8 cm Granatwerfer 34
The 8 cm Granatwerfer 34 was the standard German infantry mortar throughout World War II. It was noted for its accuracy and rapid rate of fire.
History
The weapon was of conventional design and broke down into three loads for transport. Attached to the bipod were a traversing handwheel and a cross-leveling handwheel below the elevating mechanism. A panoramic sight was mounted on the traversing mechanism yoke for fine adjustments. A line on the tube could be used for rough laying.The 8 cm GrW 34/1 was an adaptation for use in self-propelled mountings. A lightened version with a shorter barrel was put into production as the kurzer 8 cm Granatwerfer 42.
The mortar employed conventional 8 cm 3.5 kg shells with percussion fuzes. The range could be extended by fitting up to three additional powder charges between the shell tailfins.
A total of 74,336,000 rounds of ammunition were produced for the Granatwerfer 34 from September 1939 to March 1945.
Ammunition
List of available ammunition for the Granatwerfer 34.| Name | Caliber | Mass of explosive material | Target effect | Other information |
| Wurfgranate 34 | 80,7 mm | 533 g | Blast and shrapnel effect | |
| Wurfgranate 34 Blauring | 80,7 mm | 530 g | Blast, shrapnel and chemical effect | Chemical agent: Adamsite |
| Wurfgranate 34 Ex | 80,7 mm | 0 g | None | Ammunition used for learning general handling |
| Wurfgranate 34 Nb | 80,7 mm | 500 g | Smoke effect | Effect load: Sulfur trioxide in pumice stone |
| Wurfgranate 34 Üb | 80,7 mm | 57 g | Minimal blast effect | Training ammunition |
| Wurfgranate 34 Weißring | 80,7 mm | 550 g | Blast, shrapnel and chemical effect | Chemical agent: Phenacyl chloride |
| Wurfgranate 38 | 80,7 mm | 400 g | Blast and shrapnel effect | |
| Wurfgranate 38 Deut | 80,7 mm | 200 g | Ejection charge | |
| Wurfgranate 38 umg | 80,7 mm | 550 g | Blast and shrapnel effect | |
| Wurfgranate 39 | 80,7 mm | 400 g | Blast and shrapnel effect | |
| Wurfgranate 40 | 80,9 mm | 2000 g | Blast and shrapnel effect | |
| Wurfgranate 40 Üb | 80,9 mm | 0 g | - | Training ammunition |
Weapons of comparable role, performance and era
- Brandt Mle 27/31 original French mortar design of the 1920s, after which all 3″/8 cm/81.4 mm/82 mm mortars of the Second World War era were patterned
- Ordnance ML 3 inch Mortar British equivalent
- M1 mortar US equivalent
Citations
General sources
- Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939–1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979