~ 4000 hours of use in 7 years...i used to fly a bunch. I think what did it was that the finish was wearing off and oils,sweat,etc from my hands over that period on the exposed metal started some form of intergranular corrosion that weakened the part over time. BTW my other warthog grip SN in the 50k vs the 2500 for the first did not and does not show any of the same effects and is now older than the original one was when it failed.