Gewehr-Panzergranate

The Gewehr-Panzergranate was a shaped charge rifle grenade that was developed by Germany and used by the Wehrmacht during World War II.

Gewehr-Panzergranate
A schematic of components.
Type	Shaped charge rifle grenade
Place of origin	Germany
Service history
Used by	Wehrmacht
Wars	World War II[1]
Specifications
Mass	250 g (8.8 oz)
Length	160 mm (6.4 in)
Diameter	30.16 mm (1.1875 in)
Muzzle velocity	50 m/s (160 ft/s)[2]
Maximum firing range	46–114 m (50–125 yd)[1]
Warhead	TNT
Warhead weight	50 g (1.75 oz)
Detonation mechanism	PETN Base fuze[1]
Blast yield	25–30 mm (0.98–1.18 in) RHA[2]

Design

Drawings of German Schiessbecher and grenades.

The Gewehr-Panzergranate was launched from a Gewehrgranatengerät or Schiessbecher ("shooting cup") on a standard service rifle by a blank cartridge. The primary components were a nose cap, internal steel cone, steel upper body, aluminum lower body, rifled driving band, TNT filling, and a PETN base fuze.^[1]

The Gewehr-Panzergranate was an anti-armor weapon which upon hitting the target ignited the PETN base fuze which in turn ignited the TNT filling which collapsed the internal steel cone to create a superplastic high-velocity jet to punch through enemy armor.^[1] Since shaped charge weapons rely on chemical energy to penetrate enemy armor the low velocity of the grenade did not adversely affect penetration. A downside of the Gewehr-Panzergranate was its short range 46–114 m (50–125 yd).^[2]