What would be the purpose of fire arrows? Most likely to burn down houses of wood, but what else? Quite pointless to use them in a war, if the arrow hit it would most likely kill anyway.
@123TauruZ321 Fire arrows weren't used against people due to the reasons you correctly point out, i.e. an arrow would kill a person regardless of whether it was lit or not. They were most often used in naval warfare to set fire to enemy ship's sails. They were also used in siege warfare, against castles and walled towns, to set fire to thatch and wooden structures.
I read bernard cornwell and i like history and know a bit of that, does anybody can explain me why english warbows were more powerfull than crossbows? I have a crossbow and a recurve bow in my house, the bow have much less power, but its slow. nevertheless i can shot seven times with the crsbow in the time of the bow shot ten times. i think that a pavise crosbowmen can beat an archer easy, not like battles of agincourt that archer beated twice theirs numbers of crosbowmens
@GuetoAnonimo crossbows are more poweful then english longbows. the crossbows of medieval europe were generally difficult to load rapidly because of there high level of power so crossbow men have a much slower rate of fire than a skilled archer. crossbowmen would have to use loading aids which slowed then down, the fastest loading aid is generally the belt and claw but it can only be used on lower powered crossbows
@ryenstein1 Yes I have heard that. Their reasons for doing so are not clear. Maybe it made it easier to withdraw the arrow for re-use. Maybe it enabled them to choose which type of head they wanted to use at the last minute. I don't know.
@ryenstein1 Are you seriously typing like that? Man, it's pretty important to maintain your writing skills buddy lol... I bet it's because you write the same way that you speak? Anyways when typing on a computer, you'll notice those red lines under words that are misspelled... that whole comment you wrote must of been underlined in red lol.
@elgostine The mix does burn quickly, though not as quickly as black powder. Unfortunately I have no knowledge of black powder so I can't say how similar they are in their composition.
The Mary Rose book talks of arrows the size of broom handles. The test arrows they fired were able to ignite wet bales of hay. Especially if the flame is coming out in a directed stream.
My Viking club's experiments showed that the fire arrow needs a shield at the front to divert the airstream that otherwise puts out the flame. even a bit of aluminium scavenged from a non period beverage container worked. They could just as easily be ceramic or otherwise. The shield need only be 3 or so cm wide. It makes the arrow blunt but means the flamable fabric remains lit for the duration.
according to the Mary Rose weapons of Warre book the fire arrows were coated in pitch, not melted flammable material. they had small wooden pegs inserted in the pitch at the top of the arrow that were removed before loosing the arrow. a fuse of sorts - like match cord may have been inserted into the plug holes. when the mix inside ignited it tended to fire forward and out the hole in the pitch.
living in today's society, i found that the portrayal of fire arrows in films was mainly used by the defending side. Looking at this video, i find these arrows to be used better in offensive roles when perhaps raiding villages burning a closed off fortress from the outside. Which role where these arrows actually used in?
@1337Leva I believe they were mainly used for ship to ship warfare, to set light to the sails. They may also have been used for siege warfare against fortified towns and castles, perhaps to set fire to thatched roofs although most towns banned the use of thatch within the walls due to the risk of fire, so buildings would probably have had tiles or shingles instead.
the round arrow with the molten mix was the best in my opion. great video, u guys r the first people ive found on youtube that use bows. I love old school weapons :3
@Xenerock8733 Yes we noticed that the final arrow with the powder inside and the molten mix on the outside burned very fiercely, however it does need to be well alight before being shot otherwise it has a tendency to go out in mid air. I think the trick is to get the inner powder burning first.
Excellent, they seem very effective. You could get a thatched roof burning nicely, I reckon! Do you know which century this recipe is from? How did that pot smell?
@firebelliedtoad 15th century I believe. I didn't get to smell the fumes from the pot as I was stood far enough away while filming, but Ed told me the fumes can be very powerful if you make the mistake of breathing them in. The recipe used in the pan is mostly sulphur, and as the sulphur melts so it absorbs the charcoal and saltpetre. I would guess the smell would be like rotten eggs as a result.
I bet some people was hit by them too in those days, I assume that type of arrow was used to to start fires of wooden forts too nice video brings the past back
Great video. Didn't even know they used sulphur on firearrows. I always thought it was just linen and perhaps some oil. Is it possible to shoot these arrows at so big of an velocity that they go out? Have you tried shooting at anything more worthy than grass? Like a mock up house?
@PsykoOps Yes it is possible for the heads to go out, but so far we have seen that only if the head is not well alight before being shot. We have thought about shooting them at a mocked up section of thatch, so perhaps we could make that into another video. :)
Wonderful! I made fire arrows once with an old sock soaked in diesel. It worked well, so long as you get it up to adequate temperature to burn properly. That is, it worked well untill about the fourth shot when the sock disintergrated as I loosed and the melting nylon showered down and stuck on my face.
