Is it possible to buy a feeler guage that's hard enough not to get all beat up with a couple valve adjusting sessions?

No

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Yeah....Im the one who destroyed this rare, vintage automobile.....

H'mm. I have a regular, normal, plain old set of KD or Lisle feeler gauges I've been using on slant-6 valve adjustments since 1990 or so, and they're not beaten up. What kind are you using, Luthastro and Sandy? How are they getting damaged?

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

I guess what Im saying is....there is not a better feeler gauge that will not get munched when not properly used.

I set my valves hot but not running....to specified clearances. Then I set them hot and running with a vacuum gauge......by ear and feel.

The feeler gauges I use are ancient homemade Go-NoGo feeler "bars" ....hand filed and miked and hand file and miked.... I made them for a Crane cam I ran in a Ford 6 in the early 70s....I was marine engineering at the time and had 6 weeks at sea to while away. I just wished I had some stainless steel stock to make them from.

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Yeah....Im the one who destroyed this rare, vintage automobile.....

Got mine at Autozone a couple of years ago, and through several adjustment sessions, they're still undamaged... Maybe I'm not adjusting them right...

VM

Ah! That ain't not the right answer. I agree, pretty much any tool, no matter the quality, will get battered and damaged if improperly used.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

What is the proper way to use a feeler guage to check the valves then? After setting/checking them 3 times with the engine running, mine are a little smushed around the edges from sliding them in.

I guess by now I should be very hesitant to admit it, but I've gotten all of mine from parts stores. They end up dished the shape of the rocker end.

But that's just it...my regular normal plain ol' ordinary feeler gauges, they came from parts stores (or hardware stores), too!

One thing that will chew 'em up in a hurry is trying to force a gauge into a gap too small for it.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

I guess it's a matter of technique. I come down until it just barely sticks then back it off. I don't know any other way to know for certain where I am if I don't come the actual end of the gap.