Fig. 6. British rifle grenade with a safety-device which is unlocked by the rush of air against a set of inclined vanes, D, when the missile is in flight
Among the different types of grenades which the Germans used was one provided with a parachute as shown in [Fig. 5]. The object of the parachute was to keep the head of the grenade toward the enemy, so that when it exploded it would expend its energies forward and would not cast fragments back toward the man who had thrown it. This was a very sensitive grenade, arranged to be fired by percussion, but it was so easily exploded that the firing-mechanism was not released until after the grenade had been thrown. In the handle of this grenade there was a bit of cord about twenty feet long. One end of this was attached to a safety-needle, A, while the other end, formed into a loop, was held by the grenadier when he threw the grenade. Not until the missile had reached a height of twelve or thirteen feet would the pull of the string withdraw the needle A. This would permit a safety-hook, B, to drop out of a ring, C, on the end of a striker pellet, D. When the grenade struck, the pellet D would move forward and a pin, E, would strike a cap on the detonator F, exploding the missile. This form of safety-device was used on a number of German grenades.
The British had another scheme for locking the mechanism until after the grenade had traveled some distance through the air. Details of this grenade, which was of the type adopted to be fired from a rifle, are shown in [Fig. 6.] The striker A is retained by a couple of bolts, B, which in turn are held in place by a sleeve, C. On the sleeve is a set of wind-vanes, D. As the grenade travels through the air, the wind-vanes cause the sleeve C to revolve, screwing it down clear of the bolts B, which then drop out, permitting the pin A to strike the detonator E upon impact of the grenade with its target.
Fig. 7. Front, side, and sectional views of a disk-shaped German grenade
Fig. 8. A curious German hand grenade shaped like a hair brush
The Germans had one peculiar type which was in the shape of a disk. In the disk were six tubes, four of which carried percussion caps so that the grenade was sure to explode no matter on which tube it fell. The disk was thrown with the edge up, and it would roll through the air. Another type of grenade was known as the hair-brush grenade because it had a rectangular body of tin about six inches long and two and three quarter inches wide and deep, which was nailed to a wooden handle.