Has anyone gone back to aluminum?

[SuperK]

Hey Stone Knife...yeah, I gotta confess...I've gone back to aluminum also!   :rolleyes:    I still shoot and hunt with wood (for now) but for 3D shoots I like aluminum. Its easy to  work with,(you can cut them to length with a tube cutter, if you need to refletch them you can scrape the old feathers and glue off with a pocket knife, etc) the weight is just right and you can get 1916 and 2016 shafts at just about the same cost as good wood shafts and cheaper than GoldTip blems from Big Jim.  Back when I was coming up in archery (in the 70's), that's about all we had!  It did a good job back then and it will do a good job now.  Enjoy 'em!

[elkken]

After you bend a few aluminums you'll want to go back to the much more durable carbons, just so much less to deal with once you get the carbon to meet your needs. I shot aluminum for years and still do from time to time but I would never "go back" to aluminum.  For your set up I would go with 2016's ..... good luck !

[ron w]

2016 should fill the bill, Although not as tough I like Alum. arrows. I have some that I have shot for 20 years!

[Igor]

I agree with the 2016(s) - 1916 are too weak for that length and point weight IMHO/experience....


><>>
Glenn

[Wannabe1]

Nope, once I went to carbons, I really like the way they work and fly for me. Once in a while I like to shoot woodies but, carbons mostly.  

[Shawn Leonard]

Agree with Elken, carbons for the type of shooting I do last at least 6 to 7 times longer than aluminum. Way cheaper in the long run. Looks like the consensus is the 2016. Shawn

[Stone Knife]

Yep I have some 1916's and they are weak. I'm going to do a trade just to check out some 2016's   But I'm not tossing out my carbons just yet  

[eric-thor]

I SHOOT 2216 AND I LOVE THEM VERY CONSISTANT EASY TO STREIGHTEN IF I BEND THEM ONLY IF I MISSTHEY DONT BEND TO EASY BUT IT HAPPENS SAME AS WOODIES I LOVE WOODIES BEST  FOR LOOKS AND NESTALGA

[SERGIO VENNERI]

Hell! I never came back cuz i never left! LOL.  

[Austin Brown]

I have never had trouble bending aluminum.  They are hard to beat all around in my opinion, although I do shoot a lot of wood too.

[Brazos]

Go buy some 1916 or 2016 Easton Blues or Jazz for $30/doz shafts and never look back.  You can buy 2-3 dozen at that price compared to most carbon per dozen, maybe more.

[AR RidgeRunner]

I like carbons because I always carry a judo and like to stump shoot. I like the weight and price just can't keep aluminums straight.

[Shawn Leonard]

Brazos, even at 30 dollars a dozen, carbons can be had for around $50 a dozen and will last 10 times as long. How are they cheaper. I actually have shot aluminums recently from an ILF target set-up at blue and whites. That is the only way they are practical for me. Shawn

[Brazos]

I guess I hear you Shawn but I never seem to bend/ ruin aluminums.  I shoot all the time and it has not been a problem.  Even at $50/doz I could nearly buy 2 doz aluminum.  2 dozen aluminums would last me for years.

[dink]

i switched just i think for this year dont have the time to mess with my favorite wood i shoot 1916 and 2016 both work with the right point up front just ordered some 2020 hope i can get enough up front to make them work there tuff.i shoot 48# at 28 out of a predator around 200 up front

                            Matt

[Red Beastmaster]

I switched to aluminum several years ago after receiving yet another dozen cedars that were stuck together with sap. After nearly 20 years of shooting wood I didn't know where to start. I followed the Easton chart, picked 1916 for my 45-47# bows and have enjoyed perfect flight ever since. I didn't know I could shoot so good!

I use Legacys for hunting, Blues for everything else. Getting aluminums to fly well is such a simple thing. Follow the chart and you will not go wrong.

I know it is not always the case but most of what I hear about carbon is a lot of tinkering and frustration trying to get them flying right at hunting weight. I left the tinkering behind in '87 when I retired my compound.

As for alum being sensitive to abuse, I agree somewhat. I just don't do anything stupid like purposely shooting hard stumps, my oak dowel stumpers are made for that. Since I'm shooting so much better it is a rare occasion where I miss a target and destroy an arrow. Just shoot with a little sense and a dozen aluminums will last for years.

[Archie]

I shoot aluminums and for me, there is virtually no downside.  They sure do bend if you hit the wrong thing, but the answer is to make sure you DON'T hit the wrong thing!  I have ruined a lot more shafts by shooting them with other arrows, than I have by bending them.  

I currently have about 15 dozen shafts of 3-4 different sizes, all of which I have bought (unused) pretty inexpensively at garage sales, clearance sales, and online.  I fletch all my own arrows, and find them very easy to work with.  My completed arrows - not including points - cost around $3-$4 on average.  I shoot a lot, but I haven't bent many shafts in the past 3-4 years... probably fewer than a dozen.  But then again...

1. I shoot a foam target, with a relatively soft backdrop, or
2.  I stump shoot at clumps of grass, dirt, or muddy banks -- never wood or stumps unless they are severely rotted, or
3.  I shoot at tennis balls or milk jugs or an old soccer ball in my backyard.

3-D shoots are where I bend the most shafts, because I can't control what is behind the target, in case of a miss.

[hvyhitter]

I never drank the carbon kool-aid either.........2014 x7s are about perfect for your setup..............

[threeunder]

I started shooting carbons when I got in to trad in 2006.
I shot aluminum for many years prior with wheels.
Last year I bought 6 Easton 2018 Legacies....they just don't get shot much.  Carbon, to me, is the easiest to work with and, easily, the most durable.

[Stone Knife]

I just bought some 2016's off the classifieds, I'm stoked just to try some.