Why is Elon Musk selling flamethrowers? Everything you need to know about Boring Company's $500 gadget that's selling out fast

Eleanor Rose1 February 2018

Flamethrowers are rapidly selling out after Elon Musk's new company put a limited stock of 20,000 on sale.

The South African tech magnate posted a picture of the newly developed $500 (£355) gadget to Twitter with the caption: "Say hello to my little friend."

He went on: "Obviously, a flamethrower is a super terrible idea. Definitely don’t buy one. Unless you like fun."

Musk himself was shown in a promotional video rushing towards the camera with a demonstration model.

He boasted that 7,000 of what is branded as "the world's safest flamethrower" have already been sold.

Here's everything you need to know about the innovation.

Why has Elon Musk developed a flamethrower?

Mr Musk appeared to suggest the flamethrowers are crucial in case of zombie-linked emergencies.

"When the zombie apocalypse happens, you’ll be glad you bought a flamethrower. Works against hordes of the undead or your money back!" he wrote.

However the flamethrower probably has less to do with zombies than it does to do with Musk's firm The Boring Company, an infrastructure and tunnelling enterprise.

In December, the entrepreneur vowed on Twitter that if he could sell 50,000 of a $20 hat made to raise funds for The Boring Company, he would start selling flamethrowers.

He appears now to be making good on what people believed was a whimsical promise.

Founded in December 2016, the Boring Company's project is to create a network of tunnels underneath major US hubs to relieve traffic congestion and enable rapid intercity travel.

Musk himself later admitted: "The rumor that I’m secretly creating a zombie apocalypse to generate demand for flamethrowers is completely false."

What can I do with a Boring Company flamethrower?

Musk said on Twitter that the flamethrower is "great for roasting nuts", although it can be safely assumed the flames produced by the flamethrower will set light to a wide array of items.

The Boring Company is also selling a fire extinguisher alongside the gizmo priced at $30.

The advert reads: "Buy an overpriced Boring Company fire extinguisher! You can definitely buy one for less elsewhere, but this one comes with a cool sticker and the button is conveniently riiight above."

The flames shown in promotional videos stretch to two or three feet in length. The United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) allows any flamethrower with a flame shorter than 10 feet, according to Musk.

The price does not include tax or shipping and the product will be sent out to customers in spring.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT