German rifle grenades of WWII

[GGG]

Hi collectors,
I just want to show some of my rifle-grenades of my collection.
That's my hobby

[GGG]

Some other pics

[GGG]

And my launcher on the MP44.

[Zünder]

There's an excellent book available about riflegrenades available here:

http://www.wehrtechnikmuseum.de/




Zünder,


http://www.wk2ammo.com

[GGG]

Thanks

Or you can order signed books directly from the author: 8)
http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=50152

Best wishes
Michael

[Glynwed]

I have some questions:
1. Which types of rifle grenades were available in 1938 (until October 1938)?
2. I somewhere red that in rifle section/squad (some ten man infantry team) were 1 soldier equipped with rifle grenades louncher. Is it true?

Thanks for reply.

[GGG]

I have some questions:
1. Which types of rifle grenades were available in 1938 (until October 1938)?
2. I somewhere red that in rifle section/squad (some ten man infantry team) were 1 soldier equipped with rifle grenades louncher. Is it true?
Thanks for reply.

Hi Glynwed,
here some information:

1.) Not a single one . In 1928 all old launchers were collected and scraped. The company Bergmann began with the development of a new launcher in 1938 and finished end of 1941 (4 years later !!).
2.) Every "Gruppe" group of each "Kompanie" got 1 launcher-set. If I remember right, a Kompanie has 15 groups. But I don't know how many soldiers this are.

Best wishes
Michael

[Glynwed]

Thanks a lot GGG!!! For today I think that in German Army were rifle lounchers using continually from WW1 to WW2.

[GGG]

Oh yes, there is a time-gap of some years.
I don't know why nobody in the Germany army was interested in rifle grenades. The Russians and other nations developed their own system between the wars, but the Germans didn't.

Best wishes
Michael

[Glynwed]

That´s not only the case of German army. In Czechoslovakian army were some old grenade lounchers from WW1 for Manlicher rifles (from ex-Austrian army), but army was equipped with new rifles and there were developed no grenade louncher for this rifles. They were probably supposed to be replaced by mortars ?

[Rommel8]

GGG,

What types of ammo were available for the grenader launcher in 1940 (the one mounted on the K98)? I know the yellow colored round was.

Were HEAT (High Explosive Anti-Tank) rounds available? Or just high explosive?

[GGG]

The first grenades were the "Gewehr-Sprenggranate" (the yellow one) and the "Gewehr-Panzergranate" (the small hollow-charge anti-tank grenade). On the first picture it's the grenade on the left side.

BUT all these grenades didn't go into service before April 1942.

I'm collecting this stuff since 8 years now and I have spent many month in archives, but I wasn't able to find documents about the phase of development till 1942. After this date, the launcher and the grenades are mentioned in German documents as if the have ever been a normal equipment. I don't know why there is absolute nothing to find before 1942.

Best wishes
Michael

[Rommel8]

thats odd...theres no documentation of them before 1942?

[David Lehmann]

So far I had understood thinks that way :

Anti-infantry :
Gewehrgranate 30 (30 mm, 0.25 kg)
Range : 300 m

------------

Anti-tank :
Gewehrpanzergranate 30 (30 mm, 0.25 kg)
Range : 60 m
Penetration : 20 mm

grosse Gewehrpanzergranate (0.4 kg)
Range : 90 m
Penetration : 70 mm

Gewehrpanzergranate 46 (46 mm, 0.4 kg)
Range : 200 m
Penetration : 90 mm

Gewehrpanzergranate 61 (61 mm, 0.6 kg)
Range : 200 m
Penetration : 125 mm

Gewehrgranate zur Panzerbekämpfung P 40 (60 mm, 0.6 kg)
Range : 90 m
Penetration : 40 mm


The "Gewehrgranate zur Panzerbekämpfung P 40" seems to have been produced from 1940 to 1942 essentially, it was normally issued to Luftwaffe units (Fallschirmjäger).

It seems that in 1942 only (?), the classical "Schiessbecher" device that is well known entered in service with other kinds of rifle grenades.

The "Gewehrgranate 30", "Gewehrpanzergranate 30" and "grosse Gewehrpanzergranate" seem to have been produced from 1942 to the end of the war.

The "Gewehrpanzergranate 46" and "Gewehrpanzergranate 61" have apparently been produced in small numbers only towards the end of the war and issued to Waffen-SS units.

On this website in German you will find production number for different types of rifle grenades and for the Schiessbecher itself :

http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Waf ... tgerat.htm

Here you can also find the existence of other kinds of rifle-grenades :

Gewehrblendgranate 42 (blinding grenade)

Gewehrnebelgranate 42 (smoke grenade)

Gewehrfallschirmleuchtgranate (illuminating parachute grenade)

Gewehrpropagandagranate (for sending a paper, a message)

Regards,

David

[GGG]

Hello David,
the history of rifle-grenades in Germany is very confusing and long to tell.

The GG/P40-launcher was used the first time with the paratroopers in North Africa. Some of the grenades were captured by the British troops, but not the launcher itself.
Some dug-ups proof that the GG/P40 was used in Russia in combat, but I wasn't able to find German documents about it. All I have is the manual, a pack of drawings (company WASAG) and a lot of Allied intelligence reports. But I will never give up

The SS-grenades were developed by the SS-Waffenakademie in Brünn. No official introduction is known, so I think it was a SS-only ammunition and not delivered to normal Heer-units.

Near the end of the war the company Bergmann developed a rocket-propelled anti-tank-grenade, called "Bergmann Doppelschußgranate".

Also there have been two different versions of the parachute-flare-grenade.

The standard Schießbecher was modified three times, so there are three different variations known. Also the range-scale on the sight was changed end of 1942.

It would be long to tell all ..... :roll:

Best wishes
Michael