If the depiction is that the rag is inserted into the bottle, as opposed to wrapped around/attached to a sealed bottle, then yes, that’s a bad idea, but I’ve seen it depicted ‘correctly’ in some movies.
‘Proper’ molotovs are sort of like very small, very shitty fuel air bombs: you spread a bunch of flammable material around, and then an ignition source lights the spread around fuel.
You do not want the flame to come into contact with the ‘payload’ before the bottle breaks.
Sticking the rag into the bottle and liquid is basically a bomb with a very unreliable fuse timer, could easily blow up in your hands, or leak flaming liquid on you when you angle the thing to throw it.
…
Also, cooking oil is a terrible choice for a molotov, the ignition point temperature is significantly higher than gasoline/petrol, you probably couldn’t even get a lit piece of cloth to ignite contents of the bottle after it breaks… maybe a magnesium, survival style match would work?
What you want is gasoline/petrol, stirred together with a bit of styrofoam to create a poor man’s napalm. Or the highest proof spirits you can find, gotta be higher than 100 proof or 50% alchohol for any realistic chance it’ll work, or lighter fluid or isopropyl alchohol or something.
All of this general information (other than cooking oil ignition temps) can be fairly easily discerned from the wiki page on molotovs.
ProfessorOwl_PhD@hexbear.net
on 21 Jan 2025 13:03
nextcollapse
Sugar is more traditional than styrofoam, but it is fun to see the petrol make the styrofoam just disappear.
Probably we shouldn’t get into exact recipe proportions though, haha.
Zorsith@lemmy.blahaj.zone
on 21 Jan 2025 14:29
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Isopropyl and gas are the easiest to obtain, gas is probably less likely to get flagged in “bulk”. Styrofoam pellets and a funnel as well.
showmeyourkizinti@startrek.website
on 22 Jan 2025 09:15
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“I’m telling you, Molotov cocktails work. Any time I had a problem, and I threw a Molotov cocktail, boom! Right away, I had a different problem” -
Jason Mendoza
threaded - newest
Remember kids, Molotov cocktails depicted in movies are designed to injure the thrower.
Oh.
To discourage real life recreations of them?
How? I’m guessing you don’t throw it overhead like in films for very obvious reasons, but what else?
Should the cocktail itself be prepared differently?
Not that I expect to make one anyway. Petrol is expensive enough as is…
Throwing it over head like the flims just showers you and all your compatriots with flaming liquid.
Well yeah I said that in my comment. I meant other than that.
How so? Isn’t it just a rag stuffed into a bottle with gelled gasoline?
If the depiction is that the rag is inserted into the bottle, as opposed to wrapped around/attached to a sealed bottle, then yes, that’s a bad idea, but I’ve seen it depicted ‘correctly’ in some movies.
‘Proper’ molotovs are sort of like very small, very shitty fuel air bombs: you spread a bunch of flammable material around, and then an ignition source lights the spread around fuel.
You do not want the flame to come into contact with the ‘payload’ before the bottle breaks.
Sticking the rag into the bottle and liquid is basically a bomb with a very unreliable fuse timer, could easily blow up in your hands, or leak flaming liquid on you when you angle the thing to throw it.
…
Also, cooking oil is a terrible choice for a molotov, the ignition point temperature is significantly higher than gasoline/petrol, you probably couldn’t even get a lit piece of cloth to ignite contents of the bottle after it breaks… maybe a magnesium, survival style match would work?
What you want is gasoline/petrol, stirred together with a bit of styrofoam to create a poor man’s napalm. Or the highest proof spirits you can find, gotta be higher than 100 proof or 50% alchohol for any realistic chance it’ll work, or lighter fluid or isopropyl alchohol or something.
All of this general information (other than cooking oil ignition temps) can be fairly easily discerned from the wiki page on molotovs.
Sugar is more traditional than styrofoam, but it is fun to see the petrol make the styrofoam just disappear.
Ah, that makes sense as well.
Probably we shouldn’t get into exact recipe proportions though, haha.
Isopropyl and gas are the easiest to obtain, gas is probably less likely to get flagged in “bulk”. Styrofoam pellets and a funnel as well.
“I’m telling you, Molotov cocktails work. Any time I had a problem, and I threw a Molotov cocktail, boom! Right away, I had a different problem” -
Jason Mendoza