| RPG-40 | |
|---|---|
 Soviet RPG-40 anti-tank grenade | |
| Type | Anti-tank grenade |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1940 |
| Used by | Soviet Union and Warsaw pact countries |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | M. I. Puzirev [1] |
| Designed | 1938 [1] |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 1.2 kilograms (2.6 lb) [1] |
| Length | 20 centimetres (7.9 in) |
| Filling | TNT |
| Filling weight | 0.760 kilograms (1.68 lb) [1] |
The RPG-40 was an anti-tank hand grenade developed by the Soviet Union in 1940. [1]
Upon contact, 760 grams (1.68 lb) of explosives contained within it were detonated and produced a blast effect. This enabled about 20–25 millimetres (0.79–0.98 in) of armour to be penetrated and caused secondary damage, such as spalling, on contact with thicker armour. [1] This made the grenade very effective against earlier German tanks, but ineffective against later models, such as the Panzer IV and the Panzer V, leading to the RPG-43 replacing it in 1943.
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The Pak 36 is a 3.7 cm / 37mm caliber German anti-tank gun used during the Second World War. It was the main anti-tank weapon of Wehrmacht Panzerjäger units until 1942. Developed by Rheinmetall in 1933, it was first issued to the German Army in 1936, with 9,120 being available by the beginning of the war in September 1939 and a further 5,339 produced during the war. As the predominant anti-tank gun design in the world during the late 1930s, demand was high for the Pak 36, with another 6,000 examples produced for export and the design being copied by the Soviet Union as the 45 mm anti-tank gun M1932 (19-K) and by other nations such as Japan.
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