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Viven-Bessières Rifle Grenade Launcher
Viven-Bessières rifle grenade launcher, known also as Tromblon VB was a French rifle grenade launcher, designed in 1916 and widely used throughout WW1. It was mounted on Lebel Mle 1886 rifles; US Army adopted this weapon and mounted it on M1917 Enfield and M1903 Springfield rifles. In late 1930s Tromblon VB was modified for usage with new MAS-36 rifles, although French military continued using the old model with Lebel rifle (some sources claim that MAS-36 appeared too fragile to stand the recoil of Tromblon). In 1960s slightly modified Tromblon VB was mounted on shortened Karabiner 98k and M1917 Enfield rifles and used by French National Police to launch smoke grenades. In this role it survived until 1990s.
Specifications
(Produced: 1916-????; Used: military 1916-1940s, police 1960s-1990s)
- Type: Rifle grenade launcher
- Caliber: 2 in (5 cm); 2.2 in (5.7 cm) (smoke grenade launcher)
- Length: ? (for Lebel 1886); 12.6 in (32 cm) (for MAS-36)
- Weight: about 3.3 lbs (1.5 kg) (for Lebel 1886); about 4.2 lbs (1.9 kg) (for MAS-36)
- Grenade Weight: 475 g (16.76 oz) (HE grenade)
- Maximum Range: 190 m at 45° elevation
- Capacity: 1 round
- Fire modes: Manual
- Maximum Rate of Fire: 4 rpm
The Viven-Bessières Rifle Grenade Launcher and variants can be seen in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:
Film
| Title | Actor | Character | Note | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| There Was Once a Cop (Il était une fois un flic...) | French police | Smoke grenade launcher, based on Kar 98k | 1971 | |
| Two Men in Town (Deux hommes dans la ville) | French police | Smoke grenade launcher, based on Kar 98k | 1973 | |
| A Very Long Engagement | French soldiers | mounted on Berthier Mle 1907-15 rifles | 2004 | |
| A Pain in the Ass (L'emmerdeur) | French police | Smoke grenade launcher, based on Kar 98k or Enfield M1917 | 2008 |
Video Games
| Title | Referred As | Notes | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| World War II Online: Battleground Europe | Mounted on Lebel 1886 M93 | 2001-2013 | |
| Forgotten Hope 2 | "Tromblon VB" | Mounted on Lebel 1886, Berthier M16 and MAS-36 rifles, added in v2.6 (2022) | 2007 |
| Battle of Empires: 1914-1918 | Mounted on Lebel 1886 M93 | 2015 | |
| Beyond The Wire | "VB Rifle Grenade" | used with Lebel 1886 and M1917 rifles | 2021 |