There is a huge difference between shooting a "low power hunting bow" from 2000 made from composites and nylon and a hunting bow made from wood and string from the 1000s. I have to imagine your bow is a compound hunting bow, which definitely can shoot through the tough reinforced steel of a lawn mower and the steel tailgate. Where the hell do you get a lawnmower made of solid steel anyways, that thing must chug gasoline like an alcoholic.
Excuse me if I don't believe a couple of "real life" archers over experimentation and science: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3997HZuWjk
Not really wanting to get into a RL discussion as this is a game and can't be real life. Regardless, please don't tell me what I can and can't do with a RL bow. The friends I referenced shoot competitively (with one having a national ranking in compound and one in recurve...the latter makes his own bows.) By the way composites were made long before 2000...horn, sinew, and wood were evident in bow composition long before we were born. Modern composite materials may add a little, but mostly they allow for quicker manufacturing and increased longevity.
The bow I use the most is what is called a Half-Breed (try to research) and I get 225 to 250 fps out of it. Yes, it is a hunting bow, designed specifically to penetrate humanely at short distances. The average speed is 180-225 fps on most modern bows. They can be ran up to 300 fps for those powerful guys...too much more creates an unstable arrow flight/release. Regardless 300 fps is not unheard of.
I've never shot through a lawn mower, nor could I. A lawn trailer that you haul behind the mower with sheet metal sides I have shot through. Now consider my arrows were 100 grain and not 300-600 gr as used in war, thus the energy is really decreased and the momentum will drain faster, but my arc is more manageable. Lighter doesn't necessarily mean faster or harder hitting (lighter could be much more unstable.)
Compound bows are used because they are easy mode. They require less draw strength, they efficiently convert energy, they allow a straighter shot (especially at shorter distances), etc. In other words they make it easier and significantly decrease the learning curve..
As for the video....BS. Any real scientist would have invested in ballistic jelly or at least put a pillow behind the armor to represent the human torso...not a piece of granite he found in the yard. The arrow was short and probably the wrong weight. What draw did he use on the bow? How long did he allow the bow the cure. His experiment is compromised in so many ways. I don't disagree that later armors did advance to the stage that they could resist the arrow (and only a few of the richest could afford it initially), but by then firearms were starting to surface. How come a bullet proof vest can stop a .45 caliber round but not a .22.
THIS IS A REAL STUDY (with much more effort put in it than the internet propaganda you referenced.)
http://www.atarn.org/islamic/Performance/Performance_of_Turkish_bows.htmDon't believe everything you hear or see on the internet, make your own bow and test it
Shooting over 1000 yards...OOOHHH MMMMYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!
ONE KEY PART "The ambient humidity can influence the results, as the natural materials absorb moisture. It was difficult to stabilize humidity during the tests, the range was between 35% and 55% relative humidity. The flight bows, in actual use, would be “conditioned” with heat to dry the bows before competitions. 6 Such treatment makes the materials stiffer per mass to boost arrow velocity. This was not done here, so the performance could still be improved. Experiments with conditioning will be carried out in the future."................meaning he didn't test in optimun conditions.
P.S. also please don't talk to me as if I am a kid.
