Maximum Cartridge Tracking Force for long LP Life

Record wear is vastly overstated. 

@mambacfa 

Record wear is vastly overstated

Suggest you have a look at some of the photographs in Neil Antin's book PACVR-3rd-Edition, page 13 for example.

Not just the record wears.  Stylii wear as well, some shapes many times faster than others.  A worn stylus playing at too low or too high a tracking force causes damage which might not matter to you, but is audible to others.

@richardbrand   Thanks tons for the very informative treatise on caring for records. This confirms the value of using appropriate styli and tracking force and cleaning records using proper methods. I believe that this is indisputable. I was simply commenting on the idea held by some that records have a very short life, irrespective of the benefits of proper care and usage. (Truth be told, back in the day we used to play a new record once to make a cassette recording and then play that.) 

Fact is that an LP will last forever if not exposed to excessive heat or cold or humidity and not subjected to abuse by an audiophile. Whereas a CD will not, no matter how well you care for it. I'm less sure of this, but I don't think digital copies of anything will last forever.

@lewm "...Fact is that an LP will last forever if not exposed to excessive heat or cold or humidity and not subjected to abuse by an audiophile...."

That has been my experience. I have had albums for nearly sixty years an they sound great. How many times can you play them? Dozens... sure... hundreds? That is hard to imagine. Also, my turntables have gotten better and the needle drops deeper into the grove (I think).

So, unless it is at a radio station and getting played thousands of times, I would think wear is a thing.