I also initially bought a $180 Travelpro, but after a couple of years it also broke down. I looked at getting a company-sponsored bag that is cloth with a heavy metal frame as a replacement, but decided the extra 10 lbs of weight and $280 price tag were just too much.
I shopped around and found a pretty good variety of bags at Ross, Dress For Less stores at $25 to $40. These are overstocked bags in various sizes (a lot of 22 inch expandables) such as Travelpro, U.S. Luggage, and other name brands. These bags normally go for $80 to $150.
So now, when a zipper fails, or a wheel bearing explodes after 1 to 2 years of heavy use, I simply trash it, buy another light-weight $30 bag, and write it off on taxes. In this case, at least for me, cheaper is better.