No. 69 grenade: Difference between revisions
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Typo fixing, User:John/however using AWB |
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|origin={{flagcountry|United Kingdom}} |
|origin={{flagcountry|United Kingdom}} |
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|design_date=December, [[1940]] |
|design_date=December, [[1940]] |
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|service=August |
|service=August 1942 - 1947 |
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|type=[[Hand grenade]] |
|type=[[Hand grenade]] |
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|filling=[[High explosive]] |
|filling=[[High explosive]] |
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[[File:No 69 grenade diagram.jpg|thumb|left|<center>Externals and internals</center>]] |
[[File:No 69 grenade diagram.jpg|thumb|left|<center>Externals and internals</center>]] |
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The shell of the No 69 grenade was composed entirely of the hard plastic, [[Bakelite]] which shattered without producing fragments like a metal bodied grenade. |
The shell of the No 69 grenade was composed entirely of the hard plastic, [[Bakelite]] which shattered without producing fragments like a metal bodied grenade. Metal fragmenting sleeves were available to increase the grenade's lethality. |
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Using the No 69 bomb was very simple: the screw-off cap was removed and discarded, and the grenade was then thrown. When the grenade was thrown, a linen tape with a curved lead weight on the end automatically unwrapped in flight, freeing a ball-bearing inside the fuze. In this manner the ''all-ways [[fuze]]''<!-- The spelling of ''all-ways'' and ''fuze'' are correct.--> was armed in flight and the grenade exploded on impact; and like the [[Gammon grenade]], which used the same fuze design, it was withdrawn from service soon after the Second World War ended. |
Using the No 69 bomb was very simple: the screw-off cap was removed and discarded, and the grenade was then thrown. When the grenade was thrown, a linen tape with a curved lead weight on the end automatically unwrapped in flight, freeing a ball-bearing inside the fuze. In this manner the ''all-ways [[fuze]]''<!-- The spelling of ''all-ways'' and ''fuze'' are correct.--> was armed in flight and the grenade exploded on impact; and like the [[Gammon grenade]], which used the same fuze design, it was withdrawn from service soon after the Second World War ended. |
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Revision as of 05:09, 7 November 2010
| British No 69 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Hand grenade |
| Place of origin |  United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| In service | August 1942 - 1947 |
| Production history | |
| Designed | December, 1940 |
| No. built | many thousands |
| Variants | Mk 1 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 383 |
| Length | 114 |
| Diameter | 60 |
| Filling | High explosive |
Detonation mechanism | Impact |
The British No 69 was an offensive (as opposed to defensive) grenade developed and used during World War II. It was adopted into service due to the need for a grenade with smaller destructive radius than the No 36M "Mills bomb". This allowed the thrower to use a grenade even when there was little in the way of defensive cover. In contrast, the much greater destructive radius of the Mills bomb than its throwing range forced users to choose their throwing point carefully, in order to ensure that they would not be wounded by their own grenade.
The shell of the No 69 grenade was composed entirely of the hard plastic, Bakelite which shattered without producing fragments like a metal bodied grenade. Metal fragmenting sleeves were available to increase the grenade's lethality.
Using the No 69 bomb was very simple: the screw-off cap was removed and discarded, and the grenade was then thrown. When the grenade was thrown, a linen tape with a curved lead weight on the end automatically unwrapped in flight, freeing a ball-bearing inside the fuze. In this manner the all-ways fuze was armed in flight and the grenade exploded on impact; and like the Gammon grenade, which used the same fuze design, it was withdrawn from service soon after the Second World War ended.
All-ways fuze
The No 69 used the same all-ways fuze as the Gammon grenade. An all-ways fuze is an impact-only fuze. The term all-ways refers to the fact that no matter which way the grenade lands (e.g., on its base, sideways or upside down) it will still explode.
