Old school! One of the old school Laserium fixes for the backlash in our Escap gearhead motors was to put a felt washer between the motor and the effect hub to keep the effect from "skipping". Having the pickoffs enter and exit the beam path is a nice technique too. Avoids scatter getting through "inactive" effects and allows for interesting cross fades.
"There are painters who transform the sun into a yellow spot, but there are others who, with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into the sun." Pablo Picasso