Sorry if my word make a confusion, superscott.

I use to call the "play" as the backlash.

well, I work in automotive industry, we use to call the clearance between gear contact as the "backlash"

I guess all of you know, functioning mechanical systems, such as gears, need to have a certain “clearance” (“gap”, “play”) between the components transmitting motion under load. Clearance is necessary to avoid interference, wear, and excessive heat generation, ensure proper lubrication, compensate for manufacturing tolerances etc.

as far as I know, if the clearance is too big, the power will be lost for eleminating the clearance it self, also reducing the gears life.

I hope that's help.

Thanks.