• Comrade Spood@slrpnk.net
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    6 days ago

    The reason is logistics (as usually the reason for most things military related). You can fit a hell of a lot more conventionally shaped grenades in a crate than you can with stick grenades. Even on a person, conventional grenades weigh less, are less cumbersome, and you can carry more compared to stick grenades. Stick grenades really only have their ease of throwing over a conventional grenade

      • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
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        6 days ago

        According to wikipedia, the International Brigades used slings to hurl grenades during the Spanish American War. I’ve heard tell of Ethiopian troops using slings to launch grenades, but can’t find a source.

        And I know people have launched molotovs from slings, which are larger and more unwieldy, unless we’re talking about the German example above with a handle.

      • Raltoid@lemmy.world
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        6 days ago

        Grenades are mostly used at closer and more hectic ranges, so it’s often much faster to just throw it instead of having to prepare some sort of implement to increase range.

        There have been instances of things being used, like slings, slingshots and even devices similar to those things you use to throw tennis balls for dogs. But at the end of the day, the increased range is rarely worth the extra time needed. You would only get an advantage as an opening attack from a longer distance. And for that we already have under-barrel grenade launchers that can reach ten times further than thrown ones, or mortars that could be a hundred times further away from the target.

          • Raltoid@lemmy.world
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            6 days ago

            Oh yeah, that is by far the best device in which they’re used these days. Although that has little to do with grenades per se, since they can use all kinds of different explosive devices. And it still suffers from the main concern with hand grenades: Time to prepare. It’s a lot faster and cheaper to throw one 20-30m than it is to take out, power up and send a drone that distance.

        • Cethin@lemmy.zip
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          6 days ago

          Grenades are mostly used at closer and more hectic ranges, so it’s often much faster to just throw it instead of having to prepare some sort of implement to increase range.

          Hand grenades, sure. There’s a reason we have grenade launchers though. They can fire several hundred meters. With that said, is there really a need for a sling? I could see gorilla forces making good use of them, as they’d be silent, cheap, portable, and a lot easier to hide. Conventional forces have no need though because either you’re close enough for a hand grenade (there are different types, some are thrown further and some not), or you have grenade launchers available to hit the further away.

      • sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works
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        6 days ago

        Just connect the pin to the sling so it slides out as you launch it. It has the small side effect of maybe getting stuck, but hey, nothing is perfect.

    • jaybone@lemmy.zip
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      6 days ago

      It’s easier to pack and ship cylinders than it is to ship oblong spheroids.