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In our youth my brothers and I were always trying things. Flaming arrows did not escape our attention. We discovered that those supposed weapons are little more than Hollywood crap. Scenario one: when a flaming arrow is released for flight, they are immediately snuffed out. Scenario two: when a difficult to snuff flaming agent is used on the arrow, the arrows drop to the ground after flying a very short distance due to the amazing air-drag of the flames. Scenario three: make an arrow warhead that ignites only upon impact. (This works, but is not "Hollywood Pretty")

We tried pretty much everything. The arrows were wrapped with cotton rope or cloth and then soaked in motor oil, vegetable oil, olive oil, turpentine, gasoline, Coleman fuel, lighter fluid, and even acetone. We had fifty-five pound draw weight re-curve bows. Always the same results.

Shooting an arrow that delivered an ember into grass or straw works if you wait patiently for the fire. It is not pretty or in any way cool.

Oh, don't go into caves with the good old Hollywood railroad flare. The sulfur dioxide fumes really spoil the adventure.

Hollywood crap

But our society learns everything from the movies.

Remember the silent movie about the kkk and burning crosses?

Now think about it. If you are going to shoot a film at night, what do you need? a light source. How do you fit that in with the move? You burn some crosses.

Everyone went to the movie and learned the kkk ALWAYS burned crosses so that is what they did in real live. Didn’t happen until the movies.

As a kid I found that cherry bombs shot out of a Wrist Rocket slingshot were the next best thing to an 81mm mortar.

Thank God I never had a quick burning fuse.

The dumb things boys do.