If you have a straightener and like to diddle yes, you can keep them fairly consistent, but the problem is that the repeated bending and re-bending of them flexing and then being re-straightened on the straightener weakens the material and spine much quicker than carbon as carbon has much greater memory. You' ve been into the engineering field, so must know the flex tolerances of aluminum vs that of biased wrapped carbon fibers. Cyclic stress rates for aluminum are far below carbon.
All very true, Pinwheel. But at least aluminum gives me the option to diddle. With carbon and it' s much greater memory, you get what you get and there' s nothing you can do about it. Still might need to try using a heat gun on the things and see if my straightener will do any good with them. That goes a couple of steps beyond diddling though.
I can buy a couple of dozen aluminum arrows each year for about the same money I' d have to spend on comparable carbons, but with fewer headaches, better yield, and better consistency. Not to mention the fact that if I go from Texas to Maine, or Maine to Oregon, Oregon to Alaska, I can buy the same aluminum arrows in all those places that I can buy right here at home and they' ll be identical. If I shoot something like Easton Epics and go anywhere else and need arrows, I might not find anything but Nitro. Or GoldTip. Or Carbon Express... Too many different manufacturers, too many regional favorites, or even favorites from one shop to the next. Not at all identical, and probably will shoot and tune very differently from one brand to the next.