Most of these items are gear that I have used for several years commuting, but that makes my reviews more meaningful than something I've only had for a few months.

LIKES:
- Fenix LD20 Flashlight. There are more powerful lights, but for the size and cost, the Fenix is hard to beat. I get 5+ hours of run-time with mine and it always works, with a beam powerful enough for my purposes.
- Fizik Vitesse saddle. I know, saddle fit is very personal, but I went through a bunch of contenders before finding this one, include several Brooks. The Vitesse is like an Aliante and almost as light weight, but costs half as much and is wider than most racing saddles. It weighs half as much as my B17 and is more comfortable for me. I've now put this saddle on 4 bikes.
- Thomson Elite seatpost. High quality, durable and infinitely more adjustable than old-school Campy/Shimano designs.
- Shimano Dura-Ace bar-end shifters. I tried these for the first time on my new touring bike built up for commuting, and they are great. Almost as easy to use as STI shifters, but less expensive, lighter and more durable.
... more to come

Great thread!

I just started commuting with any seriousness in 2010, so my list would be long but useless (I don't have much basis for comparison).

Likes:

Topeak Road MorphG. Liked it well enough to buy another to replace it when bike #1 was stolen.
Disk Brakes. I don't know that I'd intentionally buy a bike without them at this point. Perhaps if I rode a new bike with non-disk brakes, I'd be less impressed with disks.
Clipless pedals. I'm a fan. Way easier than toe cages, and I like being locked in. I know others disagree. Thinking about trying some with larger platforms next time around, for those times when I don't want to change shoes for a short ride.
Leaving my main lock on the bike rack at work. Sure, I still carry a lock, but my primary security Kryptonite stays in place, so I don't have to lug it back and forth.
Panniers. Not 100% converted -- if I metro part way, I'll still fall back to the backpack, I think. But for limited walking, I'll put up with the off bike inconvenience, because the on bike utility is great. I'm using Avenir Excursion Lrg, which are fine, but certainly not Ortlieb or other quality. So far, so good, but if I get three years from them, I'll be thrilled. Still haven't had to test their water resistance, either.
My LBS. Customer service is so important!
Bike Forums. My go to source for information and opinions.


dislikes:

cheap lights. Not worth even the small price of entry, generally.
bike thieves. 'nough said.
flat bars. Give me more hand positions!

Positive use, but not enough to "like"

Origin 8 drop bar ends. better than the flat bars, but not a real substitute for drops (or other alternatives that I've not tried).

Not a whole lot for 2010 for me.

Liked: I am liking my tail/brake lights, although the mounting is kind of sketchy. Bad/hurried design on my part rather than product design defect. See the end of Total Geekiness for more details on this bright light setup. I haven't heard much either way about real world performance yet, but given the parts used I expect it to be good. At night I can see the light on the ground, especially when the brake light is on.

Got a second bungee for tying loads of the type that has two separate lines running between the hooks. They make it very easy to tie packages onto a rack.

Not really 2010, but I definitely like my Arkel panniers. Armadillos seem to be holding up quite well, though I think 25mm is way too small for my use case, although I haven't ever gotten snakebite even when I have gotten down to 40PSI (or perhaps lower), so I'll keep using them till they wear out. Rear tire feels like it is wearing out in a bit of a hurry, though. Had someone pick them up for me at LBS after blowout, will probably get a different brand when I replace them.

Dislikes: Really nothing for 2010, but then I only started really using my bike again in September, and it was in pretty good shape to start with, though I just have to replace the front brake pads and the return (I think) spring.

Never been entirely happy with my disc brakes (except for the first few weeks (maybe months) after I got them burned in, before they started rubbing slightly), and will probably get a standard brake and perhaps the carbide impregnated rim as used on some Thorn bikes when I need to change or get a new bike. LBS has looked at my bike several times over the life of my bike, so maybe I have excessively high expectations on this issue, but they did once have to straighten my rear disc (no idea what would have bent it, though)

Maybe a bit confused here, but I need to get on to other things.

Tor

Tried / liked:
Soma Rush - consignment, low gear ratio, fixed, great for spinning and adopted as my commuter bike
Velo Orange stem - looks great, very modest
Nitto bars
Shellaced Tressostar cotton grips - 6 months and they look like new, except where I missed a spot
Old Gitane from Craigslist - first French bike, Vitus steel, feels great, I have some ideas for this...
Gore gloves
Showers Pass Storm Pants - fit in saddlebag or backpack, easy on, poor breathability but that's not a problem when it's really cold here!
Klean Canteen stainless bottle
MKS tall toeclips - allow for commuting in boots during the rainy season
Bikeforums.net - really specific questions answered by Sheldon Brown's ghost

Tried / meh:
Fizik Alliante (carbon rails!) – came on my consignment Soma, poor feel after riding for a couple of hours, replaced it with my B17
SKS Race Blade – serves its purpose, but requires frequent adjustment

Liked:

Avid BB7 mechanical disc brakes, replacing the old Hayes MX4s. So much easier to adjust, and no more squeal (with organic pads)!

