The Model 24 Stielhandgranate (German for Hand Grenade with Handle[N 1]) or "Potato Masher", was an offensive hand grenade used by Germany during World War II.
Description[]
The Stielhandgranate was filled with about 170 grams of trinitrotoluene (TNT), had a detonation time of about five seconds and could be thrown easier and further than the common fragmentation type hand grenades used by most other countries at the time. To throw the grenade, the user must remove the protective cap covering the bottom of the grenade and pull the porcelain ball out of the bottom.[1]
Before this, the grenade must be fitted with the detonator. This is easily accomplished by unscrewing the top of the grenade, placing the detonator, and rescrewing the top of the grenade to the wooden handle. The total weight of the grenade was about .48 kilograms and the length was 35.6 centimeters.[2]
The Stielhandgranate's advantage versus other allied grenades was that it could be thrown farther because of the stick shape. It's effective blast radius was about 14.6 meters and the diameter of the grenade was about seventy millimeters.
Some Stielhandgranates were even fitted with a special fragmentation sleeve called Splitterring. It could just be slid over the top of the grenade and it made the grenade more effective against personnel. On many of the Model 24s there was a notice saying "VOR GEBRAUCH SPRENGKAPSEL EINSETZEN" which meant "Before use, insert detonator". Some German soldiers created bundles of seven Model 24s (only one of the heads has a stick) and they named these charges Geballte Ladung which meant "Concentrated Charge".
Variants[]
A German soldier throwing a Model 24 during Operation Barbarossa.
The Model 24 had several variants including the Model 43 Stielhandgranate and a smoke screen version of the original grenade. Besides the Model 43 which was supposed to supersede the Model 24 because it was cheaper, there was no other variant of the Model 24 that was extremely modified. Only some variants like the Model 24 K designed with a special explosive so it could operate in a cold in environment such as the Soviet Union were made fairly different.
Although the Model 39 Nebelhandgranate (smoke grenade version) did even have its own subvariant which was the Model 39b Nebelhandgranate and this version's only difference was a ridged handle along with a white band.[3]
History[]
The Model 24 Stielhandgranate was developed in 1915 and it was slightly modified in 1917. It was used extensively as the standard hand grenade of Germany during World War II, and although the Model 43 was meant to replace it, the Model 24 was used until 1945.
This also meant that basically everywhere German troops were fighting, Model 24 Stielhandgranates were used. Some of these places included the Eastern Front, the Western Front, and North Africa. German troops took Model 24 Stielhandgranate with them in cases that fitted them in racks. The Model 24 Stielhandgranate later became one of the most easily recognizable hand grenades of the 20th century.
Notes[]
- ↑ This was due to the long wooden handle it was thrown by.
References[]
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