[Rob Colatutto]

My high school team didn't support the CIM output shaft in 2003. Never seemed to make a difference since its less than 1.5 inches. We also had an output sprocket outside of the gearbox not supported on one side (on a 1/2 inch steel keyed shaft). This I would not suggest as much if your going to have a long length of chain before the first wheel. If you are still going to do it, I would recommend putting a collar on the outside of the sprocket as well as using its setscrew to hold it in place on the keyed shaft. We just relied on the set screw last year and towards the middle of the championship we needed to tighten the setscrew after each match. Never had any problems with the shaft bending after the gearbox ended, but if at all possible to have the output sprocket inside the gearbox plates I would suggest doing so.