Planet Bike 2 watt headlight with Superflash. I run the light on flash in the daytime, and have had several motorists stop and ask which light I was running. Plus, the steady beam is bright enough to guide you home in the dark, as long as you keep it below 20 mph.

Dinotte 140L taillight. Its praises have been sung heavily on BF, which is where I was convinced to buy one. So I'll just say that if you've got a Benjamin burning a hole in your pocket, and a desire for motorists to give you more space, then buy a Dinotte.

Upright handlebars, namely the Nitto Albatross (although there are significantly cheaper north road bars out there). Relaxed, comfortable, upright body positioning is proof that God loves us and wants us to ride bikes. If you're out for speed, then they're not for you, but if you just want to get where you're going and enjoy your ride in the process, they're great. They do suck in the wind, which can be partially mitigated by riding up in the bends, but wind sucks no matter what, honestly.

Didn't Like:

Planet Bike Superflash taillight. The flash pattern is great (albeit annoying to ride behind) and the light is bright, but my third one just died on me. The first died with a bunch of moisture in the light, so both the second and third were wrapped with electrical tape, which kept moisture out, but they both just stopped working anyway. I know that a bunch of people have used this very bright and eye-catchining light with no problems, but for me, $75 later and without a working back-up taillight, I'm done with it. I'm buying a Radbot tomorrow.

:/ Meh:

Brooks B-17 saddle. The first month was painful, but after it broke in, it was as comfortable as my couch. Which meant that I would forget to get out of the saddle from time to time, which leads to sweaty ass, which ends in saddle sores. Now I know to remember to stand out of the saddle on long rides, but my old saddle was just uncomfortable enough to make me do it without thinking, yet was still comfortable enough to sit in for 30 minutes at a stretch, and was a quarter of the cost of the Brooks. Plus it was waterproof! Still, I have the Brooks, I've broken it in, and I'll keep riding it until some larcenous hipster walks off with it. Then I'll go back to the WTB saddle that came with the bike.



The Lady G'Cakes has repeatedly, when offered the chance to ride my bike, merely knocked upon the saddle (it sounds like knocking on wood), looked at me pointedly, and declined.

Liked:

• Mec Derecho Pants
• Dapper Dan Ergo Leather Grips
• Bullhorn handlebars

Tried

• Bar Ends

The Derecho pants are amazing - warm, waterproof, and reflective, and large enough to pull on over regular clothes. Also, I never felt like I was wearing garbage bags over my legs - they breathe well. The only thing I don't like about them is traipsing into the office in them. In 2010, I will carry them with me for slushy / snowy / rainy days, but ride in "normal" clothes for regular days.

The dapper dan ergo grips were soft, comfortable and eliminated most of the wrist pain that I was experiencing. I added bar ends to stretch out a bit, but didn't like that I had to move my hands to reach the brakes, so I switched to bullhorns.

The bullhorns are great - the same riding position that I was enjoying on the bar ends, but with brake levers right there.

I've been switching between a B17 and Fizik Aliante on my commuter. The B17 is getting close to being broken in, but I can't get the damn back far enough relative to the BB. My SOMA has a 73-deg STA, and even with a Velo Orange seatpost, I could use a little more offset. I completely understand that 66-deg STA's were popular when the B17 was first introduced, but most off-the-peg frames today have 73 STA's, which make it difficult to get the B17 positioned so that you're not sitting on the rivets.

Great to read these reviews. My new favorite commuting gear is a Contigo stainless steel insulated coffee mug. It fits in my bottle cage, keeps coffee hot and only one hand is needed to open it.

Liked

Bar end shifters. I've now got them on drop bars (raised up nice and high) and on Albatross bars.

Commuting in the dark. Haven't done it really since college (a long time ago). I like early morning best, watchin the sun come up, but even riding home at night is nice.


Tried

Half toe clips. Nope, didn't do it for me. I rode with full clips and straps for years, but ditched them a few years ago to ride unhooked. I don't think I'm going back.

Lol, I have a slightly different list - "Things I Liked Last Year But Have Cooled Off Towards This Year".

1. Disc Brakes. They work great in the wet, and on my winter bike it's nice that I'm not grinding stuff into my rims when I brake. But damn it, I have 2 different bikes with 2 different brands of disc brakes (Shimano Alfine disc brakes, and something Avid and hydraulic) and they both have the same issues - once it gets cold or they get wet, about 50% of the time when you brake they squeal really, really annoyingly. And any time I take off the front tire and put it back on again, there's always a good chance the brake pad will start rubbing against the brakes slightly, requiring adjustment to get them well aligned again. My rim brakes just don't have these problems, and with decent pads haven't been to bad in the rain either.

