Experimental grenade ID

[MINENAZ16]

Hello,
I can't remember if there is already a post about this grenade.
This example is exposed in France (Mills internal operation and plug of No5)
Regards

 

[sgdbdr]

I would go for ROLAND grenade, but the few pics I have, the plug is rounded...

 

[Snufkin]

It is a Belgian Roland grenade. The attached images show a variant held in a UK museum.

 

[Millsman]

Is the body of the grenade in post one cast iron?

 

[Millsman]

To put the Roland in context re size I put this photo together the other week as a comparison.

Roland through to Mills 36 - all the strikers.




Roland, No 5, Dunkirk, No 5/23. No 23 Mk III and No 36.

 

[MINENAZ16]

Thanks guys, what I supposed.
I was a little disturbed by the different external fragmentation of known examples of Roland grenades (and the no 5 plug).

Millsman : I don't know if it's cast iron (maybe). Old picture of french museum

 

[Millsman]

Millsman : I don't know if it's cast iron (maybe). Old picture of french museum

I only said that because there were a number of different Roland body styles and shapes with two different types of sectioned grenade. William Mills produced some sectioned Roland grenades when he was trying to sell it to various nations. These grenades were cast in aluminium. The one Tom (Snufkin) has put up in post #3 looks to be one of these, now located in the Birmingham museum. They date from January 1915 and show slight changes from the original Roland design.