L’Arbalete la Sauterelle Type A D’Imphy

[bdft]

L’Arbalete la Sauterelle Type A D’Imphy

No, I'm not making fun of the French. It takes guts to use a crossbow when everyone else is using artillery.

The device was called L’Arbalete la Sauterelle Type A D’Imphy, and it quite literally was a crossbow, using the tension of two bent steel rods to provide the energy storage that sinew provided back when the Romans were building this sort of thing. A metal cup held a spherical Type 14 grenade (weight roughly 1kg/2.2lb), and a pair of hand cranks on a rack and pinion mechanism were used to #### it.

http://www.forgottenweapons.com/larbalete-la-sauterelle-type-a-dimphy/

 

[myenfield]

You have to admit, while it seems a little goofy, there would be no bang or puff of smoke to give away the position of those firing out the grenades. It does look slightly awkward to carry around, though.

 

[Baribal]

The Brits had giant sling shots!

 

[smellie]

For some of the nastier aspects of trench warfare, this should be a good weapon.

Anything that chucks a 2.2-pound HE bomb QUIETLY would be viewed positively by the boys in the trenches.

Fellow told me that during the winter of 1915/16 the Lines were so close in his sector that you spoke quietly, if at all. You did this because you could hear Fritz talking in an ordinary voice, so you KNEW he could hear you!

Biggest problem would be portability.

Stokes mortar made a bit of noise but had good range...... and it was portable.

 

[Cocked&Locked]

early in the war there where few mortars, or anything similar and a number of devices where developed to throw grenades farther then a human arm, repeatedly and accurately. As mentioned above, the brits had a giant sling shot arrangement, as well as a spring loaded arm thrower; that unit was removed from service as it killed a number of operators when they where struck by the arm on discharge, or when they slipped trying to recock the arm for the next toss.

Eventually mortars of various sorts took over though rifle grenades of various sorts stayed common and popular. The mills bomb units that would fit onto an enfield and not require a rod on the base of the grenade where probably the best of the bunch. (cup launchers)

Also really interesting are the early war grenade designs both issue and improvised. I still shudder at the thought of the contact fused grenades the brits issued...pull the pin, wind your arm up to throw, hit the back of the trench behind you and blow your self up.....

 

[tokguy]

It looks about as handy to move as a periscoped ( or cantilevered??) rifle setup.

 

[Baribal]

early in the war there where few mortars, or anything similar and a number of devices where developed to throw grenades farther then a human arm, repeatedly and accurately. As mentioned above, the brits had a giant sling shot arrangement, as well as a spring loaded arm thrower; that unit was removed from service as it killed a number of operators when they where struck by the arm on discharge, or when they slipped trying to recock the arm for the next toss.

Eventually mortars of various sorts took over though rifle grenades of various sorts stayed common and popular. The mills bomb units that would fit onto an enfield and not require a rod on the base of the grenade where probably the best of the bunch. (cup launchers)

Also really interesting are the early war grenade designs both issue and improvised. I still shudder at the thought of the contact fused grenades the brits issued...pull the pin, wind your arm up to throw, hit the back of the trench behind you and blow your self up.....

Funilly, as yesterday night, I was watching the new "Apocalypse, La Première Guerre Mondiale" serie (only in french for now), episode 3, in which they showed both the Arbalète and the Sling Shot, plus the infamous British "Pumpkin" in action..
Should be available in english later this year or nex spring.

 

[smellie]

@ BARIBAL:

Well, something to look forward to! Sounds like a good series.

By "Pumpkin" do you mean the "Toffee Apple" or the "Flying Pig"? Toffee Apple was a 2-inch with a big spherical bomb on the front end, Flying Pig was the 9.45-inch Trench Mortar (cognate with the French 240).

They had a lot of names for different ordnance in the Trenches, so many that in many cases the official nomenclature has been forgotten.

Hair Brush, Smellie, Thirty-Six, Jack Johnson, Four-twenty, OUR Four-twenty, Twenty-three, 1-pounder..... whole raft of them. Even "Tank" was originally obfuscation......

 

[Baribal]

Yes, they show the use of early 2 Inch. Howitzer, I think it was also called "the Muffin" (by "les Poilus"?).

If you liked "Apocalypse WWII" you will love this one, nothing new for history's sake, but how well put together (and coloured!), and the better is that it's part Canadian-made!

 

[smellie]

@ BARIBAL:

There is a company called Madacy, I believe in Montreal, has a lot of documentary sets.

Do you know if this is one which can be obtained from them?

We find a lot of their sets in stores here. Very well done, generally.

AND Canadian, of course. Canada CAN turn out Quality.

 

[Baribal]

Smellie,

I think you should be able to rent or buy it locally. The serie title of their first serie is "Apocalypse: The Second World War" and I am pretty sure you can get at HMV or other big resellers. The second serie (Apocalypse; The First World War) is just out in french - it's a France-Canada production - so I don't think you'll get it before a year or so.
When the first serie came out, I must say that I wasn't expecting much as I saw then millions documentaries on both WW, but to my total surprise, after the first three minutes, I was hooked.

The second serie brings you straight to the horror of the WWI and it doesn't hide the ugly side of it. That's a very good production, much over what I was even expecting. They go through all the aspect of the war; political, social, economical, technological and of course, the human side of it.

http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/apocalypse-the-second-world-war/

 

[donor]

There was a number of grenade and Molotov cocktail throwing devices made and used during Warsaw Uprising in 1944.

If I'm not mistaken one of them (or replica) made out of truck leaf spring is in Polish Army Museum in Warsaw.

They also have a collection of homemade granades,handguns,SMGs and even armored car (Kubus)