While it’s fun to buy new things, there is joy in buying something have having it last for a decade or more.
So what items (bike, training, recovery, nutrition, etc) have you gotten they you’ll never have to replace?
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I’ll kick it off with a Vitamix blender. I probably went through half a dozen $20-30 department store blenders before I decided to buy once, cry once. I’ve had it for 9 years and probably made over 2000 post workout protein shakes/smoothies among other things
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1up bike racks. I’ve had mine for 6 years and its still in absolutely mint condition. I had a Saris tray rack prior and it failed driving while I was driving across BC; luckily I was going 10 km/h at a gas station and not 120 km/h like the previous 5 hours.
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Most of my tools+pump. Bottle cages
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I have a Calfee that I bought in 2004. I was off the bike for 9 yrs, and upon resuming, I had it painted and put on a new Ultegra group set. Original wheels, Bar and stem changed after professional fit for this old body. I used it for a cross country trip 2 summers ago, and it spends winters on the trainer here in the inland Pacific Northwest. I seriously doubt I’ll need another bike.
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Ti frame? Dunno. Just bought it. We’ll see if it lasts my lifetime.
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My Lynskey Helix frame. Still turns heads after 10 years.
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I’m still using my Ortlieb Sportspacker Pannier as a ruck sack (I bought a rucksack converter for it in 2006). Annoyingly I just one of the pair as I think my dad threw one out by mistake when he was helping me with a move.
Vitamix Blender
Technivorm Mocamaster (need that caffeine)
Any bag made by Filson
Do items with a lifetime warranty count? (ala LL Bean?)
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I thought that but after 5 years and 41,000miles looking for the answer to my dramatic loss of form in 2018 I replaced my ‘forever’ bike with another Ti at the end of that year. Its done 20.5k miles now.
Edit: I’m glad it never lasted my lifetime but it was touch and go for a while as I found out in 2019.
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Hope parts.
Since the pro2 you can rebuild hub for anything although I’ve got a qr something from mid 90s still going strong, and my early 2000s mono6 ti and mono M4 could be rebuilt tomorrow if I wanted them.
Never the lightest parts but long lived and indestructible.
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One of the old KK road machines. I could probably upgrade to a smart trainer but I’m not really a huge fan of erg mode anyway, so I don’t really see the need because I love that thing. Bought it third(?) hand and save for replacing a tension bolt (that I’m pretty sure I stripped anyway) it’s pretty much bombproof.
Also have an old bryton computer that I hate but I think it’s going outlast me at this point, so I’m stuck with it.
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Reserve carbon rims / wheels 
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+1 for the Technivorm. Last week I noticed the plastic cover over one of the leds went missing. No big deal; it still functions perfectly well, but it got me wondering how old it was. So I checked - been in service since March 2009. Not bad.
Sadly, LL Bean no longer stands behind their products as they once did. No more lifetime warranty.
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Here are a few pieces of gear that refuse to die:
- I still have and actively use a Pearl Izumi softshell jacked from about 15 years ago. There is a hole on my left elbow that was entirely my fault: when I go my previous mountain bike 10 years ago (!), I did not realize at first that the handlebars were significantly wider than on the bike before … It looks well-worn and has gotten loose, but is still very warm and cozy. I have worn this on 3.5 continents (depending on whether you count South and North America separately), in -20 degrees and +25 degrees. Love it. I always think about getting a new one, but many softshell jackets these days do not come with a front pocket for cell phones.
- I have a small Lezyne pump that I bought 10 years ago that still works like on the day I bought it in 2012. I’m only thinking of getting a second one so that I don’t have to take one out of my MTB saddle bag whenever I go on road rides.
- The Shimano XT brakes on my last mountain bike. They just worked. Yes, I needed new rotors at the end, but those are wear items. I had no complaints and I think I still like them better than the new XT M8100 brakes I bought for my new mountain bike. (The old XT had a “detent” just before the brakes would bite where the spring tension would decrease. I could leave the brake lever in this local force minimum in sections where I might need to brake. The new XT brakes don’t have that anymore. Plus, I don’t like the feel of the texture on the new XT brake lever blades, too rough and unpleasant.) The only reason I no longer have them is because I sold the bike after almost 10 years. The new owner complimented me on the brakes, he was new to mountain biking and apparently never experienced good disc brakes.
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I got 10 years out of my first unit. Bought a replacement rather than send it off for repair because I couldn’t stand the 3-weeks without it. (Then I sold my (broken) 10 year old unit on eBay for $80.)
If you’re missing parts, Technivorm USA is pretty good with offering replacements.
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Realistically, probably just tools for me. And only the best of those.
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Pedals
SPD pedals. They last forever!
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King Ti and SS cages. Mine are over 10 years old and while I keep buying new road/gravel/MTB bikes, I keep the same cages and they still look and work as good as the first time I used them. Have never lost a bottle that entire time. Love them.
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