I’ve heard some pretty bad things about the new non oem ones, would you suggest going with the new reproduction or going with oem
Absolutely. I went with both gears oem. Maybe there's an after market somewhere out there as good (doubt it) but how would you know.
When I was diagnosing my ruff running engine I read about the outer ring of the cam gear slipping on that phenolic insert thus putting off the valve timing. I convinced myself that was my problem so I ordered the new gears from Toyota and started the tear down. It turned out it did not spin and was in time. Since I bought the gears I went ahead and put them in. Good thing though because my cam was worn and needed attention.