German B1 incendiery bomb

[Madbomber31]

Hi Waff,

The Explosive Charge was there because is was easy to pick them up wiht a spade and trow them out of the window on to the street were they where no harm any more you had a explosive charge in the fuze or on the back of the bomb.
It was there to kill or harm the fireman.
It exploded wen the bomb was burning down.

Cheers Mad.

 

[Rrickoshae]

close up.

I have only recently come across this post and thought I'd add something to help clarify the source of the dummy incendiary bombs that crop up from time to time. About 30 years ago I was offered 2 81mm mortar bomb ammo boxes full of these 'British made' incendiary bombs from an official source. They had been made for the film Battle of Britain in quite large numbers and were filmed in a street scene littering the road. In the end, that part of the filming was not included in the final cut. The bombs were handed to an official site after filming and put into store. They were checked over by RAF Cardington EOD and then disposed of. I must have sold on at least 25 or 30 and I know there were others about. When I see them for sale, they are most usually marked up as being made for ARP training - hardly necessary as there were so many genuine ones about!

Dave

 

[kiwieod]

thanks for that its always good to know the real story behind stuff like that

 

[LEI-13-HG]

Thanks for that Dave. Often wondered the history of these, as the EOD is obviously a post-war marking.

Pity the scene was not included as it would have been great!

I know there was lots of footage not used in the B of B as it has been used in documentaries since.

 

[Bellifortis]

Hallo,
here in Germany these small german incendiary bombs are quite rare. I never had one in my hands. The US and british counterparts naturally are found very, very often. The dud-rate was very high, above 10%. So, from every Million bombs dropped, 100000 duds are left lying around. In my hometown its mostly US models TH 50 and 52. The X-model, with the explosive head is also quite rare. The wooded hillsides around town still hide many, because there was no construction there since the end of war. Since decades there are reports of discoveries in the local press. When a citicen reports a find, the area is roped off by local authorities and the EOD is called. They have to drive an hour to reach this place and mostly get angry about being called for such an "inert" piece of metal junk. They throw it in the back of their car and depart again. So, the cost of collecting this "inert metal" is extremely high ( 1 full 8 hour EOD manpower shift plus 4 hours automobile) I do not know how this metal-debris ( casing : Electron= alloy of Mg and Al that even today is used in aircraft construction plus Thermite = Al + Fe2O3= Aluminum and black Ironoxide, which is very, very difficult to ignite; Goldschmidt Reaction) is classified officially. I forgot the Sulphur containing , pressed in , igniter, that degenerates in the wet ground to an unreactive mass. There are still so many of these lying around in Germany, that for decades to come they will be found. How are these old, inert bombs classified internationally ?
Regards,
Bellifortis.