BEANO T-13 Hand Grenade

The BEANO T-13 hand grenade was an experimental hand grenade developed by the Office of Strategic Services (which later became the CIA) in the latter years of World War II. The theory for the BEANO hand grenade was that a globular grenade the size and weight of a common baseball would be effective in the hands of American troops. The designers believed that by imitating a baseball that any American young man should be able to accurately throw the grenade with both precision and expanse.

The ultimate design for the T-13 hand grenade utilizes a pressure trigger as well as an in-flight arming device. The grenade was designed to be thrown as a traditional baseball, and as such it was held with two fingers on a weighted and knurled “butterfly cap” and the arming pin was removed. Once thrown, the cap detached from the body of the grenade and a length of nylon string unwound until a secondary arming pin attached to the far end of the cord was pulled, arming the grenade to detonate upon impact with a hard surface. While the original design called for a 5.5 oz total weight, it was later decided that this was too light and the weight was increased to 12 oz.

The T-13 was approved for field use, and several thousand were shipped to Europe. They were reportedly issued in limited quantities during the invasion of Normandy, but are believed to have injured more American soldiers than enemy troops due to premature detonation.

Due to the timing of its development and lack of deployment into service the T-13 remains one of the rarest and most sought after World War II grenades. At the war’s end, the remaining stock was ordered destroyed and the records classified. While there are T-13s in existence, they are rare, and command top price in their class.

The engineers who created the Beano Grenade believed that if they modeled the weapon around a baseball then any young American man should be able to properly throw it. Baseball is America’s national pastime and one of the country’s most popular professional sports. The Beano Grenade used a pressure trigger to detonate and explode on contact with hard surfaces. U.S. soldiers fighting during the Second World War were taught to throw the grenade like a traditional baseball. Soldiers would even hold the grenade the same way a pitcher would hold a baseball when throwing a “knuckle ball.”

Several thousand Beano Grenades were shipped to Europe during the Second World War and U.S. soldiers used them during the Invasion of Normandy in June 1944. However, the grenades were quickly recalled and taken out of service after several of them prematurely detonated and killed U.S. troops.

At the end of the Second World War, the U.S. military’s supply of T-13 Beano Grenades was ordered destroyed and files pertaining to the weapon were classified. Today, the Beano Grenade is a rare and highly prized artefact from the Second World War. Military history buffs covet the hard to find weapon and several Beano Grenades have sold at auction around the world for tens of thousands of dollars. There is also a “Facebook” page dedicated to the T-13 Beano Grenade.

Specifications

Place of origin: United States
Wars: World War II
Designer: OSS
Manufacturer: Eastman Kodak
Weight: 12 oz.
Effective range: Thrown (20 m.)
Filling weight: 9 oz.