Not All German Grenades Had a Stick…
We all know about the Model 24 Stielhandgranate grenade. It has been featured in most documentaries as well as in every single war movie about WWII.
This stick grenade was designed to be thrown at longer range than the American MK2 “pineapple” grenade or British Mills bomb: Said stick provided leverage (for longer range) as well as prevented the grenade from bouncing or rolling around once it hit the ground…
The Design and Purpose of the Model 24 Stick Grenade
The main difference between the M24 and its allies counterparts was that the stick grenade was designed as an offensive grenade, where the concussive force was more important than fragmentation. By contrast, the MK2 and Mills were defensive fragmentation grenades.
But did you know that the Germans also had a “round” grenade? The Model 39 Eihandgranate! Initially designed for the Fallschirmjägers, the M39 saw widespread use on all fronts. It came in offensive (Concussive) and defensive (Fragmentation) variants, although the offensive one was deemed less effective than the M24 stick grenade.
The Model 39 Eihandgranate
Both M24 and M39 were armed by unscrewing a screw (bottom for M24, top for M39) and subsequently pulling a cord. Both came with a variety of fuses, from one second (to be used as booby traps) to ten seconds.
-RBM
