the plasma drive of a starship with all its attendant issues? You miss the point though. And that is building a Nimitz or similar warship is no small thing much less that of a kilometers long warship.
No, your statement was that I wouldn't know how and couldn't do such a thing even if I had the resources. Which was incorrect. I did not say that it was not a major undertaking. It would probably take months or even years to finish. But the point is that they could know what to do, and would have the manpower, equipment, and material to do it.
And I see idiots play with tokamaks every day, but we call them graduate students. The thing about a plasma drive is actually it would be fairly safe. Sure, if you have one in your basement and the mag field gives out, you're probably going to burn the house down, but they don't actually explode with the sort of hundred gigatonne explosions we have in BFG and 40k in general.