I used thread ratings with vB 3.8 to develop a widget (vBAdvanced module) displaying the "best threads" on the forum. I used a customized thread search that sorted threads based upon the average rating and the number of votes. Most threads in the list had just one or two votes. Several really good threads had 5 or more votes. I was able to influence where threads appeared in the list because the vote totals were low (and my vote would strongly influence the average). This was a really good feature for one of my forum sites and I'd love to have it available again as I migrate that site over to XF.