The Type 89 grenade discharger (八九式重擲弾筒, Hachikyū-shiki jū-tekidantō), inaccurately and colloquially known as a knee mortar by Allied forces, is a Japanese grenade launcher or light mortar that was widely used in the Pacific Theater of World War II. It got the nickname the "knee mortar" because of an erroneous Allied belief that these launchers could be fired by propping its plate against the leg. However, anyone trying to fire it this way would receive a severe bruise (or sometimes a broken femur) from its hefty recoil.
The Imperial Japanese Army considered the Type 89 grenade launcher to be an effective weapon, often employed in two to four pieces as part of a typical rifle platoon. The primary target during engagements was the enemies automatic weapons such as emplaced medium machine guns. Like its predecessor, the Type 10 grenade launcher, the Type 89 grenade launcher was also used as a signal flare device.
Inert / Japanese proof & arsenal markings located near the base / Wear to outer surfaces / Lost of paint, copper ring and brass fuse / WW2 / Relic condition - Battlefield pickup
