The intent of this email is to begin a serious techncal discussion.  I do not know where it will lead.
  1.  My question is: is there something wrong with the Cubesat platform?  Its failure rate is pretty high.  If you include the university-built Cubesats which IARU has coordinated over the years, perhaps as many as half have failed upon reaching orbit.  AMSAT-NA has orbited quite a few successful communications satellites, all of which are or were larger than Cubesats.  I have been a member of AMSAT since  1969 and am not questioning its ability. Rather, my question concerns the Cubesat platform.
The AMSAT-BB reflector includes people with successful as well as unsuccessful 
Cubesats. Can we learn anything from their experience?

73 Ray W2RS