Question on grenade ordnance code

[RodneyO]

Hi,
Will try to explain the best I can as I’m not to familiar with German grenades… Are there variations of ordnance code & date used on wooden handle of grenades made by the same manufacturer? Either having the lettering or the numbers of the date (or both) slightly different even though they are from the same ordnance manufacturer.
Is there a list of ordnance code for stick grenades and can some of you that have grenades post some of the ord. code that are stamped on the wooden handle and if you have any variations of same ord. code?

Thank you,
Rodney

[HGrenadier]

Search here: http://www.radix.net/~bbrown/codes_full.html

[RodneyO]

Thanks HGrenadier,
Great website, I’ve bookmarked that page for future reference.
What I wanted to know is if the same ordnance manufacturer had more then one stamp and did the stamp vary in letters and numbers but year being the same? One that I’ve notice was the RR ord. code, some having “back to back” R’s and some with the R’s the same way (RR).
Like so many TR items, there are a lot of fakes and I’ve seen some nice grenades here that look good but… this makes me wonder if there are more then one stamp that ord. manufacturers uses at their plant that the stamps are slightly different from one to another.

[jiipee76]

Thanks HGrenadier,
Great website, I’ve bookmarked that page for future reference.
What I wanted to know is if the same ordnance manufacturer had more then one stamp and did the stamp vary in letters and numbers but year being the same? One that I’ve notice was the RR ord. code, some having “back to back” R’s and some with the R’s the same way (RR).
Like so many TR items, there are a lot of fakes and I’ve seen some nice grenades here that look good but… this makes me wonder if there are more then one stamp that ord. manufacturers uses at their plant that the stamps are slightly different from one to another.

RR(Richard Rinker) maker code have both variations.Both are good.

Many other german manufacturers changed their makerlogos in wartime.

[RodneyO]

Aloha jiipee76,
Yup!...that’s one I’ve seen used both ways, both styles as originals and what is scary both styles being faked (RR’s) too. Are there any other examples of different ord. code being used that have changed during wartime period but still having the same ord. code with slight changes in the style of lettering used? I notice different ranges from lightly to really deep imprints of the ord. code and some have what looks like being heated as the imprint looks to have been burnt into the handle.
What are the most faked ord. code/date being used on stick grenades?
Mahalo,

[jiipee76]

I believe RR-mark is NOT official makercode.It is simple maker logo of Rickhard Rinker Firm.

Official makercodes for this maker were:
brb and dbk

Here is my grenade with brb code:

[RodneyO]

Mahalo jiipee,
I was wondering why I couldn’t find Richard Rinker (RR) on the “WW2 German Ordnance Codes” website. According to the website brb44 was produced by the Richard Rinker GmbH, Iserlohn company. It getting confusing, did Richard Rinker change their “RR” (both back to back and same way R’s) logo to “brb” code towards the ending of the war or did they use two of them through out the war?
Could you please post the whole grenade of yours, is that the top explosive section of the grenade? Does your wooden handle have the same code date too?

[Ferdinand W.]

markings on M24 and M43 Stielhandgrenades

Hello Rodney,

the head jiipee76 shows us is a head for the M43 Stielhandgrenade.
The M43s are never stamped RR if Richard Rinker is the maker.
RR in normal or reversed Rs is not a code at all but the makers
early mark and will not appear on the M43s because they started
to exist in 1943 only !
The whole list of ALL Stielhandgrenades manufactures is too long
and complex to write down.

Please show us the handgrenades heads and/or sticks you have and
I'll be able (and the others here of course!) to tell you if it's real, original or fake !
Without any pictures it is impossible to tell what codes or makers could be fake.
Sometimes the heads are fake and the sticks are good etc.....
Or the other way around.

Really need good pictures to determine what you want to know !

Kind regards to Hawaii,

Ferdinand

[reidmuller]

Ferdinand i did start to make a list of all the makers codes and how they came (as in head marked fcc43 stick marked brb44) as i was trying to find out if the sticks and heads were all made by the same maker as i noticed m43s had many different makers of sticks but only a very few makers of the cans
do you know of another list because so far i have found only about 15 differnt manufacures of sticks and grenades

[RodneyO]

Aloha Ferdinand, you’re always welcome here in Hawaii!

Sorry no can post pictures but I’ll try to explain the best I can without the pictures. The handle is marked WC1943 and there’s a faint 43 gc? on the head. It is really hard to make out but by using a strong flashlight the last letter looks like a “k”. The side of the head is printed a large K and below that ??? ?? 8, (or “&”) 1943. Again it’s very hard to make out what’s printed on the side as rust and fading print makes it hard to read. It has the bottom screw-on cap with string and donut shape ceramic ball and on the top end of the string a smaller oval shape ceramic ball.
I’ve seen WC coded heads, so does this means my grenade is a mismatch set? The condition of the explosive head and metal fitting on the handle that connects the head to the handle matches perfectly in condition and paint color. Does the handle and head always suppose to match in code and date?

The head has some rust, what would be the best way to clean up the rust so it won’t get any worst without damaging the paint?

Mahalo,
Rodney

[Grenademan2005]

For turn the M24 grenades in combat condition soldiers had to usncrew the heads for fit the fuze and the detonator in the handle, I don´t guees soldiers looking for match the sticks with heads just for throw them to enemies. Your third letter on can is a k, gck is a well known grenade maker you can find on M24 and M43 grenades and on the M39 Egg Grenades.

[Grenademan2005]

It has the bottom screw-on cap with string and donut shape ceramic ball and on the top end of the string a smaller oval shape ceramic ball.
Mahalo,
Rodney

Your grenade is missing the fuze and the detonator, as most of the grenades you can find around.

[Grenademan2005]

Also the big black K on your can means it is a grenade for cold weather as K means Kalte/Cold.

[RodneyO]

Aloha Miguel!
Thanks for the information. This is my first German grenade and I’d never handled or examined one before in person. Took another good look and it sure looks like the upper portion on the “k” for gck. It makes sense when assembling the grenades (to make them live) no time to match them up with codes & dates. Are the fuses and detonators illegal to own so none are found with de-activated grenades? Can reproduction ones be bought?
The big “K” for cold weather, what made them different from the regular grenades? Which one are harder to find and why?
Mahalo,
Rodney

[RodneyO]

Just want to add, found this great website on world’s “Grenade, Mines and Boobytraps”: http://www.lexpev.nl/index.html