1:35 German Weapon M43 Stielhandgranate (25 pcs)

The German M43 stick hand grenade in 1:35 scale

This item is neither a kit nor a figure, but a set of small equipment in 1:35 scale from Dynamo-Models. Stick hand grenades belong to the kit that appears everywhere in dioramas - tucked behind a figure's belt, lined up in crates, scattered in a trench or stowed on the hull of a vehicle. The name gives 25 pieces; the material of the parts, their dimensions and the state of the surface are stated on the box of the set.

The real subject

The stick hand grenade was a typical German infantry weapon of both world wars. The long handle allowed a longer throw than with egg grenades and at the same time kept the grenade from rolling away after landing on sloping ground. The 1943 pattern came about as a simplification of the older model: production was shortened, the fuze moved into the head of the grenade and the unscrewable cap at the end of the handle, which previously had to be removed before use, was done away with. It is precisely by the arrangement of the head and the missing cap that the late pattern is told from the earlier one.

Usage and painting tips

Leave the metal head in a darker shade than the wooden handle - on a part this small that difference is the only thing a viewer will notice. Lighten the handle with a glaze toward brown and even the head out with a weak dark wash. Grenades look best in natural disorder: tipped in an open crate, propped against the wall of a trench or tucked behind a figure's belt. Scattering them evenly over an area, on the other hand, looks contrived.

Who the set is for

• Builders of dioramas in 1:35 scale
• Modelers who kit out figures and vehicle interiors
• Scenes from the end of the Second World War
• More experienced builders used to very small parts