Velbon PHD-31Q broken plastic handle repair

I have some good news.  My Velbon tripod was under warranty and I got a free replacement of a small plastic handle which had broken.

The weakness of the plastic handle has been criticised elsewhere due to its contrast with the all-metal construction of the rest of this tripod head.

After an online submission through the velbon service website and a few e-mailed photographs, the new handle arrived!

The repair process starts with unscrewing and removing the old handle.

Note that the spring inside has a short piece of wire protruding upwards.

This fits into a tiny hole on the undersurface of the new handle.

Et voilà! The new handle is ready for use.

Bubble wrap over the tripod head is a safety precaution to hopefully prevent the handle from breaking again during my travels.  It still fits into its case, and is ready for its next journey!