2. Nokian 294 studded tires. It's more a matter of overblown expectations - I thought I'd be able to ride in the snow on my mountain bike with these. But they're much heavier, pricier, and only marginally better (in my experience) in any snow over my much skinner Schwalbe Marathon Winter tires. (I wrote about it in the Winter biking section.) We got 6 inches of snow here, and biking on unplowed off-street paths is still impossible. (To be fair it's apparently also impossible sometimes with a Pugsley, so it may be less the tires themselves than physical limitations of bikes and snow).

3. Every bike light I've ever purchased after my first one. The first one was cheap(ish), a Dinotte 200l, and worked well enough. Every light after that has been more expensive and something of a disappointment - I've never found a beam pattern I'm really happy with. I've owned a Dinotte 600L (terrible beam pattern in my opinion), 2 Dinotte 400L's (decent but not enough throw for road biking), Light and Motion 900 (more throw but a bit of a tunnel vision effect), Light and Motion 1400 (the opposite of the 900 - very wide beam, but to many complaints from oncoming traffic on the MUP, the "low" setting is to high at 350 lumens, and it puts a tiny bit to bright of light right in front of the bike versus further from the bike, though that's a smaller thing).

4. The supposed maintenance benefits of an IGH hub (chain version). Turns out most of the maintenance is spent on the chain which is still has. If I wasn't to lazy to clean any of my chains most of the time, lol (once a year at most), I'd still be spending some serious time on chain maintenance. To be fair, I another complaint is how hard it is to find an IGH+Chain bike with a full chaincase which might have solved my problem.

5. My Civia Highland as a winter bike. It's not terrible - I'm still riding it. But in addition to #4, and even not counting all the noise issues I finally got sorted out (Civia did go way out of their way to help me), it's really disappointing that it doesn't take larger than 35c tires. Just seems like a...rediculous oversight in retrospect.

6. Merino Wool - It's more a matter of overblown expectations. They said it was as smooth as cotton - yeah right. Still a little itchy on my sensitive skin (like my chest, but not my legs, oddly enough). And they say it doesn't smell - well it doesn't get that "odor" like it needs to be washed. But when it gets wet at all, no matter if it's freshly washed or been worn 5 times, it still smells vaguely like a sheep. It is still really is warm in the winter - there's been several days I'm warmer wearing the wool around outside than I am sitting on my couch at home! But some of the hype was a let down.

I guess I should make a list of "Things I Bought Last Year That *Haven't* Disappointed Me". :-)

1. My Schwalbe Marathon winter tires have continued to perform very well.

2. I have some Goretex winter gloves that look a lot like the "Cyclocross" ones pictured above, but actually have about twice the insulation that have continued to be pretty great. I got them at Freewheel Bike in Minnesota. They're hard to find - haven't found them anywhere else.

3. My Specialized S-Works Helmet that has the plastic band on the inside that goes all the way around the inside of the helmet, rather than halfway like most models, has continued to be the most comfortable helmet I've ever worn. It's price is rediculous - it's like over $200 retail, I got it for $125 on clearance. But it's also the only helmet I've ever owned that I forget I'm wearing while I'm biking. It's that decently comfortable for me.

4. My Shower's Pass Elite 2.0 jacket was annoying because I was stuck choosing between a little to short or to baggy, but even though I went with baggy it's been pretty great for winter riding. Really way, way more comfortable to ride in than anything non-windproof that I had tried before. (Though it occasionally gets a little clammy if I'm pushing it, still looking for that 100% perfect jacket...). Not totally without complaints - wish it had front hand pockets, to.

5. Time ATAC pedals and cleats. Best mountain bike cleats I've used, and I've also used spd's and crank brothers. Spd's were ok, but I wanted some float, and they have a reputation for not being as good at shedding mud, snow, and gunk. Never took to the Crank Brothers - worse of of the bunch for my knees, strange cleat height issues made float inconsistent (floated fine on one foot, but rubbed the pedal on the other - not a problem with the atac's so it's not a shoe problem).

The Time Atac's have decent float which I like (though after I changed pedaling technique I found I needed less of it, but they're still great). I've now waded through piles of snow and never had a cleat get jammed up. No problems clipping out in an emergency, either, and believe my I've emergency unclipped several times now.

6. Dynamo hub and light - they've just worked, and continued working.

Disappointments -

1. Hitch Mounted Bike Racks. Thought that with a hitch rack I'd finally get a rack that was stable, easy to put on and off the car, let me carry 4 bikes, and let me get in the back of the vehicle. Well - at least the last one was true.

