Rob H. wrote:
"E Z Peaces" wrote in message
.. .
Rob H. wrote:
I plan to go back to the usual schedule next week:
http://55tools.blogspot.com/
Rob
1500: The casting looks as if it could have been a fragmentation
sleeve for an early stick grenade. The purpose may have been to use
the head of a grenade as a booby trap. The paddle would have been to
secure the grenade so a trip line would work.
A booby trap could reveal somebody sneaking up on your trench or kill
an attacker who jumped into a crater.
Correct, it's a grenade that could also have been used with a wire as a
trap.
Rob
Correct? Wow, I spun my yarn on the basis of the indentations in the
casting!
The French issued pipe bombs on paddles, which the English called
racquet grenades. Apparently the French called them calendiers.
Grenades had been used since the 1600s. In the Crimean War, the British
had made them from soda bottles. If this is a racquet grenade, I think
"grenade" is misleading. I don't think it was made for throwing.
The handle of a stick grenade moved the weight of the head well away
from the wrist, presumably for increased range. This paddle adds weight
but doesn't move the head far from the wrist. Also, the wood would
interfere with approximately half the shrapnel. If it landed at the
enemy's feet with the board side up, the explosion might be harmless.
The handle looks a little wide for a grip. Suppose troops went along 20
yards in front of their trench using a pipe and hammer to make holes in
the ground as wide as the handles. They'd put the handle in the hole,
then tamp dirt around it. Now the wide handle would resist the pull of
a trip line from the iron side of the device.
The troops would probably drive small stakes, perhaps ten yards in
front, to fasten trip lines. Then they would return to their trench and
a specialist would install the explosives and trip lines.
If this is a racquet grenade and a racquet grenade was actually an
antipersonnel mine, the wide board makes sense. It would reduce the
killing radius on the "friendly" side.