Build a Better Molotov Cocktail
Better Living Through Chemistry - Part One
Like it or not, a balaclava-clad protestor chucking a lit Molotov cocktail is what comes to mind for most people when you say “Anarchist” (despite the fact that all most of us want to do is fuck off to our homesteads with our chickens and peppers). As of this writing, the Molotov is back in the news as civilians join regular troops to make a stand in Ukraine against the Russian invaders. In their arsenals is the classic improvised anti-tank weapon. So, where did the Molotov cocktail come from? More importantly, how do we build a bitchin’ one if we ever need a little hardware-store help to send mechanized goons off our doorstep?
Author’s Note: What consenting adults do in their free time is none of my business. But governments around the world don’t take kindly to you making “destructive devices”. Also, handling a lit concoction of flammable liquid is inherently dangerous. Use this knowledge for informational and entertainment purposes only, unless you are willing to accept the risk of a ten-year sentence in the Gulag or a trip to the burn unit. (Editors Note: If you ignore this advice and do set yourself aflame, we’ve talked about dealing with burn injuries here!)
History
The Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol-bomb or firebomb, has been around since at least the Spanish Civil War (1936 - 1939). There, both sides used what one British member of the International Brigades described as a “Two-pound glass jam jar [filled] with petrol,” (now hold that thought when we come back to selecting containers). However, it was in the Winter War (1939 - 1940) between the Soviets and Finns where the petrol-bomb earned its infamy and nom de guerre.
In that early, weird part of World War II between 1939 and 1940, the Soviet Union invaded Finland (when the Soviets were kinda sorta still on Germany’s side). Their primary tank at the time was the T-26 (which was also the same tank used by both sides in the Spanish Civil War). The T-26 tank was powered by an air-cooled engine. By design, this required a somewhat open engine compartment for airflow. Strapped for proper anti-tank weapons, the Finns soon figured out the T-26 was inherently vulnerable to flaming liquid making its way into the engine bay and were ‘mixing something up’ to do just that.
While a guerrilla war was raging in the snow, however, Soviet bombers were dropping incendiary cluster bombs on Finnish cities. Because misinformation in war is nothing new, the Soviet foreign minister, Vyacheslav Molotov, swore to the world the bombs falling from Soviet planes weren’t bombs at all. They were humanitarian drops with food. The Finns, naturally, were not amused at the Soviet’s attempts at foreign aid. They dubbed the cluster bombs “Molotov’s breadbaskets” and decided they needed “A DRINK TO GO WITH THE FOOD!” And so… the name “Molotov cocktail” was born.
Before the end of the Winter War, the Molotov cocktail was no longer an improvised device. The state distillery, Alko, was cranking them out on their production line. The fuel mix was a blend of gasoline, alcohol, and pine tar. It was all ignited by one or two storm matches instead of the lit rag.
So, now that we have the Molotov’s life story, what about building a better one? Well, a good Molotov will have the following components:
Fuel mix with the desired properties
Thickening agent for that ‘Napalm sticks to kids’ longevity
A cap or lid (because you donant to be the burn patient)
An ignition source
Fuel
Just about any flammable liquid will do. If it burns and pours, it can go in the bottle. Diesel, gas, high-proof alcohol, kerosene, solvents, you name it. An ideal Molotov would use a blend of fuels to combine their properties. Wildland firefighters use a tool called a “drip torch” to back burn and start fires. Drip torch fuel is a mix (every department has their recipe usually 2 to 1 or 3:1 , but let’s just say 1:1) of gas and diesel. Gasoline is easy to ignite and carries the flame to the ground. Diesel has more staying power and makes messing with gasoline a tad safer. The Finns used a blend of gasoline, alcohol, and pine tar, which also doubled as thickening agent. Speaking of which…
Thickening agents
It’s time to use those “household chemicals” in the proper proportions. Yes. We’re making Napalm. More volatile fuels, like gasoline or alcohol, don’t work well by themselves. They will billow off in a fireball (looks cool, but we’re in the business for dough, not show), run off, or burn too quickly. That’s why you thicken or jellify the fuel.
The Finns used pine tar. The United States started using dissolved rubber or latex. Not that we were serving up Molotovs – the Chemical Warfare Service needed to thicken up the fuel in their flamethrowers. A jellied fuel will shoot a LOT further and hold together better than free-flowing fuel. (Also, so we could war-crime some cities with incendiary bombs, but…. that’s how war goes). When the latex/natural rubber plantations were captured by the Japanese, though, we started using… soap.
Yes, Napalm is a soap (a.k.a. the salt of fatty acids – remember that if we ever talk about peaceful chemistry like soap-making) made from aluminum, Naptha, and Palm oil. Na-Palm. Any soap is a good thickening agent – from shaving ivory bar flakes to powdered dish detergent. After World War II, America figured out you could also jelly gasoline with polystyrene. The new formula was more difficult to ignite, but burn longer and MUCH hotter. This is Napalm-B (formula B) and you now know polystyrene as Styrofoam. That’s why you’re seeing CNN clips of Ukrainians grating Styrofoam like cheese. Every thickening agent will have its quirks:
Pine Tar – for a “clone correct” Finnish version. Find at agricultural stores. Use 10% to start.
