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Hungarian “36M Kézigránát Vecsey” handgrenade

pzgr40

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Cutaway model of a Hungarian “36M Kézigránát Vecsey” handgrenade.

The grenade is completely made of pressed sheet steel. It consists of a two piece outer housing, the top part screwed into the lower part. Inside the grenade body two containers are placed, the upper one housing an explosive charge and the spring loaded firing pin mechanism, the lower part housing an explosive charge and the stab detonator assembly. The lower container has a pipe shaped extension in which the upper container is placed, forcing both containers in one line. The arming mechanism consists of a pressed sheet metal safety cap with an U-shaped safety fork which fixates the safety cap to the upper part of the grenade body. The safety fork has a leather flap which is used to pull out the safety fork.

Functioning of the grenade:
The grenade is kept in the throwing hand, with the other hand the safety fork is removed by pulling the leather flap. The grenade is held in the throwing hand with one finger pushing the safety cap inward, and thrown in such a way that the grenade rotates over its’s radial axis, using the centrifugal force to throw out the top cap from the grenade body. As I understand from descriptions, a specific throwing technique had to be trained to throw the greanade. When the grenade is thrown away, the safety cap falls away, pulling the twisted nail from the firing pin mechanism. This will force the spring loaded firing pin to move to the centerline of the grenade, in line with the firing cap of the stab detonator. Upon impact, the two explosive containers move towards each other if the grenade lands on it’s top or bottom, pushing the firing pin into the firing cap of the stab detonator, or the firing cap into the firing pin. If the grenade lands on it’s side, the lower and upper explosives containers will run down the chamfered edges of the outer housing , forcing the two inner containers to move towards one another, forcing the firing pin and firing cap to move towards into one another. In fact the grenade is an all-ways fuze. If the grenade is not thrown hard enough , either lands too softly (snow, mud, high grass) , the inertia may not be enough to push the firing cap and the firing pin together, resulting in a dud. In that case (theoretically) the firing pin will shift once more, rotating the firing pin out of line with the firing cap of the stab detonator, rendering the dud grenade safe.

The Grenade was produced in licence by the Swiss Munitionsfabrik Altdorf (MFA), with a slight modification to the top cap.

Regards, DJH
 

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  • 01 - 36M Kézigránát Vecsey.jpg
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  • 02 - 36M Kézigránát Vecsey cutaway model.jpg
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  • 03 - 36M Kézigránát Vecsey functioning explained.JPG
    03 - 36M Kézigránát Vecsey functioning explained.JPG
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