Live grenades found in collection at the History Center of Freeborn County

KTTC ^ | 2/27/25 | Addie McCabe

[DallasBiff]

ALBERT LEA, Minn. (KTTC) – The History Center of Freeborn County was visited by the Albert Lea Police Department and St. Paul Police Department’s bomb squad after live grenades were found in an exhibition collection.

No one was injured and authorities quickly ensured the grenades wouldn’t pose a danger.

[DallasBiff]

Can a grenade be deactivated and still be used as a museum piece?

[Nifty]

How would they have known? Did they look to see? I mean I’ve seen dozens of exhibits with this stuff.

[Lazamataz]

I understand grenades can become far more touchy and dangerous with sufficient age.

[clee1]

Yes, greandes are fairly easy to inert.

[Cold_Red_Steel]

Well, inert grenades wouldn’t be historically accurate!

[missnry]

Yes, greandes are fairly easy to inert.

DO NOT PATRICIPATE IN INERTING A GRENADE IF THE PERSON TELLS YOU THIS, "Here hold my beer. Watch this."

[ConservativeMind]

I would think soaking in water would do it.

[clee1]

Amen!

[Zathras]

‘First shalt thou take out the Holy Pin...”

[ProtectOurFreedom]

When I was about 10 years old (1961), Dad gave me a hand grenade lighter. It sure appeared to be made from a real old grenade. I never checked to see if the explosive had been removed.

[clee1]

You unscrew the detonator and use boiling water to melt out the body explosive. You remove the blasting cap from the trigger mechanism then screw the inert trigger into the inert body. EZ Peazy.

[Red Badger]

Watch from afar....................VERY AFAR!..................

[TheDon]

Quite an authentic exhibit!

[clee1]

I have literally been that person. LOL A buddy of mine in the 1980s worked in the arsenal where they made the manufactured grenade parts into live grenades. we discussed the process many times.

He even brought a bean-sized chunk of the explosive home to “demonstrate”. He smacked it with a hammer, lit it on fire, etc. The explosive compound is similar to the ubiquitous C4 and very insensitive except to a blasting cap. I even got the “Hold my beer” statement. ROFL!

[Carl Vehse]

Because the finding of live grenades in a history museum exhibition collection occurred in Minnesota, it's not all that surprising.

And being it happened in Minnesota, one should not be surprised that the history museum might have no records as to who donated the grenades to be put in the exhibition.

Oh, and being it happened in Minnesota, it's not at all surprising that the KTTC "reporter" did not inquire and report as to how the grenades were found to be "live" and the bomb squad then called.

We should all be grateful that the Bradbury Science Museum is in Los Alamos instead of Minnesota. Otherwise, the bomb squad might have to check to make sure the replicas of Little Boy and Fat Man are not "live".

[larrytown]

Especially if the fuse assembly isn’t rusted to the body too tightly.

[Larry Lucido]

[mabarker1]

Yes, by removing the Fuse, Powder Charge or Explosive material (depending on the type and age of the grenade) and drilling a hole in the casing.

[SauronOfMordor]

“ I would think soaking in water would do it.”

You would think incorrectly. What use is a grenade that would fail to go off if the soldier had to wade through a stream?

[If You Want It Fixed - Fix It]

Once you remove it from the placque that reads “Complaint Dept, please take a number” with the tag #1 attached to the pin....

It becomes an active grenade.