These are inert replicas of the USGI M16/18 smoke grenade used during and after WWII. The main bodies are made of heavy gauge steel with milled aluminum "endcaps." This design makes these replicas nearly indestructible. Unlike other repos on the market, these replicas feature the proper MKII fuse cast is solid zinc alloy (the same metal used during WWII). These replicas are 100% inert and can not be made to function. New features include: Heavy gauge steel body (cannot be dented by hand like thin gauge replicas) Solid milled aluminum endcaps Solid metal dummy fuse made of zinc alloy (the same metal used on original M10 series fuses) Improved MKII "wrap around" spoon design with perfectly shaped "Y" stiffener Metal stamped nomenclature and makers marks on the top of the spoon Hardened spring steel "pull ring" based on original specs Flat steel cotter pin to match the original specs Heavy duty 20-22ga steel spoons We specifically chose to reproduce these four colors for our replica M16 smokes because they are the only colors specified in original WWII field manuals so are presumably the only colors that were produced during the war. All WWII smoke grenades used yellow roll stamping on the face of the cans with these manufacturer nomenclature then the specifical color of each grenade was painted on the very top. The main reason for this is when smoke grenade crates were opened on the front lines for use, troops could see the color of the grenades as they were shipped standing up inside the crate. On our previous replicas we had to use resin castings for our dummy fuses which made them the exact same size and shape as originals but because they were resin they didn't look like metal and were also not as strong as we would have liked. The dummy fuses on our newest MKII replicas are solid zinc alloy. This is the same metal that was used to cast real MKII fuses both during and after WWII. The dimensions and the exterior details of our dummy fuses match the originals in our collection perfectly. Beings that our dummy fuses are solid zinc alloy, spring loaded striker kits can not be installed on these replicas. From the outside these replicas are a 1:1 copy of the original but in order to make these as durable and long lasting as possible we have made the 100% solid. As cool as it would be to be able to pull the pin and watch the spoon fly of, we believe that durability are more important and thus give our customer a stronger and more reliable replica designed to withstand decades of heavy reenactor "field use." The WW2 "wrap around" style spoons was one of the hardest parts of this project. Post war spoons can be found by the truck load but they are not compatible with WW2 style fuses so I found a machine shop that could make proper reproductions from scratch. Unlike the "bursting" white phosphorous type smoke grenades, this style of smoke would have functioned the way all traditional smoke grenades would. Once the pin the pulled and the spoon released the fuse would begin to burn, igniting the colored smoke compound inside causing smoke to billow out of a small hole in the bottom of the grenade (hole is covered by tape which is painted over, like originals). It would take the grenade 30 seconds to a minute to put out a sufficient screen of smoke. These were used to cover the movement of advancing troops as well as providing a means of identifying friendly forces and/or enemy positions for Allied armor and aircraft. ****Note that the nomenclature on these replicas is roll stamped using a rubber stamp the same way they were during WWII. However roll stamping is an imperfect process. Some numbers and letters may be missed or smudged. Additionally tha nomenclature may be partially obscured by the spoon and/or on the opposite side of the canister than the spoon. This is an acceptable manufacturer error because original manufactures had the exact same problem. If you are wanting a perfect example with perfectly crisp stamping it would be easy for you to repaint them and apply the nomenclature with stencils which could provide a finish to your liking.**** NOT FOR SALE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES.
