Some of my gear has failed me miserably, whereas other I can't stop raving about. Here is what I would recommend.
I love my Schwalbe tyres. My bicycle came with WTB tyres. After 800km in Australia with multiple punctures, my back tyre split in the middle of nowhere. I replaced the WTB with Schwalbe and since then, I have only had one puncture. I warmly recommend Schwalbe! As for WTB... No, not really keen on this again:
Ground Effect is a New Zealand cycling apparel company. I bought my Mojos cycle shorts many years ago from them, and my bum would like to thank them for making excellent padded shorts. They even still look good after 15,000km of use. However, I quickly realised that my thighs were getting severely sunburned, so I added a pair of O'Neal shorts over the top. After 10,000 tough, sweaty, muddy kilometres in the baking sun, my shorts and my merino wool longsleeve top looks terrible, but they are still doing an excellent job. I'm a great fan of merino wool because it doesn't smell (too bad) or feel cold and clammy when wet.
I can hardly believe how good my Ortlieb panier bags are. They live a very rough life. The small plastic hooks keep them in place on very bumpy dirt roads, and at the same time enable me to quickly attach or remove them from my bike. I've used them on previous trips and for commuting to work, and they still keep all my gear safe and dry.
On the flipside, Blackburn needs to make design improvements to their frame bag. While cycling in Southeast Asia the glue dissolved between the bag and strap band. I was talking to Mr Van at the Saigon Bike Shop and instead of trying to sell me a brand new frame bag, he organised for it to be beautifully stitched together for a fraction of the price, and I have had no problems with it since. Mr Van, you're a cycle tourer's hero! As for Blackburn... come on, you can do better and this is how:
I could have spent a lot of money on a good tent, but instead I bought the cheaper NatureHike Cloud UP 2. It has actually not been bad at all. However, it has not been tested in extreme conditions, as I choose to be inside during those nights. If you are looking for a tent, and you know, you are not going to be using it in a monsoon downpour or a blizzard, it's not a bad option to consider.
My opinions are of course my own and no, unfortunately I don't receive any commission or rebates from Schwalbe, Ground Effect etc. Also, my experiences are with one off products, and my use is quite extreme, so I hope other people riding with WTB tyres are happy.