Aussie Mills plug

[gothica7]

Here is an unusual Mills gren no 23/11 iron base plug.
Made by Munitions Footcray, Australia and dated 2/17.

Obviously come a long way since it was made and now stuck on a Gibbon Spring gren.

Andy

 

[roller63]

I've got one very similar, not sure on the exact date though, was only looking at my Mills Grens today funnily enough.

 

[paul the grenade]

reading this post reminded me of an unusual Mk2 base plug i have.
It is date 4/18. most unusual as the mk 3 was in use by late 1917.
So why were they still making Mk2's ??
Anyone got any ideas??
Paul.

 

[Snufkin]

reading this post reminded me of an unusual Mk2 base plug i have.
It is date 4/18. most unusual as the mk 3 was in use by late 1917.
So why were they still making Mk2's ??
Anyone got any ideas??
Paul.

The 23MkIII with rod (and 36MkI with modified base plug for gas check for use in discharger cup) was introduced in Autumn 1917, but it was a slow ramp up as manufacturers who had standing orders for 23MkII completed those orders. After 21 March 1918, the beginning of the German Spring offensive, there was panic regarding grenade procurement. The 36MkI had been earmarked for replacement of the 23MkIII, but the shock of the German attack combined with a shortage of discharger cups caused a knee-jerk change in policy to cancel (for a while) all 36 production in favour of 23MkIII.

However, because some manufacturers had still not switched from making the 23MkII, and there was an urgent need for grenades, the 23MkII continued to be made. Hence overlap of the two marks of 23, and also with the 36. Such was the desperation caused by the German offensive that urgent consideration was also given to taking back from the French Army nearly four million No.5, a model which had disappeared from British inventory in 1917.


Tom.

 

[dano1917]

overlap

Not just Mills grenades, but grenades of all countries saw similar periods of overlap. When a design was changed it by no means meant that the previous model went out of production and/or usage. This was standard practice..Dano

 

[Millsman]

Paul

With the effective demise of the No5 in Jan 1917 the No 23 was the main dual use grenade into early 1918. It was only in 1918 when the 36 was coming through in quantity that 23 MkII production would be scaled back, with makers swapping over to the 36. I think the 23 MkII baseplugs start to disappear in April / May 18. The history, as told by the available basepugs, tells the story. 23 Mk III to 36 was just a baseplug change of course.

John

 

[gothica7]

Here is another unusual plug, made by W. E. Blake and you can see the 1916 date has been overstamped with a 7. I think it was originally 10/17 and changed tp 1/17, leaving the 1 of the 16. Interesting nevertheless.

Andy

 

[roller63]

With ref to the original post, sorting through my Mills today and noticed a 36 with these markings on the baseplug : No 36 M 1 10 17 M.F and MF on the body below filler, also R&AM on lever with F underlined. Presume this is Australian too ? Tony.

 

[Snufkin]

R & A Main Base Plug

With ref to the original post, sorting through my Mills today and noticed a 36 with these markings on the baseplug : No 36 M 1 10 17 M.F and MF on the body below filler, also R&AM on lever with F underlined. Presume this is Australian too ? Tony.

Interesting. I also have an October 17 MF base plug on an MF marked 36 body, but no lever. Your lever marking is R and A Main, Falkirk, and hence MF would appear to denote Main, Falkirk. At one point I had thought my 36 might be a Munitions Footscray (Melbourne) example, but I've found no documentary evidence of any Mills produced in WWI outside of the United Kingdom. In WWII the situation was different, with British and Commonwealth forces using No.36 manufactured in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It would be great to find out when Footscray began operating, and what it produced - I sense the justification for a trip 12,000 miles to the War Memorial in Canberra to do a little research.


Tom.