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| Eihandgranate Model 39 | |
|---|---|
 Eihandgranate Model 39 with remnants of desert paint | |
| Type | Grenade |
| Place of origin | Nazi Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1939–1945 |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1939 |
| Variants | Standard, fragmentation sleeve |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 200 g (7.1 oz) |
| Height | 76 mm (3.0 in) |
| Diameter | 60 mm (2.4 in) |
| Filling | Donarit - (relatively similar toamatol) |
| Filling weight | 112 g (4.0 oz) |
Detonation mechanism | instant, 1, 4.5, 7.5 or 100 second delay |
TheModel 39 "Eihandgranate",M39,Eierhandgranate 39 (lit. 'Egg hand grenade 39') was a German fragmentationhand grenade introduced in 1939.
The grenade used the same fuse assembly (the BZE 39) as theModel 43Stielhandgranate (lit. 'Stick grenade'), which was screwed into the top of the sheet-metal body.
To activate, the dome-shaped cap was unscrewed and pulled with a coiledpull-cord that is pulled before throwing. The color of the cap indicated the burning time of the type offuze fitted.
Typically, a delay of around four seconds was used. It could also be used in place of the bottom side screw cap on the "Stielhandgranate" stick grenades.
If it was to be used as a fixedbooby-trap, then an instantaneous or one-second fuse would be fitted.
The offensive high explosive version of the grenade used a small Donarit filling, which was considered extremely ineffective in comparison to the standard stick grenade models: large amounts of these grenades would be thrown in a short amount of time or at once for the desired effect.
The defensivefragmentation version of the grenade had a fragmentation sleeve wrapped around the exterior of the grenade, which would turn into high speed fragments when the grenade exploded, giving it a longer range and greater damage ability to the enemy but also include the thrower in the danger zone.
| Colour | Delay | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Red | 1 second | For coloured smoke, but also booby-trap |
| Blue | 4.5 second | Standard issue |
| Yellow | 7.5 seconds | Used on the Hafthohlladung 3 – magnetic shaped charge |
| Grey | N/A | Used for demolition work or as booby-trap |
M39 grenades were used in France as part of ErwinRommel's asparagus.
Obstacles, such as wooden poles, were used to hinder airborne landings, which could tear the wings of gliders and kill the soldiers inside, as these poles were connected with wires to either these grenades or S-mines (Bouncing Betty) against paratroopers.
Later in Italy they were used as booby traps to slow down Allied advances on the Italian peninsula, in ambushes or in street fighting and as traps for the Italian Partisans when they raided German supplies and weapon caches.
Another type of trap was to wire a short-fuse grenade to a door-frame in an abandoned building with the pull-cord attached to the door. When the door was breached by opposing troops, the grenade would detonate right next to the enemy.
TheEihandgranate were issued to theFallschirmjäger from early till the end of the war.
Sometimes, M39s were discarded in plain view for the enemy to use, particularly on the Eastern Front and in the Western Front.
84.2 millionEihandgranates were produced until the end ofWorld War II and thus in fact being more common than the iconicStielhandgranate of which 75.5 million were produced.[1]
