Problem in the post was the aluminum strands were thin and round thus would get smooched, even with proper touquing. I don't use aluminum wire for branch circuits but have used compact aluminum wire for feeders.
Nice thing about compact aluminum is the strands are not round but shaped in a manner so there is no gap in between the strands plus are much thicker so they stand up better when torque. Generally you do not have to use larger conduit in order to get the same ampacity as its copper equal.
With Aluminum back ground, it's a hard sell. I'll use it for residential feeders and that's about it.
