SOME WW1 GERMAN GRENADES

In 1915 a simplified fragmentation pattern of the 1913 Kugel grenade is adopted, in order to improve its massive serial production ability. This Kugel grenade Model 1915 ('Kugelhandgranate N/a') only difference to the older type was the outside grooves pattern easier to machine, but was keeping all the other characteristics.

The use of these two Kugel grenades was pretty safe, but uneasy due to their heavy weight (1 kg). Launched by hand, their range was not longer than 15 meters, unless on a favourable ground on which they could continu to roll on a certain distance after landing. The only way to reach longer (up to 300 m) ranges was the use of mechanical spring based grenade launchers.

Not answering anymore to the trench war fighting conditions, these grenades were gradually replaced by newer models, including the famous stick hand grenades. But the German industry had produced meanwhile so big quantities of these Kugelhandgranate, so that re-use tests were made as a anti-tank grenades (with the more powerful tolite explosive), as a percussion grenade (including the use of a specific hand launching system (called a 'bilboquet'), or as a percussion stick grenade. These new usages were no really successful nor consumed the huge stocks, and big quantities of these grenades survived the war.

It is interesting to note that the 1913 and 1915 Kugel grenades were gradually equipped with different kinds of igniters :

• bronze traction igniter model 1913 with 5 seconds delay
• bronze traction igniter model 1913 with 5 seconds delay
• zinc alloy traction igniter model 1915 with 8 seconds delay
• zinc alloy traction igniter model 1915 with 5 seconds delay
• embossed steel plate traction igniter model 1917 with 5 seconds delay
• zinc alloy percussion igniter model 1916 with 5 seconds delay

The trenches war reinforced the long time expressed need for grenades exploding at impact, leaving no opportunity to the ennemy to grab it and send it back to the launcher like a conventional 'time' grenade. In Germany, an original and efficient answer was bring as soon as 1915 with the 'Discushandgranaten' (called 'turtle grenades' by the allied soldiers). The offensive model was made of two thin steel plate shells, crimped together.

Thes egrenades has a lenticular shape, included two bags filled with explosive stuff, and were equipped with an ingenious igniting system looking like a star with 6 hollow tubular cast aluminium. 4 perpendicular tubes were containing mobile inertia blocks wearing a starter. At the center of this cross was a percussion star with 4 percussion pins, oriented towards the inertia blocks starters. The two other tubes, facing each other, were containing a detonator for one of them, and a brass tube for the the other one. This brass tube was masking the percussion star pins at rest, and was kept in position by a safety pin.

To use this grenade, one had to remove the safety pin, than to launch the grenade as a pebble, giving it a spin movement. The centrifugal force given by the spin pushed back the inertia starter-bearers, as well as the brass tube, unmasking the central star percussion pins. When landing, one of the inertia blocks at least was projected against the central star, firing its starter, and communicating the fire to the detonator, then to the grenade esplosive.

The issues induced by the too good ballistic properties of the rifle grenade M 1913 were making this grenade inefficient, so a solution had to be quickly found. Developments led to the birth of a less aerodynamic and more massive grenade that would limit the penetration in the ground at impact, the rifle grenade M 1914 .

This variation was made keeping constant the total weight to keep the firing table unchanged, and therefore admitting a small redusction of the explosive charge. An optional steel cupola could be added at the base of the body to reduce the range, depending the way it was mounted (25% or 50%).

The ignition system was completely different from the one of the 1913 model. Entirely confined into the brass piece screwed at the top of the projectile, it was this time a real percussion fuse with inertia arming system (inertia block and springs). At the departure (and after the safety pin had been removed), inertia force pushed back a ring, unmasking the percussion pin. From the outside, this 'armed' condition was reckognizable by the elevated position of the fuse head, also giving it a bigger power at the impact to trigger the starter / percussion pin.

Other evolution, the detonator was now inserted inside a high explosive relay-charge, itself included into the body explosive load. Thes characteristics provided that grenade an internal organization surprisingly similar to some high explosive shells of the artillery of the same times.

Despite these improvements, none of the 1913 or 1914 rod grenades went 'popular' within German infantrymen, the need of changing the rifle ammunitions to blank type to use them being a frequent source of fatal accidents in the fight heat.

The apparition of the remarkable French Viven-Bessière on the battlefields in 1916 was a little revolution in the trench warfare. Safe because not needing to change the rifle ammunitions, easily transportable in large quantities and tactically efficient since it could saturate a target by the fire of several launchers just as a miniature artillery fire, this weapon was copied as soon as 1917 by the German army with the Rifle grenade M1917 ('Karabingranate 1917').

Based on the same general principles than the French VB, it was likewise cylindrical, innerly prefragmentated, introduced in a sleeve fixed to the Mauser infantry rifle, propelled by a conventional ammunition combustion gasses, and explosive after a fixed time triggered by the passing of the bullet inside of a central tube.

Major differences were found in its bigger size (6 cm diameter instead of 5 cm for the VB), and by the ignition system, not triggered by the bullet hitting a small hammer like with the VB, but instead igniting a lateral starter communicating with the detonator via a radial channel.

The maximum range could reach 180 m.

There are little details known upon this grenade launcher, that has been made by Austria, and probably used by Germans only in the Argonne forest where its projectiles can be observed. The Schnellwerfer was designed to quickly fire 6 grenades at a maximum fire rate of 50 to 120 shots per minute and at a range of 200 to 500 meters, probably giving very efficient defensive properties.

The launcher was composed on a base plate, a two axis pointing device, a percussion device, and an inclinable grenade container for 6 projectiles transversally sliding as a drawer on a guide. When used, the drawer container was sliding transversally, positionning the casings in shooting position, and sequentially firing all the 6 projectiles a bit like a lateral ammunition belt machinegun.

The Schnellwerfer explosive grenade was made with a tubular cast iron body containing the explosive, drilled with a threaded hole on the top extremity for screwing the fuze, and a bottom external thread to screw a propulsive charge cup (gun powder).

The fuze included a inertia arming system actionned by the departure energy, and igniting a wick that triggered the detonator after 11 seconds.