[fox46]

I have a feeling someone just looked at the motor spec sheet and a talon spec sheet and concluded they would not work together.... which is incorrect.

Generally, electrical components fail in some shape or form because of heat. If you draw too much power through them, things get hot and their physical/electrical construction degrades rendering them non-functional. This sometimes results in all the magic smoke leaking out

Every time you pass current through a conductor it generates a small amount of heat. When the component is operating within its specifications, it is capable of dissapating said heat as fast or faster than it is generated. When you exceed the current ratings, the component will continue to function until it becomes overwhelmed by the temperature and burns out. So you can indeed exceed the capacity of the device for short periods of time but if you exceed its ability to keep cool, you'll ultimately shorten its life drastically or burn it out. This also translates to why speed controllers with fans are more hearty than those without.