Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice totally genuine 8cm mortar round steel transportation case for 8cm Wgr.34 rounds. These rounds were fired by the 8cm Gr.W.34 and were streamlined high explosive anti-personnel fragmentation round. The box measures 11″ x 14″ x 4″, and the front side still bears the original markings, with the last line faint:
Munition
s. Gr. W. 34
OBEN
The paint is fairly retained, but there is a great deal of damage from service and rust. It would not be unexpected if this example was originally left in the field for a time before being picked up and brought back to the U.S.. Some of the internal clips have rusted off, and there is staining on the interior. However it still closes correctly with some effort, and the latch and carry handle on the top work correctly. The handle also retains the rare wooden handle piece, which is almost always absent.
A hard to find mortar carry case from WWII, ready to display!
The 8 cm Granatwerfer 34 (8 cm GrW 34) was the standard German heavy mortar throughout World War II. It gained a reputation for extreme accuracy and rapid rate of fire, although it was not as effective when being operated by poorly trained crews.
The weapon was of conventional design and broke down into three loads (smooth bore barrel, bipod, baseplate) 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 (high explosive or smoke) with percussion fuzes. The range could be extended by fitting up to three additional powder charges between the shell tailfins.