4 ms·

I was surprised except for California (and maybe another state) owning a flamethrower is legal. https://throwflame.com/ https://throwflame.com/ $1800 "Get You

by rdtsc 9y ago

I was surprised except for California (and maybe another state) owning a flamethrower is legal. https://throwflame.com/ https://throwflame.com/ $1800 "Get Yours Today". Complete, of course, with a Napalm mix package https://throwflame.com/products/napalm-mix-fuel-gelling-agents/ https://throwflame.com/products/napalm-mix-fuel-gelling-agen... "It thickens normal fuel to create a long lasting burn that goes great with your X15 Flamethrower" These are basically in the same category as WWI/WWII military flamethrowers. It seems these should be very illegal but I guess they are not. That just boggles my mind.

freedomben 9y ago
> It seems these should be very illegal Why should they be illegal?
- rdtsc 9y ago
  Well New York state and apparently others ban nunchucks. Can't have two sticks connected by a string. In light of that (pun intended) it is surprising that a device which shoots flames 50 feet out at 4000psi hasn't made the list.
tim333 9y ago
There are a lot sold for weed control in gardening https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lawn-Weed-Burner-Blaster-Blow-Torch-Flamethrower-Moss-Killer-Butane-Gas-Garden/282441976908?hash=item41c2da8c4c:g:KqIAAOSwIWVY-mxk https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lawn-Weed-Burner-Blaster-Blow-Tor... Guess it's hard to draw the line between that and the nastier ones.
jschwartzi 9y ago
Why should they be illegal? Anyone can whack one together with $100 in parts anyway. I wouldn't choose to own one and if I saw someone carrying one I would give then a wide berth but I don't believe everything that makes me nervous should be outlawed. It's basically a big ditch burner.
- FLUX-YOU 9y ago
  >It's basically a big ditch burner. Surely you don't need a 50 foot range to start a fire.
  - saulrh 9y ago
    I dunno, have you ever seen someone decide to burn a really dry christmas tree? If I'm lighting a big bonfire I'd definitely prefer to have as much distance as possible between me and the fire.
    - majewsky 9y ago
      Why would you burn it? At least where I live, old christmas trees are handled by the regular trash collection.
      - candiodari 9y ago
        Plus there are some people who believe that to light a christmas tree after christmas, that this can in fact be accomplished using a flame slightly shorter than 50 feet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeiSDF83mXo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeiSDF83mXo
- coryfklein 9y ago
  My experience watching Hollywood films tells me flamethrowers are a more effective tool at killing/maiming large groups of people than traditional firearms, so I expected them to be outlawed for the same reason you can't buy hand grenades or rocket launchers at Walmart. Of course, now that I know they are legal I have decent reason to believe that Hollywood's propensity for exaggeration didn't end with their use of flame throwers.
dragonwriter 9y ago
> I was surprised except for California (and maybe another state) owning a flamethrower is legal. And a torch like this thing mislabeled as a “flamethrower” is even less regulated.
Jerry2 9y ago
>these should be very illegal but I guess they are not. That just boggles my mind. I love the smell of FREEDOM in the morning.
Old_Thrashbarg 9y ago
I'm guessing you think these should be illegal because they could kill people. I think they should be illegal only if there are statistics showing that a non-negligible percentage of them are used to kill people and there are reasons to believe that a state can lower their homicide rate by banning them. Assault rifles pass the above test, but not sure flamethrowers do.
- Jerry2 9y ago
  >Assault rifles pass the above test So do cars.
  - GijsjanB 9y ago
    Accident != homicide
IntronExon 9y ago
They’re heavy, unwieldy, and a cop with a sidearm will beat you on range. They’re great for clearing out bunkers and pillboxes, but not really an effective weapon in general circumstances. As for the thickener, adding dish soap or styrofoam to gasoline and diesel mix will do the job; rocket science this ain’t.
LyndsySimon 9y ago
There are better, cheaper, self-contained flamethrowers out there if you're in the market. They come up from time to time on gun forums. They're far from popular, for what it's worth. They're finicky and while they're fun to play with for a bit... but really, what are you going to do with a flamethrower?
mikebike 9y ago
There's a bill (H.R. 4009) named "Flamethrowers? Really? Act" to regulate flamethrowers the same way machine guns are regulated: https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4009/text https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4009...

