Original Belgian Cold War Era Inert Pair of 40mm Illumination Rifle Grenades, Belgium Original Items

Original Items. Only One Available. This is a set of two inert illumination rifle grenades that came out of an old museum, still retaining their identification tags wrapped around the shaft. Despite both being labeled French, they are both Belgian. As with all deactivated ordnance, this item is not available for export.

The first grenade, which is Belgian, is an M259 rifle grenade, labeled PFL-RFL-40 N-5 3-09. It is a rifle-launched, parachute-illuminating, rifle grenade used for signaling and illumination. This example is missing the top cap, and has been completely emptied. This one has a paper label wrapped around the shaft reading FRANCE Gr. Rifle, Mecar PFL-RFL-40 N-5.

The second grenade, which is Belgian, is a 40mm ECN-40 4” Rifle Smoke Grenade by Mecar, in Belgium. This 40mm Signal Flare is equipped with the patented MECAR Bullet Trap Universal (BTU) and has been specifically designed to accept soft steel core bullets as well as lead core bullets. This example retains its cap, which has 5 red dots painted on, right above the red bar painted at the top of the shaft.

The rifle grenade measures approximately 11 ½” inches in length and is a 40mm type round. The round itself is a rifle launched flare, much like the HE rifle grenades, but this burns just like a flare shot from a signal pistol. The condition is very nice with all trail fins present. Much of the original paint is still present, as are the arsenal markings for MECAR.

Mecar is a Belgian weapon and ammunition manufacturing company headquartered in Petit-Roeulx-lez-Nivelles, Hainaut Province. Mecar is responsible for creating weapons ranging from grenades to lightweight anti-tank cannons. The company was established in 1938 and now produces arms for NATO, Belgium, and other various countries. The company is now a wholly owned subsidiary of NEXTER Systems S.A., a French Defense Systems company following the acquisition in May 2014.

A wonderful pair of examples that come more than ready for further research and display.