What would be the purpose of fire arrows? Most likely to burn down houses of wood, but what else? Quite pointless to use them in a war, if the arrow hit it would most likely kill anyway.
123TauruZ321 3 days ago
@123TauruZ321 Fire arrows weren't used against people due to the reasons you correctly point out, i.e. an arrow would kill a person regardless of whether it was lit or not. They were most often used in naval warfare to set fire to enemy ship's sails. They were also used in siege warfare, against castles and walled towns, to set fire to thatch and wooden structures.
bigbowbrum 3 days ago
i would just like to remind you. only YOU can prevent forest fires.
theULTIMATEanswer42 1 week ago
Yeah, because when I don't care about distance, I only reach for my 100lb bow. No sense in grabbing the 150 pounder. I want something LIGHT.
battletoads22 2 weeks ago
cool stuff man
pedobear123 1 month ago
do you guys know what century it is?
lilperch64 1 month ago
@lilperch64 We know what century we would rather it was! :)
bigbowbrum 1 month ago 11
HOW LONG IS THAT ARROW?
dasgilde 1 month ago
@dasgilde I'm not exactly sure but I would guess at 34" so Ed doesn't burn his hand at full draw.
bigbowbrum 2 weeks ago
@bigbowbrum aaa thanks
dasgilde 2 weeks ago
@dasgilde haha I was going to ask same 8) Also the caged arrow looks way more rugged!
Greenjah81 5 days ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@Greenjah8 and the light bow 100 pound WHAT?
dasgilde 3 days ago
I read bernard cornwell and i like history and know a bit of that, does anybody can explain me why english warbows were more powerfull than crossbows? I have a crossbow and a recurve bow in my house, the bow have much less power, but its slow. nevertheless i can shot seven times with the crsbow in the time of the bow shot ten times. i think that a pavise crosbowmen can beat an archer easy, not like battles of agincourt that archer beated twice theirs numbers of crosbowmens
GuetoAnonimo 1 month ago
@GuetoAnonimo crossbows are more poweful then english longbows. the crossbows of medieval europe were generally difficult to load rapidly because of there high level of power so crossbow men have a much slower rate of fire than a skilled archer. crossbowmen would have to use loading aids which slowed then down, the fastest loading aid is generally the belt and claw but it can only be used on lower powered crossbows
Saxon723 1 month ago
doesnt it smell
oyas11 1 month ago
@oyas11 Ed, who appears in the video, tells me it does smell really bad, but I never caught a smell of the fumes while filming him.
bigbowbrum 1 month ago
did u no the english used 2 put wax in the arrowhead so wher u pulled out da arrow the lead head would stay in and ued die
ryenstein1 1 month ago
@ryenstein1 Yes I have heard that. Their reasons for doing so are not clear. Maybe it made it easier to withdraw the arrow for re-use. Maybe it enabled them to choose which type of head they wanted to use at the last minute. I don't know.
bigbowbrum 1 month ago
@ryenstein1 Are you seriously typing like that? Man, it's pretty important to maintain your writing skills buddy lol... I bet it's because you write the same way that you speak? Anyways when typing on a computer, you'll notice those red lines under words that are misspelled... that whole comment you wrote must of been underlined in red lol.
Jeedawg 1 month ago
@Jeedawg i was thinking the same thing haha
wariscomeing 1 month ago
I'm Swiss :D anyway great video subbed :)
KyIernuva135Clone 1 month ago
so let me get this straight, you guys are essentially shooting black powder incendieries?
although is the ratio of chemicals correct for black powder?
elgostine 1 month ago
@elgostine The mix does burn quickly, though not as quickly as black powder. Unfortunately I have no knowledge of black powder so I can't say how similar they are in their composition.
bigbowbrum 1 month ago
The Mary Rose book talks of arrows the size of broom handles. The test arrows they fired were able to ignite wet bales of hay. Especially if the flame is coming out in a directed stream.
ecpeiv 2 months ago
My Viking club's experiments showed that the fire arrow needs a shield at the front to divert the airstream that otherwise puts out the flame. even a bit of aluminium scavenged from a non period beverage container worked. They could just as easily be ceramic or otherwise. The shield need only be 3 or so cm wide. It makes the arrow blunt but means the flamable fabric remains lit for the duration.
ecpeiv 2 months ago
according to the Mary Rose weapons of Warre book the fire arrows were coated in pitch, not melted flammable material. they had small wooden pegs inserted in the pitch at the top of the arrow that were removed before loosing the arrow. a fuse of sorts - like match cord may have been inserted into the plug holes. when the mix inside ignited it tended to fire forward and out the hole in the pitch.
ecpeiv 2 months ago
Love the disclaimer at the end of the video.
