CCC isn't the sole producer of spirol pins, in fact, I doubt they make their own. I buy Cub Cadet parts from the dealer, but I refuse to buy hardware from them! Besides, not buying one thing from them won't make something completely different go NLA. I would gladly buy all of my spirol pins from CCC if they would get their astronomical hardware prices back in line. I won't think twice about buying OEM parts like iso-mounts, clutch springs, bearings, etc. from my local dealer. No one else makes these parts, so I gladly pay the dealer's prices so I can get my tractor operational again. Many places make and sell spirol pins, so I see no need to pay CCC's grossly inflated price for them. Excuse me for trying to save a little money for the big ticket items! My local dealer gets close to $350 out of me every year when I buy parts to fix up my too-large fleet. If I was still buying $3 spirol pins I guarantee I would have had to use the moog chassis rubbers as iso-mounts instead of buying the correct and expensive ($85) parts from my dealer. And I go through a lot of spirol pins....
Hopefully I can get off my soapbox now...jeez...
Kraig-
You've got 4 in a gear drive drivetrain, 2-3 in most hydros, if you work the tractor extremely hard (i.e., plowing) they tend to not last too long. I bet at least half of the people on here have more than one cub, too.