03 July 2016

The ingenuity of the humble zipper

"Clasp locker" and "hookless fastener". That's what the zip was called, once-upon-a-time.

See how the clasps get locked. A rather ingenious invention by Whitcomb L. Judson.




The reason I'm writing about it today, is because the zippers of my bag stopped working and I thought I'd have to replace the zipper teeth and the slider.

The person at the shop though, told me I'd only have to change the slider. Turned out that with time, the insides of the slider get worn out and they aren't able to make the zipper teeth clasp together anymore. The teeth are still ok, and you don't have to replace them.

Replacing involves removing some of the stitches that hold the teeth...


 ...removing the old slider completely, replacing it with a new slider and stitching it back up with a sewing machine.


That's it!
This entire process happened in less than 10 minutes, and cost me Rs.30 and Rs.20 for a large and small slider (stitching charges included).


The next time you worry about throwing away your bag or jacket because of a defective zipper, remember this post. You can get it fixed in a jiffy. If possible, try to get a new slider that matches your bag/jacket. The person at the shop might not have a variety of colours.

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