Tip of the day: What to do when zipper handle breaks off.

[Ontario Honker Hunter]

Tip of the day: What to do when zipper handle breaks off.

[Ontario Honker Hunter]

Go to the key-cutting section of hardware store and pick up a small/medium sized split ring for keys. Remove the remnants of the zipper handle/tab and slip the key ring through the throat for the tab end. A split ring is also very easy to grasp with cold or frozen fingers.

[jay]

Paperclip works well in a pinch.

[Douglas]

Any idea on fixing the separated plastic zippers from communist red china?

[Treestand]

A Safety Pin always worked for me.

[FirstBubba]

Douglas
Toss it in the rag bin and get a new one!

[Ontario Honker Hunter]

I have used safety pins too and they work fine. The nice thing about the ring is my finger will slip inside which makes it great for opening and closing when my hands are very cold. Hard to grab those skinny tabs when you can't feel the end of your fingers! Two years ago the zipper tab broke on my Browning's soft gun case and I happened to have a spare key ring in the glove box so I put it on. It has worked out great! So well that I'm thinking about busting the tab off the zipper for my hunting coat and replacing it with a ring.

[Pray- hunt-work]

You ever see a young guy racing around a Hardware store in Wyoming on his tippy toes looking for split rings off a key chain, youll know it's me and I've broken my zipper and have to pee!! J/k, good advice O.H. but like Douglas asked, what to do about Red Chinas separated zippers?

[Gary Devine]

I used a tie on a loaf of bread.

Ontario, early this month during my Jersey bear hunt my Cabelas day pack had the entire zipper body come off.
Is there any tip for fixing that?

[DakotaMan]

Good tips here. Thanks for bringing it up OH.

[Ontario Honker Hunter]

Gary, PHW: I have replaced/reattached zipper bodies but it is tricky and not always successful. If you're VERY careful, you can pry open the jaw of zipper body and slip it back on appropriate side of zipper for jacket opening. Then CAREFULLY clamp it back down with a pair of pliers. These zipper bodies are usually made of cheap pot metal so there isn't much "wiggle room" with them. They break easily under pressure (prying or clamping). Give it a try. What have you got to lose? Gary, since your pack will require reattaching both halves of the zipper body, I don't hold out much hope for success. Can Cabela's help you?

Also, if a zipper starts to "skip" or snag during opening or closing, the closure mechanism is likely too loose. CAREFULLY clamp the zipper jaws down a BIT with pliers. That usually takes care of the problem.

[buckhunter]

I add a small loop of string to my zipper pulls for extra grab-ability.

[Happy Myles]

I am with jay on this one. Paper clips come in all sizes and colors.

[Happy Myles]

And they are all over the place

[MattM37]

Are you guys really saying that you simply FIX things? That you actually MAKE DO? C'mon, you're supposed to just go and buy a new jacket, for cryin' out loud. What freakin' culture are you a part of, anyway?