It's no rumour - Petersen Engineering has made a business out of replacing Meade's moulded plastic gears with machined steel ones. Even the high-end Meade RCX series and some Meade 14" SCT's use plastic!
http://www.petersonengineering.com/sky/bucks_gears.htm
http://www.petersonengineering.com/sky/buck's_14_gears.htm
"If your 7", 8", 10" or 12" Meade LX200GPS was manufactured before August 2005 the odds are 95 in 100 that it has molded plastic transfer gears in the drive train. Due to the failures and inaccuracies associated with the plastic transfer gears, Meade converted to precision brass transfer gears some time in August 2005."