Tellermine 35

A Tellermine 35 in the London Imperial War Museum.

The Tellermine 35 or T.Mi.35 was an anti-tank mine that was used by Germany during World War II.

Description

The majority of the mine was made with sheet metal and the mine’s overall shape is circular. The weight of the mine was 8.7 kg and the weight of the TNT explosive was about 4.9 kg. The diameter of the Tellermine was about 32 cm and the height was 90mm. The fuse typically used with the Tellermine 35 was the T.Mi.Z.35. On the mine, there is usually lettering that says what type of fuze is in the mine.

The threshold for detonation is between 79.3 kg and 181.4 kg. Once this weight has been reached, a spring becomes compressed, shears the pin that holds the striker, and releases the striker. The striker than hits the percussion cap and activates the detonating meachanism.

The Tellermine 35 and the Tellermine 35 Stahl could be used in a wide variety of locations including deserts, forests, plains, even under water (as long as the mines were kept in a special case). To neutralize the mine, one must disarm anti-handling devices that may have been set up, disarm the mine by pressing a safety pin back in the slot, and move the dial at the top of the fuze so that it says "sicher" that means safe, not "scharf".

Variants

There is only one variant of the Tellermine 35 and it was the Tellermine 35 Stahl which meant steel. This version had a steel pressure plate rather than the original pressure plate made with aluminium. It also has twelve

A Tellermine 35 Stahl.

indentations which make it easily distinguishable from the original. Another difference between the Steel version and the original was that the steel version was about 1.8 kg heavier.

History

The Tellermine was developed in 1935 and it was used extensively during WWII. It proved to be effective and was used by some of Germany's allies such as Finland. Some of the places the Tellermine 35 and the Tellermine 35 Stahl have been used were Normandy and Italy.