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XM54 Grenade

I don't even have good pictures of the M54 let alone the XM54. If anyone has good images that would be great, we could actually update the EOD publication as well.

Joe
 
I don't think that it ever made it to M54. It was only around for a year or two and once the war was over it was no longer relevant - I've got some pix someplace, but all the ones I ever found we dug in Vietnam and they had been in the ground for a long time - not the best examples for ID. As it is actually a submunition of sorts I was interested in trying to recover one, but the best I was ever able to do was the plastic sleeve from the fiberboard container. I'll dig some more tonight and see what I can find.
 
Found the following

Operational Report - Lessons Learned, Headquarters, 101st
Airborne Division, Period Ending 31 January 1969

The division received the Dispenser and Grenade System, Aircraft, XM 271W7 (ENSURE 230) for evaluation. Five systems including 20 dispensers, 900 XM 54 CS grenades and 15 reload kits were received. After conducting four test drops the system was rate unsatisfactory because the grenades tend to hang up in the tubes due to excessive pressure and a gunship has to give up its armament to carry thesystem.
 
As Iread further in the command history named in my last, posting, the XM 54 was identified as a modified M7 with a longer time delay. But still no good pics of it.
 
Spot on, the XM54 had an 8-12 second delay compared to a 2-3 second delay for the M7A3.
 
OK Pete, here is the best I have, with my plastic band that used to seal the storage can halves together. I've left the mud on it - it would look better clean, but I know where the mud came from. Couple of extra photos just because I had to dig through - your favorite paramedic is in one of them - I always got a kick out of the variety of masks that they used. At one time I think I saw 10 different models at once.



grenade 2.jpg DSCN0983.jpgVietnamese in pit 3.jpgVietnamese with backhoe 2.jpg
 
If I have one in the box, I'll photo what I have today and upload it.
 
If I recall correctly that site was someplace west of Da nang.
 
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