Coffin Case Failure: All I Wanted Was A Handle

I have this pretty cool guitar.  It's a B.C. Mockingbird.  It may be a bit hard to play, but goodness, it looks cool.  It might also be the highest quality overseas guitar I have ever come across.  Here's a photo of one (not mine.)

The one drawback of having such a cool guitar, is that, it really needs a special case.  A few weeks ago I came across such a case for this guitar.  It's a case by a company called Coffin Cases.  They honestly are the same shape as old style coffins.

I managed to buy the case used for a pretty cheap price.  The only drawback was it was missing a handle.  I thought, "Well, it's just a handle?  How hard can it be to find one?"  So I bought a handle off of E-Bay.  It turns out the Coffin Case handle was actually wider than a normal guitar case handle.  So it didn't fit.  

  

While I was the Orlando Guitar Show I bought three case handles for a buck a piece.  I figured one of them would end up fitting the Coffin Case.  But, no such luck.  None of them fit the Coffin Case.  Again, the Coffin Case takes a wider handle.  

So I decided to get proactive and I e-mailed Coffin Case.  I explained that I needed a handle for my Coffin Case.  I would be happy to purchase one since the warranty didn't apply to me.  What ended up happening was what I would call a "clusterfuck" of customer service.  

The following is the back and forth e-mails that were sent.  These are copy and pasted exactly as sent.

CC:  Thank you for your email.  Unfortunately, we do not sell individual handles for our cases :( 

Graham Allen

Adrian:  Dear Graham,

Do you have any suggestions on how I can acquire a Coffin Case handle?  I'm sure I can't be the only person this has happened to.  

Sincerely, 

Adrian

Graham at CC:  Hi Adrian,

What happened to the handle?  How long ago did you buy the case?

Now let's take an aside for a moment.  I had already explained that the handle was missing and I was willing to pay for a new one.  I don't see how either of these questions would help me.  

Adrian:  I bought the case used.  The handle was missing when I received it.  So I am trying to buy a replacement handle.  I realize it isn't covered by a warranty.  So I am more than willing to purchase a replacement handle from either Coffin Case or one of it's distributors.  Can you please help me out?

Graham at CC:  I will look into this and get back to you.  What model is the case?

Adrian:  It is a Coffin Bass Case/Red Velvet Model #CF-B195R

Let's take another aside for a moment.  Now I thought, "Okay, we're finally getting this ball rolling."

Graham at CC:  I can see if our Vietnam factory can find a similar handle and what the cost would be. 

Adrian:  (After one week of waiting for an e-mail.)  I have not heard back from you regarding the case handle.  Do you have any updates on it?

Graham at CC:  Hi Adrian,

I have not heard back from the factory yet.  I was hoping I could just take one from a broken case in our warehouse.  They're riveted in though, so they can't be removed without damage.  Will let you know when I hear back from them. 

Graham at CC:  Hi Adrian,

Sorry for the bad news but unfortunately we are unable to obtain a replacement handle from our factory. 

So that's where I left it.  I figured it wasn't worth responding anymore.  A guitar case company that can't come up with a case handle?  That's pretty lame.  The customer service left a lot to be desired as well.  

Like I wrote, this can't be the first time this has ever happened to someone.  Cases get damaged, and there's a need for replacement parts.  Why act like you have no idea about how to correct something like this?  This should be simple.

So I decided to get proactive... again.  Years ago I had a cello case that had a handle break.  Due to the size of the cello and the case you can pretty well guess it weighed a lot.  So I used chain to make a handle.  That's what I decided to do again.  Luckily, I took photos for posting. 

Here's what we were dealing with.

The rope was what the previous owner used instead of a handle.  Next up, I cut the chain to the appropriate length.  

Next up it was putting everything together.  Not that it was that hard.  Of course, having a vice helps.

And this is how it turned out.

It actually looks pretty badass.  It was also much simpler than dealing with the morons at Coffin Case.  So the next time someone has an issue like this, and they can't find a matching handle, I recommend going this route.  Remember to use the curved chain.  It sits very nicely in your hand.  Also, it doesn't pinch your hand.