[JohnFogarty]

That rule change is my favorite revision to the FTC manual ever!
On the year that I have become the manual it shall be the best game ever!
(I'm the guy on the front cover/title page with my other (then GForce 3864) team members)

It brings a interesting twist to how the game might be played and how certain teams who know more about machining will immediately dominate the top. The whole reason I though FTC was successful in the way it was/is, is that there isn't a huge $$$ factor that can boost your team through the roof. Anyone who can build something good with the few parts you have access to, can win. This can also be a very good thing, with the proper educational resources teams can actually create more stable/functioning machines that will compete better in the competitions as well, making for a better lineup of teams at world. It's all based on what you do with the resources you are given access to, and now that FIRST has opened Pandora's box who knows what will come out of it.

On the point of Custom fabricated parts. The year Global Force won world (2010) over 80% of that robot was custom fabricated, not by machine but by hand.