Steve S come on have you ever tryed to take a carbon in your hands and brake it. When I did shoot aluminums I always liked the older game getters because they didn't brake as fast in game and would bend farther before they broke not as fast as the xx75s or the xx78s because of the alloy.Your freind must be shooting a light poundage recurve are somthing to get a arrow to stay in it and to brake it. With a 70 lbs compound are back when I shot a 60 to 65 lb pound recurves aluminums almost alway brake off if they don't pass through, 100 of times I seen them brake on impack are when the deer takes off it brakes off and falls to the ground. Aluminums arrow you don't haft to bent very far and they will brake or they will bent and are no good any more. There is not a thing wrong with hunting with them I have taken alots of big game with both, even with wood arrows. I did at one time get arrow free or almost free arrows from diferant companies, so got to test them a lot in my bows and a shooting machine. I just love the penetration and the durability carbons have over aluminums. On deer trials just shoot through them and stick the arrow in the ground and you can see them go down most of the time and there is all kinds of blood on carbon arrow. I can't remimber having to trial a deer very far for a long time out of 50 or 60 deer any way most of the bowhunters I hunt with get pass throughs and the ones that havn't we didn't have any problems finding blood on the carbons arrows, are had the carbon brake off not to say it couldn't happen just I never seen it in the few time that I have see the carbon arrow that stayed in a deer. With the blood it will be on your vanes are feather it dosn't make a diffrance what they are on carbon are aluminum and the broadhead make the blood trial on the ground not the arrow the only way the arrow helps is by passing through making the exit hole, but I have never had a problem seeing blood on carbons. Shoot what you want I don't care, some poeple just try to hang on to there older ways,things, are unwilling to make a change and do there best to put down others who don't do things there way. Just do your best to made clean kill you owe it to the game you hunt and most of all you owe it to yourself to be the best you can be at your sport. The last 40 years I eat and sleep archery I work hard to be at my best at my sport and will to the day I die.