Originally Posted by
tandempower
I would like things that last longer, but I just don't trust the more expensive items because I don't believe that people are really keeping them long enough and using them ruggedly enough to really test them. Also, I tend to trust the testimonials of expensive merchandise less because I figure there's that much more money in lying about how good the product is and suppressing criticism of it.
Some "people" who are experienced cyclists have kept hardware & kit in service for long enough to "really test them".
Case in point being the Town Bike in post #29 in this thread and it's British seat-bag that have been in continuous service for >40 years. Although neither is in current production I highly recommend them along with a British cycling cape which still is. Well proven high quality kit worth every $ spent amortized over decades of use.
Oddly enough instead of relying on whatever "testimonials of expensive merchandise" you find suspect there is an entire BF sub-forum with unbiased real world user discussions of every possible piece of potentially useful cycling stuff, some positive some not at all. It's the Commuter sub-forum. If I was looking to replace any/all of my town bike equipment I'd read and participate in the relevant threads there with high certainty of reliable information from the Commuting community.
-Bandera