Type 2 rifle grenade launcher
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The Type 2 rifle grenade launcher was an attachment for the Japanese Type 38 and Type 99 rifles that allowed them to fire special hollow charge grenades. It was a version of the German Schiessbecher grenade launcher.
In May 1942 Col. Paul Niemüller and Maj. Walter Merkel of the German Heereswaffenamt arrived in Japan via a blockade runner with documentation and samples of the German 30mm and 40mm shaped-charge anti-tank rifle grenades and schiessbecher launchers. By the summer of 1943 copies of both the 30mm and 40mm grenades were in production in Japan and work was underway on hollow-charge rounds for artillery weapons. [1]
Production appears to have begun in August 1942 and it was encountered on Guadalcanal as early as mid-October. It is not certain, but seems likely that about 17,000 launchers were built through the end of 1942, and another 32,000 in 1943 before production terminated. [2]
Both grenades were produced for the launcher: a 30 mm calibre grenade and a larger 40 mm calibre grenade, both designated Type 2. The 40mm grenade appears to have been produced in larger numbers overall. The launcher, which can fire both grenade sizes, sits over the end of the barrel, held in place with a clamping device. A special crimped blank cartridge or wooden bullet is used to fire the grenades.
The rear of the grenades is pre-rifled to mate with the rifling in the launcher. The rifling ensures that the grenade is spun in flight, giving it stability and arming the rotational fuze. Both grenades use a largely identical fuze, which makes up the rear part of the grenade. On impact, momentum carries the striker assembly forward, overcoming the resistant force of a creep spring into the detonator.
| 30 mm grenade | 40 mm grenade | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 160 mm (6.3 in) | 180 mm (7.1 in) |
| Length of upper body | 96 mm (3.8 in) | 107 mm (4.2 in) |
| Diameter of upper body | 30 mm (1.2 in) | 40 mm (1.6 in) |
| Length of lower body | 74 mm (2.9 in) | |
| Weight | 230 g (8.1 oz) | 370 g (13 oz) |
| Explosive content | 50 g (1.8 oz) | 100 g (3.5 oz) |
| Explosive type | 50% TNT / 50% RDX | |
| Armor penetration | 30mm [3] | 50mm [3] |
References
[edit]- ^ Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 72).
- ^ Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 72).
- ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-01-10. Retrieved 2018-01-10.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- TM-E 30–480, Handbook on Japanese Military Forces. United States War Department.