13–037-914

NAME – Model 1914 Defensive Hand Grenade

COMMON NAME – Bracelet Grenade

TYPE – Fragmentation hand grenade

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN – France

DATE OF MANUFACTURE – 1914

WIDTH (DIAMETER) – 8.1 cm (3.19 in)

WEIGHT (EMPTY) – 1.09 kg (2 lb 6 oz)

WEIGHT (LOADED) – 1.20 kg (2 lb 10 oz) – Black Powder Loading

WEIGHT (LOADED) – 1.16 kg (2 lb 9 oz) Cheddite loading

EFFECT – Blast and fragmentation

BURST RADIUS – 6 to 7 m (6.5 to 7.5 yards)

FUSE TYPE – Burning fuse

FUSE INITIATION –Pull-type friction fuse

FUSE DELAY – 5 seconds

FILLER – Black powder or Cheddite High Explosive

FILLER WEIGHT – 0.11 kg (4 oz) Black Powder

FILLER WEIGHT – 0.07 kg (2.5 oz) Cheddite

FILLER EQUIVALENT TO TNT (R.E.) – 0.55 Black Powder

FILLER EQUIVALENT TO TNT (R.E.) – 0.40 Cheddite

AVERAGE RANGE – 20 to 25m (22 to 27 yards)

COLOR CODE – Black iron body, brass fuze base, wooden fuse body

MARKINGS – None

MANUFACTURER – State arsenals

STATUS – Antique

SERVICE – French military and allies

    This was a modified version of the M1847 model hand grenade, first issued loaded with black powder. To eliminate the problems with moisture neutralizing the fuse or black powder loading, the pressed-in tapered wooden plug of the Fusée Modèle 1882 fuse, the neck of the grenade was threaded and the brass-based Fusée Modèle 1914 screwed down into the grenade. The igniter of the Model 1914 fuse was still contained in a wooden body, but the screw base of the fuse sealed the grenade from moisture. Another attempted improvement of the Model 1914 grenade was internal segmentation to increase the efficiency of fragmentation. The grooving penetrated half of the 9mm (0.35 in) wall thickness of the grenade body and divided it up into 40 square segments. With the black powder loading, the grenade body did not break up following the internal segmentation very well, but this improved a good deal when the grenade was later loaded with Cheddite. The grenade would still break up into larger segments which carried a longer distance than the effective burst radius, making the weapon a defensive grenade that had to be used with the operator could duck behind cover. The lanyard and wrist loop that was attached to the igniter wire to the fuse gave the weapon the nickname “Bracelet Grenade.” Cheddite, as loaded into the hand grenade, was also identified as Minélite B.