Rifle grenades

[Uralus]

Does everybody with a rifle have rifle grenades, or is it only available in specific units?

[Kustenjaeger]

Greetings

Rifle grenades are specific to an allocated individual because launching a rifle grenade requires either a special attachment or a different weapon. So for example the US rifle grenade M9 had to be fired from an M7 grenade launcher attachment to the M1 Garand using a special round. Generally the British did not use rifle grenades as firing the issue rounds caused damage to the rifle stock. The Soviets had a rifle grenade launcher pre-war but not sure it was ever used. The Germans had a number of different models I think.

Regards

Edward

[hedgehobbit]

The US distributed the grenade launcher in large numbers, about 1 for every three or four rifles. However, connecting the launcher to the M1 disabled that rifle's semi-automatic fire. One of the things the rules don't cover is that, at least for the US, the rifle grenade was treated as a squad level anti-tank weapon. I'd give it AP 3 but I'm not sure about the range.

From what I've read, it seems the Germans used rifle grenades regularly at least in the early parts of the war. They produced a wide variety of grenade times including explosive, four different anti-tank grenades, smoke, parachute flares, an anti-vehicular smoke grenade and even a propaganda grenade to distribute leaflets. This doesn't even count the 26 types of ammo for their flare pistols that I know of.

[EDIT] Just checked http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
In 1944, the Germans produced almost 19 million rifle grenades (plus 11 million AT grenades). During the same year they produced 22.5 million hand grenades. So it seems that the rifle grenade was more widely used than I thought.

[Uralus]

So it seems they were used quite a lot.

Does this mean we can also use them just like normal grenades or are there more limits to them being used in these rules? I ask this because in my last game I activated my junior leader with a 3 and wanted to fire 1 rifle grenade, followed by the team firing. My opponent did not allow it because he said that rifle grenades are only on specific units.

[Kustenjaeger]

Greetings

The lists at the moment do not, I think, list rifle grenades [exc. of course the French VB].

In theory the US rifle platoon had one rifle grenadier per squad either with an M1903 Springfield with M1 launcher or (1944 onwards) an M1 Garand with M7 launcher. Apparently the latter got lost quickly because the rifleman could not use the M1 on semi automatic with the launcher fitted so had to remove it before using the rifle for its usual purpose. So at the least you'd have to identify a rifle grenadier in each squad.

Regards

Edward

[hedgehobbit]

Personally, I have no problem with all units (at least US and German) having a rifle grenadier. The German one was introduced in 1942, the American one was in use throughout the war (first in the Springfield and, later, the M1). You'll have to ask someone else about British and Russian use.

Here's a picture of some krauts, one of whom has a grenade launcher attached. The bag over his shoulders is for holding the rifle grenades. The 28mm WW2 German Platoon set from Wargames Factory includes a figure with the launcher attached but he doesn't have the bag.



Here's a posed picture of a dude shooting the anti-tank rifle grenade.


A US soldier armed with an anti-tank rifle grenade. Seems a bit unwieldy.

The bag he has full of grenades was the M1 Ammunition Bag which was a generic bag used for a variety of things not just rifle grenades.
http://www.atthefrontshop.com/ProductDe ... e=USGPM1AB

As always, please correct me if what I say isn't accurate.