by rdtsc 9y ago

freedomben 9y ago

> It seems these should be very illegal Why should they be illegal?

rdtsc 9y ago
Well New York state and apparently others ban nunchucks. Can't have two sticks connected by a string. In light of that (pun intended) it is surprising that a device which shoots flames 50 feet out at 4000psi hasn't made the list.

tim333 9y ago

There are a lot sold for weed control in gardening https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lawn-Weed-Burner-Blaster-Blow-Torch-Flamethrower-Moss-Killer-Butane-Gas-Garden/282441976908?hash=item41c2da8c4c:g:KqIAAOSwIWVY-mxk https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lawn-Weed-Burner-Blaster-Blow-Tor... Guess it's hard to draw the line between that and the nastier ones.

jschwartzi 9y ago

Why should they be illegal? Anyone can whack one together with $100 in parts anyway. I wouldn't choose to own one and if I saw someone carrying one I would give then a wide berth but I don't believe everything that makes me nervous should be outlawed. It's basically a big ditch burner.

FLUX-YOU 9y ago
>It's basically a big ditch burner. Surely you don't need a 50 foot range to start a fire.
- saulrh 9y ago
  I dunno, have you ever seen someone decide to burn a really dry christmas tree? If I'm lighting a big bonfire I'd definitely prefer to have as much distance as possible between me and the fire.
  - majewsky 9y ago
    Why would you burn it? At least where I live, old christmas trees are handled by the regular trash collection.
    - candiodari 9y ago
      Plus there are some people who believe that to light a christmas tree after christmas, that this can in fact be accomplished using a flame slightly shorter than 50 feet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeiSDF83mXo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeiSDF83mXo
coryfklein 9y ago
My experience watching Hollywood films tells me flamethrowers are a more effective tool at killing/maiming large groups of people than traditional firearms, so I expected them to be outlawed for the same reason you can't buy hand grenades or rocket launchers at Walmart. Of course, now that I know they are legal I have decent reason to believe that Hollywood's propensity for exaggeration didn't end with their use of flame throwers.

dragonwriter 9y ago

> I was surprised except for California (and maybe another state) owning a flamethrower is legal. And a torch like this thing mislabeled as a “flamethrower” is even less regulated.

Jerry2 9y ago

>these should be very illegal but I guess they are not. That just boggles my mind. I love the smell of FREEDOM in the morning.

Old_Thrashbarg 9y ago

I'm guessing you think these should be illegal because they could kill people. I think they should be illegal only if there are statistics showing that a non-negligible percentage of them are used to kill people and there are reasons to believe that a state can lower their homicide rate by banning them. Assault rifles pass the above test, but not sure flamethrowers do.

Jerry2 9y ago
>Assault rifles pass the above test So do cars.
- GijsjanB 9y ago
  Accident != homicide

IntronExon 9y ago

They’re heavy, unwieldy, and a cop with a sidearm will beat you on range. They’re great for clearing out bunkers and pillboxes, but not really an effective weapon in general circumstances. As for the thickener, adding dish soap or styrofoam to gasoline and diesel mix will do the job; rocket science this ain’t.

LyndsySimon 9y ago

There are better, cheaper, self-contained flamethrowers out there if you're in the market. They come up from time to time on gun forums. They're far from popular, for what it's worth. They're finicky and while they're fun to play with for a bit... but really, what are you going to do with a flamethrower?

mikebike 9y ago

There's a bill (H.R. 4009) named "Flamethrowers? Really? Act" to regulate flamethrowers the same way machine guns are regulated: https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4009/text https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4009...