CannibalCarp 2 months ago
living in today's society, i found that the portrayal of fire arrows in films was mainly used by the defending side. Looking at this video, i find these arrows to be used better in offensive roles when perhaps raiding villages burning a closed off fortress from the outside. Which role where these arrows actually used in?
1337Leva 3 months ago
@1337Leva I believe they were mainly used for ship to ship warfare, to set light to the sails. They may also have been used for siege warfare against fortified towns and castles, perhaps to set fire to thatched roofs although most towns banned the use of thatch within the walls due to the risk of fire, so buildings would probably have had tiles or shingles instead.
bigbowbrum 2 months ago
As allways you guys rock. great to see how it should be done. keep up the awesome work.
robbieatvic 3 months ago
Excellent video!
NICKarrowman 3 months ago
I always enjoy your vodeos just like this one.
thanks for the upload.
50procentkorting 3 months ago
the round arrow with the molten mix was the best in my opion. great video, u guys r the first people ive found on youtube that use bows. I love old school weapons :3
Xenerock8733 3 months ago
@Xenerock8733 Yes we noticed that the final arrow with the powder inside and the molten mix on the outside burned very fiercely, however it does need to be well alight before being shot otherwise it has a tendency to go out in mid air. I think the trick is to get the inner powder burning first.
bigbowbrum 3 months ago
Excellent video mate
BlodOgTorden 3 months ago
Beautiful video. Fascinating and well done, thank you!
turtlespameater 3 months ago
I think the head of the arrow was made out of bronze but i dont know.
aperson38 3 months ago
Awesome! a proper flaming arrow video on youtube! There's only one bloke I know who'd upload such a thing haha. Great & interesting!
Olwe1992 3 months ago
That's a fantastic addition to the Youtube late-Medieval archery community. Thanks for another informative video.
cbrusharmy 3 months ago
Excellent, they seem very effective. You could get a thatched roof burning nicely, I reckon! Do you know which century this recipe is from? How did that pot smell?
firebelliedtoad 3 months ago
@firebelliedtoad 15th century I believe. I didn't get to smell the fumes from the pot as I was stood far enough away while filming, but Ed told me the fumes can be very powerful if you make the mistake of breathing them in. The recipe used in the pan is mostly sulphur, and as the sulphur melts so it absorbs the charcoal and saltpetre. I would guess the smell would be like rotten eggs as a result.
bigbowbrum 3 months ago
Love the video Nick!
That was amazingly well done, the camera work was exellent! Always wondered how the heads would fly! very cool.
Agincourtwarbow 3 months ago
@Agincourtwarbow Thanks Jake. Glad you liked it mate. We found it very interesting to make too.
bigbowbrum 3 months ago
Very Cool , Thanks for sharing ....
CombatArchery 3 months ago
@CombatArchery Hello Bo. Glad you liked it my friend. Hope you are well.
bigbowbrum 3 months ago
VERY well done!!
AllergicHobbit 3 months ago
I bet some people was hit by them too in those days, I assume that type of arrow was used to to start fires of wooden forts too nice video brings the past back
leonardo1480 3 months ago
great thing :D
really intresting and a well edited vid.
keep it up !
GermanSwordMaster 3 months ago
Educational
cariboubill 3 months ago
Awesome :)
vinsk8er4life 3 months ago
really good video!
oclvcarbon123 3 months ago
AMAZING MAN!!! I REALLY LOVE THIS VIDEO!!!
JackNRolla 3 months ago
Great video. Didn't even know they used sulphur on firearrows. I always thought it was just linen and perhaps some oil. Is it possible to shoot these arrows at so big of an velocity that they go out? Have you tried shooting at anything more worthy than grass? Like a mock up house?
PsykoOps 3 months ago
@PsykoOps Yes it is possible for the heads to go out, but so far we have seen that only if the head is not well alight before being shot. We have thought about shooting them at a mocked up section of thatch, so perhaps we could make that into another video. :)
bigbowbrum 3 months ago 11
@bigbowbrum I and I'd bet others would absolutely love to see how effective at setting fire onto something they really are :)
PsykoOps 3 months ago
Wonderful! I made fire arrows once with an old sock soaked in diesel. It worked well, so long as you get it up to adequate temperature to burn properly. That is, it worked well untill about the fourth shot when the sock disintergrated as I loosed and the melting nylon showered down and stuck on my face.
good times!
HazelArchery 3 months ago
@HazelArchery Lovely anecdote Hamish! Though I am sure it didn't feel lovely at the time, ha ha. Thanks for posting. Good times indeed.
bigbowbrum 3 months ago
Great video, highly interesting.
IIproductionsII 3 months ago