--- title: "That time Rick from ‘Pawn Stars’ purchased a nuclear weapon on the show" date: "2018-07-01" modified: "2020-10-22" authors: - name: "Logan Nye" job_title: "Senior Contributor, Army Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/logan-nye/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/rick-pawn-stars-purchased-nuclear-weapon-show/" categories: - "Entertainment" - "Movies and TV" - "Tactical" - "Weapons" --- # That time Rick from ‘Pawn Stars’ purchased a nuclear weapon on the show ![]() Things you expect in pawn shops: jewelry, electronics, and nuclear bomb parts. --- Wait, that last one isn't right. No one expects to find nuclear bomb parts in a pawn shop. But in this scene from Pawn Stars, Rick calls in an expert to assess whether the cover for a B-57 nuclear bomb is authentic. ![]() *(Photo: YouTube/History)* The B-57 is a [thermonuclear weapon that uses the W-44 Tsetse, a 300-ton to 10-kiloton warhead, as a primary charge that triggers a 5 to 20-kiloton secondary explosion](). The weapon was tested and deployed as [everything from an airburst weapon to a nuclear depth charge](). It was even [deployed, but not used](), on the USS America during Operation Desert Storm. On its own, the cover for a B-57 is no more capable of being used as a weapon than a pen cap is of writing, so it's perfectly safe to buy and sell. Of course, it's also hard to find a use for nuclear bomb parts without any nuclear bombs. See Pawn Star Rick negotiate the purchase in this clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6injHuZXyII Source: History/YouTube ## Author Logan was an Army journalist and paratrooper in the 82nd. Now, he's a freelance writer covering military history, culture, and technology. He has two upcoming podcasts and a Twitch channel focused on basic military literacy. ### Author social links [Twitter]() [Facebook]()