YKK zippers. YKK, it turns out, is a Japanese company. (It stands for Yoshida Kogyo Kabushikikaisha–far too long to print on a zipper.) It's got about half of the world's zipper business. And it has a zipper factory in Macon, Georgia, where they make about 5 million zippers a day.
Although zippers are an ingenious feat of engineering, they are surprisingly simple to fix as long as you have the right tools. All you need to do is remove the broken zipper slider and replace it using our Zipper Repair Kit, which includes the most common zipper sizes along with all the sewing tools you'll need.
The zipper slider is the piece that runs up and down the tracks, zipping and unzipping the zipper. We offer replacement zipper pulls for almost every type of zipper. Zipper sliders go by many names and are also known as: zipper pulls, zipper pull tabs, zipper heads, zip pulls, and zip pullers.
Most of the time, the FixnZipâ„¢ will work if teeth are missing on a plastic or metal zipper. While the FixnZipâ„¢ does not replace the missing zipper teeth, it does realign the surrounding teeth, making the zipper functional again.
Auto-lock sliders function through a locking mechanism, which prevents them from sliding up or down unless the pull tab is tensioned. In other words, these sliders can be secured in place without dropping off along the zipper chain unwanted when in use.
The second number, preceded by an actual number sign, tells you the width in millimeters of the chain. So a #3 zipper has a 3mm wide chain, and a #5 zipper has a 5mm wide chain. The #3 will be more flexible than the #5, but not as strong. Now we can break down the name of a zipper and know what it means.
The strongest is nickel, followed by antique brass and brass. Aluminum is a very lightweight metal so when the overall weight of an item needs to be minimized but you still need a heavy-duty zipper, it can be an excellent option. Zippers with molded plastic teeth are often used for boats and marine uses.
* Non-lock sliders. Auto lock sliders are those that will not move unless there is an external force on their pull tabs. On the other hand, non lock sliders are those that will unfasten even if slight force is applied on any slider part or even when the teeth are being pulled apart.
Many customers have questions about which zippers to use for outdoor cushions. Most often, a #5 nylon coil zipper or #5 molded plastic zipper will do the trick. For other projects, think about your desired aesthetic while balancing it with the durability you need.
Remember, zippers are measured along their teeth and not along the tape. Plastic (nylon coil) zippers are better for cushion covers than metal ones as they are smoother and easier to sew.
Unlike plastic zippers, metal zippers are stronger and more durable. Though, they also fail at some point and this may render the garment or bag unusable. Most metal zippers fail when the insertion pin tears loose from the tape, when one or multiple metal teeth fall off the tape or when the slider jams or breaks off.
There are three main types of zippers that you will come across – coil, stamped plastic, and stamped metal.
The lock automatically locks when no force is placed on the tab-pull. When the pull-tab is lowered, it locks. When the pull-tab is raised, it unlocks.
Easily lock the zipper by pulling the two sliders together. Zipper will unlock by pulling down the slider into the plastic bottom parts.
Disc tumbler locks are composed of slotted rotating detainer discs. A specially cut key rotates these discs like the tumblers of a safe to align the slots, allowing the sidebar to drop into the slots, thus opening the lock. Unlike a wafer tumbler lock or a pin tumbler lock, this mechanism does not use springs.
