- Mk 2 grenade
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Mk 2 grenade 
WWII-era Mk 2 grenadeType Time-fused grenade Place of origin 
United StatesService history In service 1918-1960s Used by Argentina, Chile, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey, United States Wars World War I, World War II, Korean War, Suez Crisis, Six Day War Production history Designed 1918 Specifications Weight 1 lb 5 oz Filling TNT or EC blank fire powder Filling weight 2 oz Detonation
mechanismTimed Friction Fuse The Mk 2 defensive hand grenade is a fragmentation hand grenade (sometimes written Mk II) used by the U.S. armed forces during World War II and in later conflicts including the Vietnam War. The Mk II was standardized in 1920 replacing the Mk I of 1917. It was phased out gradually, the U.S. Navy being the last users. It was replaced by the M26-series and later M61 and M67 grenades. On 2 April 1945 the Mk II and Mk IIA1 were redesignated the Mk 2 and Mk 2A1.
Contents
Description
The Mk 2 was commonly known as a "pineapple" grenade, because of its shape and structure. Grooves were cast into the cast iron shell, which was believed at the time to aid in fragmentation and had the side benefit of aiding in gripping the grenade—this provision gave it the appearance of a pineapple fruit. Although TNT was used as a filling, EC blank fire (smokeless firearm) powder was also used instead in some models due to the tendency of TNT to over-fragment the cast iron body. EC powder produced an adequate amount of fragmentation and did away with the need of a detonator. The detonator was initially replaced by a small length of safety fuse terminated with a black powder igniter charge. Production grenades with the EC powder filler used the M10 series of igniting fuse. It was also commonly referred to as a "frag" grenade. The Mk IIA1 was introduced in 1942 and lacked the bottom filler hole of the Mk II being filled through the fuse well. The Mk II was identified with an all yellow body prior to 1943. They were then painted olive drab for camouflage purposes with a narrow yellow band below the fuse. Repainted yellow grenades usually lacked the yellow band.
Variants
- Grenade, Hand, Fragmentation, Mk II: EC blank powder filler, uses M11 or M10A1 igniting fuse.
- Grenade, Hand, Fragmentation, Mk IIA1: EC blank powder filler, uses M10A2 igniting fuse.
- Grenade, Hand, Fragmentation, HE, Mk II: TNT filler, uses M5 detonating fuse.
- Grenade, Hand, TNT, Fragmentation, Mk II: TNT filler, uses M6A4C detonating fuse.
Specifications
- Fuse: Dependent on variant, includes M5 and M6 detonating fuses, and M10 igniting fuses. Later model fuses could also be fitted.
Gallery
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Post WWII-era Mk 2.
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Bottom of a pre-1942 Mk 2.
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HE variant of the Mk 2.
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Post WWII-variant designed for training.
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A Vietnam era Mk 2 grenade.
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A World War II era Mk2 grenade recovered in Opheusden in 2008.
See also
Notes and references
- Gervasi, Tom. Arsenal of Democracy II: American Military Power in the 1980s and the Origins of the New Cold War: with a Survey of American Weapons and Arms Exports. New York: Grove Press, 1981. ISBN 0-394-17662-6.
External links
- Information about the Mk 2 at inert-ord.org
- Film of detonating Mk2 grenade — 2/3 million frames per second
US infantry weapons of World War ISide arms Rifles Automatic rifles Grenades F1 • Mills bomb • Mk 1 • Mk 2Shotguns Machine guns and larger Cartridges U.S. infantry weapons of World War II and KoreaSide arms Rifles and carbines Submachine guns Grenades Mk 2 · M7 grenade launcherShotguns Machine guns and larger M1917 Browning · M1919 Browning · M1941 Johnson LMG · M2 Browning · Lewis Gun · Bazooka · M2 flamethrower · M1A1 flamethrowerCartridges Categories:- Grenades of the United States
- World War I infantry weapons of the United States
- World War II infantry weapons of the United States
- Korean War infantry weapons
- Weapons of the Vietnam War
- Fragmentation grenades
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