Yeah...I don't blame companies like Orvis, Bean, Cabelas, etc at all for where we've ended up. If you've ever abused a warranty, look in the mirror.
Warranties are there for legitimate failures under normal, regular, reasonable use that lead to dissatisfied customers. Essentially to ensure the customer feels they got their money's worth.
Fly rods are a little different, in that for all practical purposes, they don't really wear out. But wearing out a pair of waders, boots, whatever, and getting the full reasonable life out of the product and likely enjoying it all the while, should lead a consumer to be satisfied with their purchase, and be willing to purchase that product again. Not turn it in for a brand new one under a "satisfaction guarantee." This is like eating 7/8 of a steak and then complaining for a refund because it wasn't cooked to your liking.
The downside to warranty abuse is a situation like silverfox had. 67 days of use from a pair of waders is not reasonable, and a company should warranty a free replacement under those circumstances, without much fuss. But a 60 day warranty has been instituted to protect against all the yahoos.