1915 German WW1 Kugel Grenade

*1915 German WW1 Kugel Grenade*

The Kugel Grenade Model 1913 (‘Kugelhandgranate’) 2nd Model. 1915.

The Kugelhandgranate, also known as the Kugel Grenade or “ball grenade,” was a type of hand grenade used by the German Empire during World War I. It was introduced in 1915 as an improvement over the earlier Diskus Handgrenate. Approx 3" diameter.

The Kugelhandgranate was designed to be more efficient and reliable than its predecessor. It has a spherical shape with a hollow interior, giving it the nickname “ball grenade”. The grenade was made of cast iron and weighed approximately 700 grams (1.5 pounds). It featured a thin metal casing filled with explosive material, typically TNT or a mixture of TNT and ammonium nitrate. The exterior of the grenade was covered with grooves and small bumps to enhance the fragmentation effect, ensuring that the shrapnel would disperse in a wide radius upon detonation, fragmenting into 70 to 80 pieces upon detonation. This steel sphere would have been equipped with a pulling bronze detonator, giving a 7 seconds delay (models with 5 seconds delay were available). Large and heavy, the M15 was only marginally successful, with a hand launch distance of only about 15 meters.

*Condition*
This grenade is in overall good condition with minor age chips to the cast alloy body. The detonator/fuse is not present. Please see photographs as part of the condition report.

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