How can they unscrew the fuse from a WW2 bomb that was rotting under the ground or in water for 80 years, when you may have to use brutal force, heat, etc to remove bolts from a 10-year-old car (and the bolt will snap anyway)?

Question

I would expect that you wouldn’t be able to loosen anything on an old, rusty bomb, especially that it is so unstable and can go off anytime.

In: 1985

Answer 1

James May did a program on how to dispose of World War 2 ordinance by jamming the clockwork mechanisms of the fuse with saltwater before removing it.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnQ_pS4T0vI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnQ_pS4T0vI)

He failed, because there was another mechanism underneath the fuse that would detonate the bomb once the fuse was removed.