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Ground Bomb, 6lb MkI & II

RichardB

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
I bought these two items a while ago on a whim and would like to find out a little more about them, given they were Chemical, were they ever used? who used them, Army, SOE etc -- and especially if other members have them

From Wikipedia (...sigh) -- The bomb, ground, 6 lb was a British World War II grenade containing about 2 pints of mustard gas. It was intended to be used to contaminate trenches, dug-outs, rooms, observation posts and small enclosures, and on cross-roads, narrow defiles, obstacles and debris of demolition.
Design "The bomb consists of a cylindrical steel container, painted grey, varnished internally, 3-3/4 in. in diameter, 9 in. high, weighing 6 lb. It holds 3½ lb. (about 2 pints) of mustard gas. Bombs will be issued, complete with ejection charges, in boxes of ten weighing 75 lb. The bomb is fitted with a metal lid 2in. deep which is a good push fit on the body. This lid is fastened to the body by adhesive tape. In the centre of the underside of the lid is a striker for use on the match composition head of the ejection charge. [...] At one end of the bomb is a screwed plug. This is the filling plug. In order that any leakage may be readily detected the plug is coated with detector paint. Then the lid is removed the ejection charge will be seen. It consists of about 1/7 oz. of gunpowder connected by 32 in. of safety fuze to the match composition head. This length of fuze gives a delay of two minutes. The safety fuze is coiled in concentric circles in a shallow metal saucer and is set in bakelite cement. The ejection charge has therefore the appearance of a circular plate 3½ in. in diameter. On the lower side is a threaded boss closed by a tin plate disc. This boss screwes into the bomb, the gunpowder charge being just above the tin plate disc. On the upper side of the ejection charge in the centre there is a flatened projection used for screwing the ejection charge into the bomb. The charge is also housed in the projection. On the rim there is another smaller projection holding the match composition head. The ejection charge is designed to blow out the end of the bomb fitted with the filling plug."

The Ground Bomb 6lb MkI (Left) is marked on the base W&P 1939
The Ground Bomb 6lb MkII (Right) is marked on the base C/CC 1943

Both are completly empty

British Ground Bomb 6 lb MkI & II.jpg
 
All of the formal documents that I have seen on the 6lb GB identified it strictly as a training device. Using units could utilize it to contaminate a small area, then practice identification, decontaminations etc.
 
Richard,

Very nice examples. Yours are the two training variants of the Ground Bomb and, given the pre-occupation with gas training, I think it reasonable to expect them to have been used in large numbers. The Service, Mustard Gas, version is considerably more robust. I cannot say if the Mustard Gas version was ever used (it should not have been) but many years ago there was an EOD tasking to Folkestone, Kent where a dozen or so, live HS filled, bombs were found. Folkestone was / is an Army Training Area so training versions of the bomb might be found. Perceived wisdom of the day suggested that these live stores had been cached as an anti-invasion measure.

Best.
 
CW-003comp.jpg


Strange illustration because 6lbs bomb ground filled Y is 9.2 inch long and Bomb training Mk1 is 5.5inch long ! (similar length on picture...)
 
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