The V40 fragmentation

grenade A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A mod ...

was manufactured in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, and was in service in the

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

and the

US Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. U.S. federal law names six armed forces: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and the Coast Guard. Since 1949, all of the armed forces, except ...

. The V40 grenade is spherical in shape, high, and in diameter - approximately the size of a golf ball. It has a safety pin and safety lever with a safety clip attached to the safety lever. The steel body of the grenade has 326 squares pressed into its inside face to produce separate fragments when the explosive fill is detonated. The V40 weighed and was issued primed from the manufacturer. Fuse delay time was four seconds. This grenade was considered lethal up to a radius of and had a safety radius of about . It was commonly referred to as the ''Mini-Frag'', ''Golf ball grenade'' or the ''Hooch popper''. Due to its small size, a considerable number could be carried; however, its small size also made the weapon dangerous when wearing gloves, as the impact of the striker on the primer was difficult to feel. These grenades were in service from the late 1960s to at least 2008. During the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, the

Viet Cong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the communist-driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, and ...

PAVN The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), officially the Vietnam People's Army (VPA; , , ), also recognized as the Vietnamese Army (), the People's Army () or colloquially the Troops ( ), is the national military force of the Socialist Republic o ...

copied the V40 grenade (albeit slightly larger in size), which utilized the fuze of the RGD-5 grenade.

References

{{reflist Fragmentation grenades Hand grenades of the United States Military equipment introduced in the 1960s