I recently got one of my suitcases back from the authorized repair shop
— it cost $50 to have a wheel replaced and a zipper pull-tab
re-installed. Although the luggage was hardly cheap,
that’s still a significant fraction of the original capital cost, and
it makes me wonder whether the original purchase was good
value. If the luggage is going to break anyway, why buy
expensive stuff?
Arriving here last night, I found my other suitcase had only one
functioning handle — the end of the other handle had been pulled off.
I do feel thankful — as my friends’ luggage failed to appear, and here
was my luggage, even absent the big airline routing label that had
slipped off the detached handle.
I should be able to reattach the handle — having cut through the inner
lining of the suitcase to access the screws. However, the head on
the screw is neither Robertson nor Phillips nor flathead — some other,
unusual variation. If I had my trusty screw
driver bit set from RenoDepot, I could
get these screws back in and have a handled suitcase to ship
home.
So — what is a truly robust luggage system? And/or, why does
Samsonite insist on requiring obscure tools and know-how to mend their
suitcases within trip?