Stielgranate 41
The Stielgranate 41, also known as 3.7 cm Aufsteck Geschoss, was a German shaped charge, fin-stabilized shell, used with the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun to give it better anti-tank performance.
Design
The Stielgranate 41 looked like a rifle grenade, only considerably larger. One part of its stem, a long stick, was placed inside the gun barrel; the other part, a perforated tube with six stabilizing fins was fitted around it. The tube held the grenade in place until it was fired, while the perforations extracted the maximum performance from the propelling hot gases and prevented excessive blow-by.According to Chamberlain, it was fired using a standard cartridge case containing of nitrocellulose, while Hogg gives a figure of of Ngl R P, with a cork plug sealing the mouth of the cartridge.
It was equipped with two fuzes: the AZ 5075 in the nose, for direct hits, and the Bd Z 5130 in the base, to ensure detonation if the target was only grazed. The large caliber of the High-explosive anti-tank warhead and shaped charge containing of cyclonite and TNT, enabled it to penetrate armour thick, enough to defeat any World War II tank. The hit was equally dangerous at any distance, as the shaped-charge effect is not dependent on the velocity of the round at the point of impact. However, the low velocity of the grenade − − limited effective range against tanks to or less.
While it was originally designed for use with the Pak 35/36, it was also used with captured French anti-tank gun">Anti-tank warfare">anti-tank guns, while a Czech-designed version was used with captured 3.7 cm KPÚV vz. 37 and 4.7 cm KPÚV vz. 38 guns.
Performance
Range
According to Chamberlain, the Stielgranate 41 had a range of when fired at an 5° angle while at a 25° it had a range of. On the other hand, Hogg gives the following figures: an effective range of and maximum range of.Penetration
According to the British Army manuals, the grenade could penetrate about of rolled homogeneous armour at a 0° angle and at 30°, while Hogg stated that the Stielgranate 41 could penetrate at any distance.History
The 3.7 cm PaK 36, was the standard anti-tank gun of the Wehrmacht in 1940. A sound design, it was copied by other nations, and while its penetration was somewhat disappointing, the gun mobility more than compensated for its defects. Once it became clear that the newest Allied tanks could shrug off even direct hits from the PaK 36 by late 1940, the Germans began developing a special spigot bomb in order to give the Pak 36 a chance of destroying enemy tanks, especially since more than 20,000 guns were already issued by mid-1941.The Stielgranate 41 was also seen as a way of alleviating the shortages of the heavier 5 cm Pak 38 and 7.5 cm Pak 40 anti-tank guns. A total of 600,900 units were produced in 1942 with a further 35,100 in 1943 before production ceased.