Moltov Cocktail

Ingredients

  • 1 glass bottle
  • 1 shop rag
  • 1 wick (strip of a shop rag)
  • Duct Tape
  • Fuel
    • 2 Parts Gasoline
    • 1 Part Diesel or Oil

Directions

  1. Fill a glass bottle about 3/4 full of fuel (1/2 Gas & 1/2 Diesel)

  2. Insert wick far enough to dip into the fuel solution

  3. Leave a finger-length of wick protruding from the bottle

  4. Stuff more material inside the mouth of the bottle

  5. Wrap bottle with a rag and tape

Throwing a Molotov Cocktail

  • To use the Molotov Cocktail, approach the target until you reach throwing distance.
  • Quickly turn the bottle over so that fuel settles around the mouth of the bottle and slightly soaks the material.
  • Turn the bottle back upright, light the wick, and throw.
  • Of course, a Molotov Cocktail is not intended to be thrown at a person but rather, thrown at or onto a hard surface sufficient to break the glass bottle.
  • This could be for instance, the hard metal surface of an armored vehicle or solid asphalt around the target.

BreakDown of Ingredients

The fuel

The best flammable fluids include alcohol, kerosene, and gasoline. If drinking alcohol is used, it must be a high-proof variety to ensure there is enough flammable alcohol present in the mixture.

Homemade Molotov Cocktails

Gasoline works well but burns quickly. Other flammable liquids such as diesel fuel, methanol, turpentine, alcohol-based hand sanitizer, and E85 can also be used. Still, gasoline is an easy fuel to find and the solution most commonly used in Molotov Cocktails. If gasoline is used, roofing tar or motor oil can be mixed with the gas to create a thicker solution that burns longer and adheres to the target. Other potential thickening agents include baking soda, tar, strips of tire tubing, blood, XPS foam, egg whites, rubber cement, and even dish soap. Some additives have the added advantage of creating thick, black smoke (e.g. motor oil).

Another option is to create a solution similar to that used in napalm. To do this, melt Styrofoam in acetone to create a thick, pudding-like solution. Then mix this with equal parts of gasoline. The resulting mixture burns well and also adheres to the target.

The ideal solution (perfected by the Finns) would consist of gasoline, kerosene, tar, and potassium chlorate. Of course, it’s likely difficult to find all these components in a war zone and gasoline works almost as well.

The Wick

The wick is used to light the fuel without harming the thrower. A rag or other natural fabric material (avoid synthetic materials if possible) can be cut into strips and attached to the bottle using tape.