My references to beams "as stock" has been based on mast sections as beams, the price of, and availability of round aluminum beams is, and should always be (one would hope) more readily available, but it is difficult, at times, to get the diameter and gauge that is wanted, usually a compromise has to be made for "what is available" and it is very rare that anyone can procure standard round aluminum beams with a "thin" wall thickness that has been hardened to "T6" which is the prefered for beams. The usual is more like a 3mm wall thickness with a hardness of only "T4". There seems to be this uncertainty of future "availability" and an escalating price structure of aluminum which, to me is very puzzleing. It is almost as if the sailing community is only of "nuisance" value to the aluminum manufacturers and they don't really want to know about us? Personally i prefer to have a little more certainty in my life and in particularly I want to know "where my next material supply will come from"