One company suggests you could use their product to keep the neighbors on edge while the competition promises “endless possibilities of entertainment.”
Gosh, they’re both right. I need a flamethrower.
Two companies with very different designs are working to meet the needs of a public clamoring to clear brush or light their bonfires from a distance with devices that look like like the tool soldiers once used to clear jungles and machine gun nests during times of war.
The XM42 by Ion Productions, “the world’s first commercially available handheld flamethrower,” is hoping to launch an InddieGoGo campaign but awaits approval from the crowd-funding website’s trust and safety team.
Starting at $699, the XM42 is a compact “grab-and-go” flamethrower that requires no heavy tanks or backpacks. It looks like a machine gun and has the menacing decal that once adorned the nose of Tiger fighter planes.
“Start your bonfire from across the yard or kill the weeds between your cracks in style,” offers the XM42 website for two possible uses.
The X15 Flamethrower by X Matter looks more like what you would expect. It has tanks that can be worn on your back and shoots a stream of fire out about 50 feet, though you can increase the range with X Matter’s napalm mix. The X Matter flamethrower starts at about $1,600.
“I thought about trying to build my own but after weighing the safety risks, I’m glad I decided to go with a professionally built and tested flamethrower,” wrote one satisfied customer, David M, on the X Matter website. We’re glad, too, David M.
“This napalm mix is insane,” wrote Damon S. “I added a couple drops of it to the diesel and the viscosity jumps up and turns into a flammable syrup.”
The flamethrower as a military weapon was banned by the Geneva Convention in 1980, but it is not regulated as a firearm in the United States, though California and Maryland have laws banning the use of one without a proper permit. There are agricultural and forest management applications and it is not uncommon to see small drip torches used for controlled burns, like for clearing brush and redirecting forest fires.
This is not the first fire-shooting product featured on Cult of Mac. In December, we wrote about the Pyro Shooter, a device worn on the wrist that produces balls of fire. There are also websites and YouTube videos dedicated to fearless crafters who might want to build their own.
Both flamethrower websites urge buyers to consult local regulations. Your fire department might like to know when you plan on building a bonfire and will no doubt have suggestions – like prohibiting family from gathering around the woodpile before it is lit – for its safe use.
The XM42 provides a list of “practical” uses, like clearing snow and ice, insect control (fire ants? Hah!), burning brush and eliminating weeds, nondescript “pyrotechnic event displays” and “a fun device to enjoy with friends.” XM42’s developers also urge people to operate their product outdoors and away from things that could accidentally catch fire.
X Matter does not provide a detailed list of uses. “It’s a flamethrower. We shouldn’t have to say much more than that!” the website says. “Flamethrowers are a must have for clearing brush, the zombie apocalypse, or just to keep the neighbors on edge.”
https://youtu.be/v2iD9iNfh0U
