Locking zipper help

[Window walker]

So I have been replacing my zipper pulls with cord to save a tiny bit of weight and also make the zippers quieter and easier to grasp with gloved hands. So far so good until I cut the zipper pull off of my windshirt. This is how I discovered that a "locking" zipper even existed. Any ways, now without the zipper pull in the zipper head it does not operate correctly. I am fairly sure I can figure out how to replace the zipper head with a new one, but is there an easier fix? Or if I replace it with a non-locking zipper head will I regret it? I am wondering how much effect the locking mechanism actually has on it's performance. For reference it kind of looks like this one:

http://www.ykkfastening.com/products/upload/3C_v_DA.jpg

Thanks,
Benji

[Greg Mihalik]

I don't know that particular zipper by number, but –

Maybe this will help.

Your image looks very similar, with the locking tooth at the "top" end of the body.

Good Luck.

[Roger Caffin]

Greg is right. You can't operate a locking zip slider with a string pull. It just does not work reliably.

Replacing locking sliders with non-locking ones can be fraught with other problems – like your jacket or SB opens whether you want it to or not, usually at the wrong time.

I suggest that the urge to shave a very small number of grams off the weight has overcome the required basic understanding of how zips work. You will have to get another locking slider and repair the zip. Sad, but it's a learning thing, and no big deal.

Cheers

[Greg Mihalik]

As noted in my link above –

"I remove the locking spring on many of my lightweight tops and shells…"

Many of my hoody and shell zips are #3, a few are #5, and most come with just a small metal pull, which I cannot operate with mittens. (Circulation issues preclude removing a mitt operate a zip.)

Also, it's not uncommon for me to have on two or sometimes three layers with zips, so differentiating pulls makes things a lot easier than looking cross-eyed at my chest and fumbling for the one I want to operate.

When I add an extended pull – grosgrain with a knot, a toggle, knotted cord, etc., I try to thread out the end of the OEM pull, and use a force perpendicular to the zipper to open and close, but often I'm pulling nearly parallel to the zip, which in most cases leaves the locking pin engaged. Removing the locking spring eliminates a lot of problems for me.

I have yet to encounter a "run away" zipper.

YMMV

[Dustin Short]

Depends on the zipper, I know the deadbird atom has a non-locking zipper which likes to work itself open but my windshirts never seem to have an issue. Maybe a toothed vs coil zip issue.

Also there are two types of locking zippers, some with a spring and some that have actual teeth on the pull tab. So the zip only locks when the tab is pressed flush with the zipper. I think the latter is used more for jeans and heavy duty casual wear, but something to look out for.

[Ken Thompson]

I asked Western Mountaineering why they used a coil zip along the side but the foot zipper is toothed. They said the toothed zipper has a lesser tendency to open when thrashing about.

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