Sounds like a good tire then and not too expensive. How do they compare with the BFG MTs?
They don't. They're two completely different.
The TSL is a bias ply tire which means it's very thick and will build up heat faster then a radial. When in cold weather the bias ply tires will get flat spots overnight. It will take a while for them to heat up enough to go round again. With a lot of street use, you can expect to see 14-20K miles out of them. Once you move up to >35 they get harder to balance especially on steel wheels. Dynabeads, golfballs, BB's, etc... The TSL's are all about offroad.
BFG MT's are for those who want their cake and eat it too. It's a compromise. You can expect to see 40-50K miles from a MT and they do well for most moderate trails. Their weak side is the sidewalls. They are fairly thin compared to many other dedicated MT's. They ride nice for those times when you have to drive it onroad, easy to balance and they are quiet as well.
If you're only doing 1000 miles a year though, you would probably have more to worry about dry-rot then the tires wearing out.