In my case 30 years, I've never been able to bend it. Still has the original handle. I'm sure there are cheep ones out there, I forget what I paid, but purchased on for my son when he first moved out and it was around $30 and that was 10 years ago. I've lost track of all the other shovels I owned, none lasted more than 10 years. The shovel is aluminum so it cannot rust. Go to a store and check one out.