Diskushandgranate Model 1915

History of the 1915 Discus Grenade Model

With the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and the trench warfare associated with it, there was a need for a variety of weapons designed to push defenders from their positions. Grenades are an evolution of ancient warfare, finding new value in modern warfare, where all parties are eager to produce better infantry-grade grenade weapons to prevail.

Typical grenades at the time had a delayed fuze, but it was soon discovered that if the fuze ran too long (or failed completely), the enemy could simply grab the grenade and throw it back at the attacker. Therefore, attention was paid to the development of impact fuze grenades - those that exploded when hitting a surface, thus eliminating the risk of the grenade being thrown back.

The Germans came up with an ingenious solution with their "Diskushandgranate Model 1915". As the name suggests, this grenade features a disc-shaped design with two pieces of metal (cast iron) stacked on top of the other and beaded around the edges.

Metal-enclosed bags contain the necessary explosives. Ignition is via a starfish-like internal assembly containing an inertial mass and firing pin. Safety pins ensure the device does not explode prematurely.

In operation, the safety pin is manually removed to activate the grenade. The operator must then throw the disc-shaped object along its longitudinal axis for maximum range. The resulting rotational motion pushes the inertial pin into action, leaving the firing pin exposed.

On landing, one of the inertia pins touched the center of the star and activated the launcher, causing the grenade to detonate. Decomposition of the metal body makes fragmentation possible.

The total weight is 420 grams, making it one of the lighter German grenades of the war. These have been in use since 1915 and were dubbed "turtle grenades" by the Allies due to their easily recognizable shape.

In practice, they did their job well for a time, but were prone to failure on the battlefield due to environmental factors such as humidity.

Ultimately, two main versions of the standard design were created - the standard defensive fragmentation model, and an offensive form designed to stun or confuse enemy combatants at shorter distances, often when entering contested spaces Was thrown before, for example as trenches or bunkers. If necessary, grenades can also be placed in booby traps, which adds to their tactical value to some extent.

Specification

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Changes