I noticed that the screw spacing on the office depot "flight case" handle is exactly the same as the screw spacing on the top handle of a LuggageWorks roll-aboard. I had an Office Depot special that the handle (gasp) did NOT break off of before the bottom started to fall out of the thing. I decided to replace it with another bag, and woldn't ya know the handle broke off the new bag after about three weeks!
So, I took the handle off of bag "one", and installed it on bag "two". Now, the bottom is fixin' to drop out of bag number two, but that #$%^ing handle is still going strong!! When/if it finally does break, I think I'm just gonna use the original "strap" handle from my LW roll-aboard that I removed when I ordered the one with my name embroidered into it. Or, I may get a matching one with my name embroidered.
Here's the way I'd go about fixing the handle without totally *&#%ing up the entire bag:
(Make sure to obtain the luggageworks handle before you do this)
The four gold plated studs you see where the handle attaches are each held in by a screw which you cannot access the head of without performing a little "surgery." You will need a hobby knife (X-Acto) to cut around the vinyl covering the countersunk screw heads. You will probably have to sacrifice the business card pockets on the one side of the lid to get to the other two screws. Some or all of these screw heads (they're Phillips head) may be full of the glue that holds the vinyl to the plywood, so you may need the X-Acto to carve that out of the screw slots. The plywood is thin and of poor quality, so do your best not to damage it while performing your "surgery." Go to your local Home Depot/Ace/Menards/Lowes Flight Bag Repair Parts Center and get some 3/4 inch Number 8 or 10 screws, FENDER washers (that's a wide-area washer, for those not familiar with the term. In other words, a great big washer with a little bitty hole; big enough os course, to fit the screws you selected) and of course, LOCKnuts to fit the screws. The wide area washers do two things; they spread the load across more of that weak-ass plywood, and they help hold down the loose edges of the vinyl you cut into to remove the old screws. In fact, if a guy had access to a small strip of thin steel or aluminum, a ruler and a drill; he might want to use the strip of metal in place of the fender washers on the INSIDE of the bag. Obviosly, the fender washers need to be on the outside of the handle to keep the screws from pulling thru. And when the bottom finally does fall out of this bag, you can keep your new handle rig for use on the next office depot special!! The plus side of this whole arrangement is that you get to change your flight bag stickers every year or so as you wear the bottom out of yet another bag!!
(I sure hope somebody does this. I took FOREVER to type, and I ain't all that fast of a typer.)
