Stone Age Weapons VS Ballistics Gel
Video Overview & Insights
How powerful were Stone Age weapons? Could they really bring down large animals—or even pierce human flesh? In this experiment, we test replicas of prehistoric weapons, including Clovis points, atlatl darts, and hand-thrown spears, against ballistics gel to see just how effective they were.
Using slow-motion footage and forensic analysis, we break down the impact, penetration, and stopping power of these ancient tools. How do they compare to modern weapons? Could they really take down a mammoth? Watch as we put these Stone Age weapons to the test!
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I wish the Joules was tracked.
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#Archaeology #Prehistory #StoneAge #PrimitiveWeapons #ExperimentalArchaeology
17:50 - the secret to a through-and-through with a carbon comp arrow is Vaseline on the head and shaft. You don’t have to grease up the fletching, but carbon fiber arrow shaft and modern broad-head definitely slide better with a little lube… lol
More User Perspectives
Kinda crazy that the wooden spear is the most dangerous of them all
@Tirenparo-t5rNext winter I’m going to make a hunt with my smooth bore musket
@gavin733Nice to know that my Paleo-indian ancestors weapons were deadlier than we expect. But also for the Atlatl, they were usually made with longer breakable foreshafts that would come out, and you used rawhide which is good but doesn't cause too much penetration due to the thickness. So actual sinew is recomended.
@ARKsurvivor7337I was told that if you char the wooden spear tip then whittle the point that it lays the carbon smooth and very frictionless. I have tried it on just regular sticks when making a fire and it does put the carbon smooth and shiny. Never got the chance to make a whole spear and try it out though.
@leekestner1554The thing i love about these tools is you can pretty much just make them wherever without that much specialized gear like you need for metalwork
@yimy9549Lubrication and penetration, what a wonderful form of word articulation.😌
🪨 <---Check out this emoji, BTW. Doesn't that look exactly like a hand axe??😯
I love historical content
@aaronharr3295Great content young man!
@alexandersantala2895I could watch hour after hour of Paleo weapons testing. There's so much to be interested in. Your channel has given me days of learning and entertainment.
@Aardvvulfyou have to consider that these animals not only had that layer of thick skin and bone under 10:29 like you show here with the ballistic gel.. but they also had muscle and a thick layer of hair and filth. these are hardly accurate tests
@gigaOMEGAlong pointy stick wins again
@weirdsoupcartoonsyeahbro you're only standing like twice the spear's length away from the target at least try to actually throw it some distance 😭
@daklr2501I discovered bro’s channel 2 days ago at the hospital. Definitely one of the most interesting ballistic gel youtubers. For sure the only one I know of that creates his own drip and weapons to use all while making it historically accurate.
@TheNordCourier2011He’ll be the consultant for Far Cry Primal 2.
@bryantcapley4803"OHH, BOOM!" -Average Neanderthal Hunter, ~250,000 BC
@rickandmortyfan649What a fun video!
@UrkleShmerckleYour channels zings my autistic mind :) thank you
@Johnnybananass-_That is fine coat friend!
@Lukas90000So on a different note: is there a template/ pattern for your elk hide hoodie? It looks really comfy and i want make one out of heavy wool for campfire evenings.
@fjord9145He is stealing content from north2.0
@antekgawrychowski1733The camera quality really makes you wonder if he IS in the stone age
@idkidkidkidkidkidkidk09Did you spend much time learning to throw with the atlatl? They aren’t easy to use. It takes practice to get good.
@darrenstettner5381Your coat is cool homey. Very cool.
@darrenstettner5381The “TL” in Nahuatl isn’t pronounced like a “ch” sound. It’s the click of your tongue when saying “tl”. It comes from the sides of your tongue. Put your tongue further back on the roof of your mouth and curve it back a little when pronouncing “L” sounds, and you’ll see.
@Zacmaster78Cops will be worried
@OttoAtterBerryThat spear wound was brutal
@ToxsikProphet2.0You have a good point: Ballistic gelatine doesn't really work well with low velocity projectiles, as its "stickiness" slows the projectiles much faster than tissue...
@mortenvinje1817I've always wondered how they tracked their prey. Anyone who's hunted knows that a deer can run for MILES if the hunter doesn't strike in just the right spot, which is difficult enough with modern equipment. Sometimes a deer can survive a shot and escape entirely!
I imagine ancient hunters pursuing their prey for hours, maybe even days, AFTER they struck, or sending dogs to chase the wounded prey on their behalf. Otherwise, most hunts would've ended on failure even after a successful strike.
The wooden lance goes in further but there's also a good chance that the animal wouldn't bleed out. So if the heart or lungs were missed then it could live days. So the kill would've gone to cave lions or hyenas. Sort of like using a practice tip to hunt with a bow. It would pass right through with little damage. Those stone points would gush blood even if vital organs were missed causing the animal to bleed to death quickly.
@nealramsey4439Hot pitch over sinew holds good.
@NoSurrender2026WOW!
@HogbellylifeThe stone tip's main advantage over wood was lethality rather than more penetration. Tipped points cut through making a bigger wound. The penetration difference is almost nonexistent, at least based off ballistics gel tests.
@koldbloodnbonesEveryone watch this twice to my boi can pay off the elk coat
@Kashmerega2.0-pv2efMaybe you should also do a video just like this but with native weapons or medieval weapons :D great video btw this was awesome!
@TimmySanduSkull dude is definitely having the worst of days! 😢
@zacsayer1818I think you're grossly underestimating the effectiveness of fur and fat. Especially on a mammoth! Just for anecdotal reference, I once shot a raccoon at about 10 feet with a .22 and it didn't puncture the fat. It literally looked up from my garbage can with a look that said "You're gonna have to do better than that..." and went about eating my garbage. Imagine mammoth scale fat and all that thick matted fur. Taking one down with primitive weapons must have been a massive undertaking. Same with the crazy ancients that decided to get into a rickety rowboat and go whale hunting!!! I'd pay damn good money to see that! From a distance, of course. I don't do giant ships on the ocean, let alone a "whaling canoe"... 🤔😳🤣
@timmyianni230916:44, it went into existing wound channel
@druje88722025 720p? bro wtf, get some equipment
@danielkbastos10You were throwing the projectiles from way too close to the animal. Most times, they were throwing spears at animals 20 meters away. Atlatls even further, unless they were hunting big game where distance didn't change much.
@man-man-man-manIt’s incredible what our ancestors could do with such primitive weapons.
Also we’re the only animals on earth who can throw with such strength and precision. You showed us how much damage a person of today can deal with these weapons, now imagine what our ancestors who did this on a very regular basis to moving targets while they themselves were also likely moving. Imagine how much more damage they could have inflicted
This oogas my booga
@Epicbaby1211try some bone points next! :D
@blazeelvirafirehoof7844This is just what all men want
@RilX2312why is the video only 720p
@xijinping880Atlatl vs Balistic Gel on Donnies Paleo Channel
https://youtu.be/gztuLj1fp5c?si=eOjLq0nIyQ5Wdqzk
Spears were not used for throwing.
Javelin and Atatl are throwing weapons.
Spears are thrusting weapons.