Mills Bombs

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John Sukey

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I have at least four No36's that need handles and one No5. (Different handle) Is anyone reproducing these?
The spring and striker are simple to fabricate, but the handles are another matter.
 
Sorry I can't help at all, John, but I'm looking for a handle ("spoon") for a Number 23 myself.

Only thing I can think of is to ask if anyone has been looking around the old grenade ranges with a metal detector.

You have FOUR Thirty-sixes incomplete?????? Yikes!

I'm the guy with the Bomb Vest and no bombs!

NEVER gonna send the Kaiser back home at this rate!
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Thinking....

(I know it's unusual, but I do it sometimes).

INDIA and PAKISTAN both still are producing the Number 36M.

Perhaps a begging letter to POF at Wah Cantt (they have a website) or to their Indian equivalent, might get somewhere.

Yeah, I know: ice cubes in Hell (or Arizona)..... but it's worth a try.
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John Sukey said:
I have at least four No36's that need handles and one No5. (Different handle) Is anyone reproducing these?
The spring and striker are simple to fabricate, but the handles are another matter.
Click to expand...

Shouldn't really be that complicated, if you have a pattern. Appropriate strip of metal, bent to shape, with two projections where they belong.

Grizz
 
The "dark, satanic Mills" as Ian Hogg called the things, were the series of grenades made under the original Mills patents: Number 5, Number 6, Number 23, Number 36 and Number 36M, the "M" standing for the special waterproofing to fit them for service in Mesopotamia and other harsh environments.

The part that John is looking for is generally called the "spoon" although the Army called it the "lever".

The things were issued 12 in a box with a sardine-can in the middle with 13 detonators with fuses.... and a set of fuse-cutters/crimpers. You removed the baseplate, cut the fuse to whatever length you wanted (4 seconds was pretty much standard), crimped on the detonator and stufed the detonator up inside the charge, then wriggled the igniting-cap (a .22 blank with no powder) into its position, then screwed on the baseplate. Drill was pick the thing up, holding the lever tightly, pull the pin and throw it right now. No standing around and counting to three; that's just for the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch.

Good fragmentation grenade. Still a nasty piece of work to run up against.

The lever was high-carbon steel, spring-hardened and tempered. It was tapered in thickness, heaviest up where it held the striker. And it had 2 little lugs on it to hold it in position in the bomb casting. And it was curved. It would be possible to fake one, but an original is just SO much nicer.
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I was going through some of my dads old stuff, and foound a dewat #36.
It has 4 small holes drilled through the body. I looked at it for a bit, fiddled with it, pulled the pin out, looked at it a bit more, slightly relaxed my hold on it, and BOING! Out flew the spoon!
Holy Chit!!!
I came VERY close to throwing it right through a large plate glass sliding door as I was inside the house at the time.
I didnt hear any pop of the primer, and it did have the 4 holes still (yeah, I checked to see they were still there), so I didnt take out the window.

It was a bugger to get the spoon back into place. I still have it, and I have a cup discharger for the LE No. 1 Mk III
 
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Easy to get the spoon back in if you remove the base-plate and (if you have one) the primer assembly. Then you use a brass or iron rod, quarter-inch or so, standing on the floor or bench-top, to push the Striker UPWARD in the body of the bomb. Sooner or later (shortly before your muscles cramp, hopefully) the top of the Striker will protrude through the top of the bomb body. You slip the forward end of the spoon into the Striker and hold on tight as you insert the PIN to hold the Spoon..... and thus the Striker..... in place. Now you can put the base-plate back on and leave your Mills Bomb on the coffee table. Your favourite daughter's idiot boyfriend who drops in for free meals will pick it up and start doing the movie heroics, pull the pin and not be ready for that darned STIFF Striker spring. There will be an almighty SNAP!!, then he will look at the thing in his hand, drop it and bolt for the nearest bathroom, not knowing if the bomb was loaded or not but pretty sure that his pants ARE. When he comes out you get to scream at him and mention that you JUST disarmed the thing half an hour ago. Likely you will never see him again. Bonus!
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Sardaukar said:
What are you guys talking about?
Click to expand...

