dx- the old school front end does not break that much. i normally break an arm every 30-50 packs i run in the car, if that. you really have to have a very signifigant shunt to break one. and you will reduce the chances of breaking an arm greatly with the merchant arm braces.
did u get the o-ring's for the links? they help out alot and will make them smooth like butter not like chunky peanut butter (which they are in stock form). also use some high quality (i use the mother's paste that comes in a small jar) to polish the balls that the plastic ends pivot on.
david- AE and yok both have those for their chassis (but they are rounded, and also they are secured with much larger screws, so the chance of the impact hurting anything is much less). also they are to keep the chassis from splitting more than anything. however if you properly prep the chassis you should not have any problems.
speaking of v-force, anyone got any updates from bruce? (david, ian)... I have talked to Eric D and Scott and they dont know either