The No. 82 Gammon Grenade nicknamed the "Bean Bag" was a hand grenade used by Great Britain during World War II.
Description[]
It had a weight of about 340 grams when empty and a weight of 900 grams when full. The length was about 12.7 centimetres and the diameter was about 10.2 centimetres.[1]
The most common explosive used in the Gammon Grenade was Composition C, a plastic explosive developed by Great Britain. The thing that differentiated the Gammon Grenade from other grenades was that the type of explosive and the amount of explosive could be changed depending on the situation.
This included adding shrapnel, adding more explosive, or taking away explosive. To activate the grenade, one must remove the cap at the top, hold the lead weight at the end of a linen tape, and throw the grenade. The linen tape then unwinds in the air and pull's out the pin keeping the striker from being hit. The grenade will detonate on impact as this pushes the striker into a percussion cap which in turn, activates the detonator.
The main part of the grenade was made with a dark coloured, bag and the top cap was made with metal. The elastic bag made the gammon grenade especially portable and the linen tape under the cap was often cut short by users so the grenade would detonate faster regardless of warnings about the users safety.[2] The only model of the Gammon Grenade was the No. 82 Gammon Grenade Mk I which was the original production model.
History[]
The Gammon Grenade was designed by Captain R.S. Gammon in May 1943. It was meant to serve as a replacement to the dangerous No. 74 AT Grenade or "sticky bomb" as sometimes it stuck to the user. The Gammon Grenade's use was mainly limited to British airborne troops and other special forces. Since the Gammon Grenade could be fitted with more or less explosive, it could be used against personnel and armour. Some of the places the Gammon was used include North Africa and Normandy.
References[]
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