Quote: my opinion is, years in use is the biggest killer. metal fatigue of the housing flexing over and over. the older it is, the less force it takes to meet the fail line. the axle housing flexes putting extreme pressure on the caps in turn binding carrier eventually the gears cant handle the extra pressure. then new stronger gears are put in,same thing happens to axles so their replaced so now the carrier cant handle the strain, then comes a spool.. then the caps fail. so a new pumpkin is used.. the housing ignored most all the time...
IMO i think flex actually helps the life span, when flexing stops it brakes. think of the slipping clutches in the pro classes.