The thread is about these this kind of stuff ….

If you want to have some fun with the cup dischargers, here's a great "fun" video in The Screening Room (click here) section of the Milsurp Knowledge Libraryhttp://milsurps.com.

(Click PIC to Enlarge)

(Click PIC to Enlarge)

It's a range video of members engaged in The Great Canadian Tennis Ball Challenge competitive match at Milcun, using WW1 Enfield Wire Wrapped Grenade Rifles and Dischargers (click here)http://www.milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=1129.

Make sure you turn ON your speakers and turn the volume up to hear the sound effects !


There's also another Knowledge Library entry on WW1 Enfield Wire Wrapped Grenade Rifles and Dischargers (click here)http://www.milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=105, showing close up pics as well as instructions on how to use them.

Hope this helps ... :)

Regards,
Doug
 
Laugh2


smellie said:
Easy to get the spoon back in if you remove the base-plate and (if you have one) the primer assembly. Then you use a brass or iron rod, quarter-inch or so, standing on the floor or bench-top, to push the Striker UPWARD in the body of the bomb. Sooner or later (shortly before your muscles cramp, hopefully) the top of the Striker will protrude through the top of the bomb body. You slip the forward end of the spoon into the Striker and hold on tight as you insert the PIN to hold the Spoon..... and thus the Striker..... in place. Now you can put the base-plate back on and leave your Mills Bomb on the coffee table. Your favourite daughter's idiot boyfriend who drops in for free meals will pick it up and start doing the movie heroics, pull the pin and not be ready for that darned STIFF Striker spring. There will be an almighty SNAP!!, then he will look at the thing in his hand, drop it and bolt for the nearest bathroom, not knowing if the bomb was loaded or not but pretty sure that his pants ARE. When he comes out you get to scream at him and mention that you JUST disarmed the thing half an hour ago. Likely you will never see him again. Bonus!
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Click to expand...
 
smellie said:
Easy to get the spoon back in if you remove the base-plate and (if you have one) the primer assembly. Then you use a brass or iron rod, quarter-inch or so, standing on the floor or bench-top, to push the Striker UPWARD in the body of the bomb. Sooner or later (shortly before your muscles cramp, hopefully) the top of the Striker will protrude through the top of the bomb body. You slip the forward end of the spoon into the Striker and hold on tight as you insert the PIN to hold the Spoon..... and thus the Striker..... in place. Now you can put the base-plate back on and leave your Mills Bomb on the coffee table. Your favourite daughter's idiot boyfriend who drops in for free meals will pick it up and start doing the movie heroics, pull the pin and not be ready for that darned STIFF Striker spring. There will be an almighty SNAP!!, then he will look at the thing in his hand, drop it and bolt for the nearest bathroom, not knowing if the bomb was loaded or not but pretty sure that his pants ARE. When he comes out you get to scream at him and mention that you JUST disarmed the thing half an hour ago. Likely you will never see him again. Bonus!
.
Click to expand...

I LIKE!!! I LIKE!!! :eek:
 
Well I did go to the "dug up " website Fascinating amount of goodies there. Though I was in error about the spoons. I need FIVE spoons for my No5 grenades. Emailed them, but due to the time difference, won't hear back until tomorrow. They have LOTS of other stuff, well worth looking at!!!
You can get the complete assembly for the 36 or the No5, from the spoon to the baseplate, but since I don't intend to make them live, I can get the springs from the local hardware store and turn the strikers on my lathe. (they do take plastic money) Even some stuff there for the German and French collectors.
As for firing things from the cup discharger, I am quite satisfied with using tennis balls and regular blanks.
Oh, and they don't have an order form on the website so you will also have to send them an Email

Now I wonder why there are documented cases of people arming these grenades and having them go off unexpectidly. (an officer doing the arming)
 
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