Stability - Turns out none of them are terribly stable. Connecting a rack of bikes to the car via a single connecting point (the hitch) seems to be just inherently unstable. The hitch was designed with a trailer with it's own wheels in mind - is has a single connection point so the rack always bounces a little bit, plus the racks themselves have a little play in them. The "hold by the frame" style was the worst - I'd look back and the bikes were bouncing up and down in a disturbing way every time I hit the slightest bump (a problem I did NOT have with the strap-style racks). I was perfectly fine putting my carbon bike on the strap-style rack where it didn't bounce, but it was just way to much bounce for me with the hitch rack. And it would have been difficult to actually fit 4 bikes on the rack. The Saris T-Rax I bought also let the mounts on the rack slide around, resulting in all your bikes stacked up against each other by the end of the trip.

So I went with the "hold by the wheel" style of rack. Much better for bounce - still a little bit, but now it's bouncing against the tire with air in it rather than the frame so I'm not constantly bouncing the frame. At least on the front...problem is, you can't carry more than 2 or 3 bikes on it with a small or midsize car because they usually don't take a better hitch than a 1.25" Class 1 hitch, and in order to carry more than 2 or 3 bikes you need a 2" Class 3 hitch. There are some 3 bike versions available out there, but all the 4 bike versions weigh to much and need a sturdier hitch. So it's not like they carry more than the strap version anyways, and if you want to go biking with 3 other people, you still can't just take one car (or you need to buy a roof rack in addition to your hitch rack).

They are also more work to put on and off the car. You need to screw in a bolt to attach the rack to the hitch, which ends up taking about as long as it did to put on the strap-on rack. The rack itself is also quite large and heavy - the t-rax was noticeably larger than my old "strap" rack, and the "hold by the wheel" rack is not only wider than the car just for the rack, but also weighs 50 pounds itself. It's pretty huge - it's about as long as my couch. With my strap rack I just kept it in the trunk. With the hitch rack that's impossible, it's just to big. Not such a big deal if you have a garage, or if you're willing to leave it permanently attached to the vehicle, but a problem if you're keeping it in your apartment. Problem with leaving it on the vehicles is worries about rust and rain - and I live in Minnesota.

And funny enough, a hitch rack isn't really more secure than a strap rack either. Even if you attach the bikes to the rack, removing the bike-holding part of the rack from the hitch (even with a locking hitch pin) just requires the right size wrench and removing one bolt.

And did I mention that the hitch rack cost over $150 for the hitch and over $300 for the rack itself, so over $450? And with that it only carries 2 bikes...

If you go with a roof rack, you have to deal with not pulling into your garage or under low hanging signs with it - everyone I know who's used one has at one point forgotten about this with something on top. They're even more expensive. There's often whistling with the rack (from what I've read), and it takes some noticeable time to take the rack on and off...

If I had it to do over again, I think I might have just stuck with the "strap" rack, lol.

You might try changing your brake pads. If you're still running the stock pads, they're probably metallic. Try switching to an organic brake pad; you'll lose a little bit of stopping power (but discs have this in spades, so I didn't even notice), the pads will wear faster, and they will run much quieter. I switched to organics back in spring, ran them through one of the wettest Augusts on record, and they don't hardly make a peep.

Hmm...I will have to keep that in mind about organic pads when they need replacing (either because they wear out, or I just can't take them any more, lol!). The ones I have right now definitely came with the bike, so I assume they're stock pads.

Tried, liked
German Mirror. I now look where my mirror usually is even when walking to look behind me

Phil Hand Cleaner. After using soap for my whole life to try and get grease off, I'm never going to be without this stuff again!

Barcons. Friction is pretty neat

Magicshine MJ-818 + taillight. Feel so much safer on my night commute now, can see so much more than I did before, and got home during a heavy snowstorm on main roads. 100% reliable for me with the new battery pack (waterproof one with LCD)

Winter Commuting: had a couple commutes in the snow (one at night when the roads weren't plowed with 23mm road tires) and loved it. wasn't as dangerous as people made it out to be, but had to be in first gear the whole time.

Tried, not liked:
Blaze 1W light. After having my MS, I wonder how I survived with it.

Wax lube: after fighting with it, I'm going to buy a new chain and use Chain-L No5 for probably the rest of my life.

Sounds uncomfortable!

Tried/Liked:
1) Montague Folding Bike (I have the single speed Boston model) - it rides like a non-folding bike, but if I want to take the bus home, I can fold the bike and take it on with me, without having to worry if the bus has space in the bike rack that day (especially on days when it rains unexpectedly, and I and so many other commuters did not take my rain gear)

2) Speaking of rain gear, shoe covers. It is thanks to these that I did not need to carry an extra pair of socks with me every time it was raining in the morning.