The latest edition of Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools has a review of a $60 propane-powered torch called the Red Dragon. The reviewer says it's great for killing weeds.
You can just wave it across a weed and it discolors almost instantly (usually enough to kill it). However, that's not much fun. A few more seconds of flame will incinerate the weed completely. Yeah, the extra heat makes a huge difference. When lit, the torch produces a 2 foot long, 5 inch wide column of blue flame that sounds like a (quiet) jet engine. That said, the flame doesn't spread much, so it's fairly easy to control. Every pyro needs one.
Reader comment: Jakon says: "I've used a torch like that to burn the hair off a pig in Romania. Just before Christmas, every family that has been fattening up a pig over the past year slaughters it on "the day of the pig". Of course, this is done in the countryside, not in the larger cities. I lived in a town of 6,000, and the slaughter was not uncommon. After you kill the pig, the hair has to be singed off. Some people will build a fire with straw, and throw the pig in for a few minutes, others have a torch pre! tty similar to the red dragon. It's hooked up to a propane tank which is usually sitting in a bucket of warm water…to keep the propane flowing. After all the hair is burned off, you kinda shave off the singed hair and skin, and scrub it down with some course salt. The smell is…well…incredible. You have to pay particular attention to the feet, so you can pull the pigs nails off…the torch does a good job, and it is a good sanitation tool. Also, the heat from the torch cooks the skin a bit and produces a treat that kids love over there. Similar to a undercooked pork rind.
"Here is a link to a Romanian pig slaughter using the straw method. Pretty graphic." Link
