My first trem equipped guitar was an Ibanez RG450DX with a Lo-TRS II trem. I purchased it new in the end of 1995. This was before I knew to lubricate the pivot points, and being as the trem was a new toy to me, I was a little vigorous with it. In just over a year (14-16 months-ish), I had worn out the tremolo. The edges were no longer sharp, they were kinda rounded, and there was really no zero point anymore. Not to mention it would creak when raised or lowered.
So in early 1997, I replaced it with a Lo-Pro. The trem saw continued abuse after that, although there was a break in how often I played it between 1999 and 2004 (Switched to seven string
). I learned about the lubrication process around 1998 I believe. I now use the guitar mostly for my lessons. But the trem edges show very little wear.
Same for my Universe. I got it in 1999, and I'm really not very gentle with the trem still
. But even so, nearly 8 years later, it shows very little wear on the edges as well. Both tremolos have some finish wear from my hand, but no pitting.
For sake of comparison, I have a good friend in Newark who is an 80's shred style player who has a couple of Jems, prestiges, etc. His main axe for a few years was a 2000 Jem 7VWH. He never knew to lubricate edges either, and was apparently EXTREMELY abusive in his whammy technique. In 2005, his edges were SHOT. I was given the task of replacing them (as I was the only one he found up to the challenge), and afterwards, the guitar was as good as new. Now that he knows to lubricate them, he does all his guitars, and they will probably last a good long time now.
Here is a crappy pic of the edges old and new:
So I'd say the Lo-Pro is a very durable tremolo. I'd also say the the Lo-TRS II is not. I'm sure most other trems are going to vary as somewhere in between, with a true official Floyd Rose probably right about the same as a Lo-Pro. I'd say a lot of the longevity would come down to maintenance. An un-maintained and abused Lo-Pro gave about 5 years, an un-maintained and abused Lo-TRS II gave about a year.