[Cory]

We used 1 CIM 1 FP in 2006. We swore to NEVER use FP motors in a drivetrain ever again. By the end of the season we had fried at least 8-10 of them. We replaced four in a row in the eliminations during Atlanta.

My understanding is that in 2005 when we did the same thing, it worked fine. it's possible that was because there was no pushing. It's also possible that the AM planetaries we used were a lot better, since we replaced the standard needle bearing with a ball bearing.

In 2006 we had numerous issues with the AM planetaries seizing the sun gears to their pins, the ring gear having enough slop in it's pocket to cause seizing, and the output shaft sliding in and out, causing the rear end of the planetary assembly to push against the motor plate. We also had issues with keeping the motor concentric to the rest of the assembly. It's possible these issues were what led to us killing so many FP's, but we aren't willing to take the risk to find out.

We used the AM planetaries with FP's in 2007 to power our elevator, and they were fantastic. Totally trouble free from the start. Andy resolved every issue we had with them, and then some. The 2007 version is totally reliable, and we would use it (and any other AndyMark product) without reservation at any point in the future.