Ever hear of "do it yourself" fixes? These may have been turned into a new product to be marketed, but we can take solace in learning how to be handy. Handy fixes (that work and are effective) can save you change here and there. Today, I had the strap on my backpack break. This is a nice Targus bag I was given (for free) and I don't want to toss the pack. I took a moment to look at it.
Sometimes those straps completely snap, and that will require another solution. Here, I found that the bar the upper strap loop was connected to snapped off. I thought of possible solutions, and came up with a VERY simple one. I needed some kind of rod with a circular cross section to fit through the loop. The loop still fit through the strap, and I went looking for a straight stick. I found one about 1/4" in diameter, and slid the loop through the strap, and then slid the stick through the loop. It should last a while- this wood was dense and it will take a lot of force to snap it. I just "Macguyvered" my backpack.
Let's look at the economics of this. I need to lug a backpack around, and it would cost me $59.99 to get another targus, and at minimum, $19.99 for a cheapie. I could have harvested another strap, but I opted for a quicker and less painful solution of using a stick. When it snaps, I will fit a bolt in there that is 1/4" in diameter by roughly 1 inch length, if I can find one like that. That will take thousands of pounds to snap.
What would you do with the $59.99 you didn't spend for a new backpack? In the age of consumerism, see if you can fix it before you toss it. If someone tosses something and you can fix it, take it!
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