How long does a stylus last?

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Stuart,
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I would highly recommend that you clean every record with Disc Doctor, RRL or Audio Intelligent cleaning fluids with either Disc Doctor or Last brushes and a good record cleaning machine like the VPI or Loricraft(this one is great but quite expensive).
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Every record even brand new LP's have the mold release compound on them left from the manufacturing process.
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I would not think of playing a record regardless of how good it looks (even if brand new) on the surface without giving it a thorough cleaning. Playing clean records will definitely extend your stylus life.
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Rgds,
Larry
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Agree with El. 1000 hours average.

Eldartford: those photos of worn stylii were when the stylus was set at 5 grams+, and records were NEVER cleaned.
Now, with 1 gram to 3 gram stylus pressures, and cleaned records... (us LAST stylus preservative too...)
I can see 5,000 hours...

Hi Stuart. I got 8 years [approximately 3000 hours] out of my original 1981 koetsu rosewood before I sent it to Japan for a rebuild.I then got another 12 years out of the rebuilt one before I sent it out again[approximately 3000 hours] . Keeping your records clean is imperative to long life as well as stylus pressure. Mine was used in an et-2 tone arm at 1.5 grams tracking force for most of it's playback life. My records are cleaned with a vpi 16.5.

Eldaford. Interesting analogy on stylus wear. I usually rejig my Et-2 tonearm at 6 month intervals to clean the air bearing and then would inspect the stylus under a microscope at the same time. After approximately 200 hours of use there was no sign of wear on the diamond. Even at 3000 hours the wear on the diamond was negligeable. The koetsu cartridges will require a rebuild mainly due to stylus fatigue long before the diamond is worn. Stuart... the rebuilds by Koetsu[Japan] are typically a 3 to 4 month time frame. I rebuilt my rosewood [for the second time] about 1 1/2 years ago.After reading all the praise and accolades heaped on the Shelter 501 at that time, I purchased a new Shelter 501 to tide me over while my koetsu was in Japan.I could appreciate it's stellar performance but, as good as the shelter is... it aint a koetsu!It's hard to describe the magic of Koetsu. Anxiety got the better of me. I missed my beloved koetsu so much I sold the Shelter, broke down and bought another rosewood. Didn't lose much on the deal as the 501's were selling like hotcakes at the time. If you can find a used one from someone you can trust... go for it... you will never regret it.Every music loving vinyl junkie should experience a koetsu at least once in their lifetime.