Motor Oil – go ahead and waste your used oil. It’s not the best thickening agent but is a fuel itself and will make lots of heavy black smoke. Mix heavy (25%+)
Rubber – cut into strips or cubes and dissolve. Will smoke for bonus points and stick.
Roofing or Road Tar you can find this at the hardware store or a maintenance yard. Extra icky and sticky but stay away from “emulsions.” Emulsions look mud-brown and contain water.
Grated Styrofoam – everyone’s favorite. Add until it doesn’t want to dissolve any more. Waste a bottle and TEST ANY MIX before use with your “ignition source”. Too much Styrofoam can make the fuel difficult to ignite, but since we’re not using an extra solvent (Benzene) this shouldn’t be a problem. But still – test!
Lye, Dishsoap, Shaved Bar Soap, etc. just don’t use with self-igniting cocktails. The sulfuric acid in self-igniting mixes starts back-reacting with the lye and making an even-more gooey mess.
Components: Bottling, Capping, and Ignition
Beer and wine bottles are the classic tool of the trade, but manufacturers design wine bottles so they’re break-resistant these days. For wine/champagne bottles in particular, score or cut partway through the glass with a file or grinding cutoff wheel (gently!)
Remember those jam jars used in the Spanish Civil War? A mason jar is MUCH easier to break, and comes with a perfect metal cap ‘n ring. (I would know, I broke many of my mom’s favorite canning jars. Oops.)
Speaking of capping, don’t just stuff rag in the bottle opening. It WILL spill and WILL dump burning fuel down your back as you throw it. Once again, stay out of the burn unit. Cap the bottle, and TIE the rag around neck. This leads right into ignition…
Yes, a tied rag is the classic method of igniting a Molotov. If it doesn’t burn, dampen, don’t dip the rag in your fuel mix. Remember, dripping, burning fuel is bad. The Finns and Germans both started taping storm matches to the sides of the bottle in World War II. You can find those at your camping store. You could also tape a road flare (“fusee”) to bottle and light that… if you like overkill.
Advanced: Self-Igniting Molotovs
Waiting for the exact moment to light your Molotov, or having someone light it for you, has got to be both a pain and a tad awkward. If your opportunity to throw the Molotov passes, you’re basically sitting there with the “fuse” lit on an improvised incendiary device. That’s why self-igniting Molotovs were invented. All versions will rely on binary or pyrophoric chemicals that will react with each other (or the air) and ignite on contact. The most common version uses sulfuric acid and potassium chlorate.
Potassium Chlorate – you can find this at a chemical supply store. You can make it from matchheads (labor intensive) or household bleach and potassium chloride. We’ll go into this in later chapters, because potassium chlorate is a reliable and cheap component for homemade primers.
Sulfuric Acid – you can boil down car battery acid or use acidic drain cleaner
Strips of cloth are dipped in a potassium chlorate solution and dried. The cloths are taped to the Molotov bottle. Then a small bottle of sulfuric acid (think a test tube) is taped to the side as well or mixed with the fuel. When the bottles break, the acid and potassium chlorate react to self-ignite.
Where to Aim
A few days into the war, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense published infographics telling folks exactly where to chuck their Molotovs at various Russian vehicle designs.
Windshields - The thickening agents are going to make sure the flaming mess isn’t coming off the glass easy. Undisciplined troops may outright abandon a perfectly good vehicle if they see nothing but a wall of flame in front of them.
Tires – Catch the tire on fire and the vehicle is now “fully involved.” Something like an MRAP might have a fire-suppression system, but it won’t respond well to follow-up shots.
Exhaust Ports and Engine Grating – Most modern tanks and AFVs should be resistant to chemical warfare, and that means watertight. You might get lucky if they are using older vehicles or if it’s a “soft” target
Any Open Hatches or Exposed Occupants (Or is it “Occupiers”?) -
This is the real money shot. Convince that gunner up in the cupola of an MRAP or a Bearcat to take the day off. The crew should’ve stayed buttoned up. The humblest Molotov can still be useful against everything up to a main battle tank this way – even if it’s to convince the crew they need to stay buttoned up (and blind).
Editors Note:
In a time where information can go from ‘forbidden knowledge’ punishable by years in prison if you use it, to something that can be dispensed by the state via all forms of communication, we at The Anarch disregard the social norms of what can be considered ‘safe’ for civilian hands and minds. Instead, we recognize knowledge cannot and should not be controlled by any authority and as recent events in Ukraine have shown, having the ability to defend yourself via effective, lethal and accessible means is an unfortunately necessary component of the human experience.
The citizens of Ukraine went from living in a state that generally only awarded the ability to conceal carry to the elite such as politicians, military officers and prominent businessmen, and had no clear position on legal gun ownership, to the state handing out full-auto capable weapons en-masse to civilians so they may ward off a Russian invasion, all with but a few weeks of SUT practice and not much else. That alone is enough to proudly stand by proliferating this information, it’s already out there, it may as well be directed towards those who understand the dangers of authoritarianism and governments so if such threats come to your door, you already have the knowledge to defend your right to peace, autonomy and liberty.
Stay safe people! - B.R
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