So this arrived in the mail on Friday. After an overnight soak in Evaporust to knock some of the rust down on the pull ring its ready to go into the Museum.

This is the first version of the German ANZ pull fuze. Whats really interesting for me (other than it being a very early version) is the total lack of markings. The Germans were very proficient in marking everything from a spoon to a tank. Everything destined to be issued for field use had to go through the inspection process & pass prior to being issued ordnance was no exception. With no markings I’m going to have a hard time figuring out what firm made this & when.

Despite that im very happy to have in in my collection.

Description:

Igniter consists of a cylindrical brass body containing a spring loaded striker held in position by a friction fit of the Z type with a cap to which is attached a large steel ring.
The percussion cap holder is threaded outside throughout the entire length, thus allowing it to be screwed into the igniter in either a safe (percussion cap away from the striker) or armed (percussion cap toward the striker) position.

Operation:
A strong pull on the steel ring detaches the striker release plate from the striker, permitting the striker spring to drive the striker into the percussion cap.