Yeah well, when your zipper doesn't work anymore it kind makes your zipper pouch worthless, unless you like supplying the pool room and the streets of your town with your pool accessories.
My brass zipper started giving me trouble about a month ago. Basically, when I slid my zipper slide closed, the teeth didn't close behind them. The teeth didn't look like they were bent or torn. They just weren't holding together like they should. I figured I needed another zipper, after all my cue case has got a lot of miles on it. Those TSA agents probably caused the damage to the zipper.
Anyway, I go to the Premiere Shoe Doctor in my town and he glares at me and says he doesn't do zipper repair. I inquire if he knows who does and he doesn't give me any names, just the usual suspects; luggage repair people and shoe repair shops Lol.
I tell PSD that I can get the cue case manufacturer to send me a brand new zipper and he says again, "We don't do zipper repair". I concede my efforts with PSD and go my merry way with pool accessories scattering the streets of New Orleans like Mardi Gras trinkets flying from the floats.
I get back home and get on the Internet and finally find a local repair shop that can replace the zipper but he doesn't know what he will have to charge me. Wants to know where I live......? I tell him and then he wants to know how I found out about him. I mention the big named luggage dealer in the French Quarter that recommended me to him and he finally says he can most likely do it. So I ask when and where I can drop off the cue case. He says he doesn't allow drop offs and that he will pick it up from me and maybe we can meet somewhere. I start to thinking about Mike Surber about that time and tell him that I am going to call the cue case maker and make sure that he will send me a zipper replacement because I don't want just any cheap zipper.
I finally call Jack Justis on the phone and tell him my sad story. He offers to fix it and asks if I will be in Las Vegas next week. I tell him no and he then asks if I am handy. That's a loaded question because I will try to fix just about anything. One time I replaced some linoleum in our upstairs bathroom many moons ago and it took me about two days of solid work but replace it I did. Other simple tasks have taken me slightly longer but I was prepared to try another.
First off Jack told me that brass zippers are known to wear and the teeth will sometimes not stick together because of the slide being worn. And SOMETIMES they can be repaired without being replaced. He tells me that I can use a pair of dikes (cutting pliers) to try and repair it or send him the case and if repairable, he will do the repair at no charge. I tell him I want to give it a shot and so he says, "It's not rocket science and it's pretty common knowledge Joey." I laugh because I don't know it and I know a lot of common stuff. :wink: Anyway, he says you want to be very careful and NOT squeeze the slide too tightly or you could cause even more damage. He then tells me that it doesn't always work but I have a good chance of making it work if I am careful and the teeth aren't damaged. He says it's the slide that's worn. So, the next thing I need to do is to close the slide all the way until the slide hits the "stop", but my slide doesn't go all the way down to the stop. The slide is about two teeth short of closing all of the way. I'm already off the telephone with Jack and see that my slide doesn't close all the way to the stop so I "Bing" repair a zipper slide and find that if you pull on the slide in the direction of the stop while simultaneously pulling on one slide at the timein the opposite direction, (doing this to both sides of the zipper) you can work the slide down to the zipper, MOST of the time. I manage to do that in about 8 seconds without any additional damage to the zipper. Instead of some dikes I have these enormous but curved pliers that insure that I won't have to apply much pressure the top and bottom of the slide to "close" the gap of the slide so that it more closely rides on the teeth and it seems to be the perfect tool to fit inside of the pouch and still have plenty of leverage. I doubt needle nose pliers would work. I "gently" press the large-handled pliers together over the top and the bottom of the brass slide and think I have applied enough pressure to make a slight crimp and I attempt to close the zipper. That took about 5 seconds to do and now the zipper seems like it is as good as new. That Jack Justis. What a guy!
Jack also suggested using some Chapstick as a lubricant for the zipper if I got it working. Have to find a tube, the one I had probably fell out of my cue case.
JoeyA
My brass zipper started giving me trouble about a month ago. Basically, when I slid my zipper slide closed, the teeth didn't close behind them. The teeth didn't look like they were bent or torn. They just weren't holding together like they should. I figured I needed another zipper, after all my cue case has got a lot of miles on it. Those TSA agents probably caused the damage to the zipper.
Anyway, I go to the Premiere Shoe Doctor in my town and he glares at me and says he doesn't do zipper repair. I inquire if he knows who does and he doesn't give me any names, just the usual suspects; luggage repair people and shoe repair shops Lol.
I tell PSD that I can get the cue case manufacturer to send me a brand new zipper and he says again, "We don't do zipper repair". I concede my efforts with PSD and go my merry way with pool accessories scattering the streets of New Orleans like Mardi Gras trinkets flying from the floats.
I get back home and get on the Internet and finally find a local repair shop that can replace the zipper but he doesn't know what he will have to charge me. Wants to know where I live......? I tell him and then he wants to know how I found out about him. I mention the big named luggage dealer in the French Quarter that recommended me to him and he finally says he can most likely do it. So I ask when and where I can drop off the cue case. He says he doesn't allow drop offs and that he will pick it up from me and maybe we can meet somewhere.
I start to thinking about Mike Surber about that time and tell him that I am going to call the cue case maker and make sure that he will send me a zipper replacement because I don't want just any cheap zipper.I finally call Jack Justis on the phone and tell him my sad story. He offers to fix it and asks if I will be in Las Vegas next week. I tell him no and he then asks if I am handy. That's a loaded question because I will try to fix just about anything. One time I replaced some linoleum in our upstairs bathroom many moons ago and it took me about two days of solid work but replace it I did. Other simple tasks have taken me slightly longer but I was prepared to try another.
First off Jack told me that brass zippers are known to wear and the teeth will sometimes not stick together because of the slide being worn. And SOMETIMES they can be repaired without being replaced. He tells me that I can use a pair of dikes (cutting pliers) to try and repair it or send him the case and if repairable, he will do the repair at no charge. I tell him I want to give it a shot and so he says, "It's not rocket science and it's pretty common knowledge Joey." I laugh because I don't know it and I know a lot of common stuff. :wink: Anyway, he says you want to be very careful and NOT squeeze the slide too tightly or you could cause even more damage. He then tells me that it doesn't always work but I have a good chance of making it work if I am careful and the teeth aren't damaged. He says it's the slide that's worn. So, the next thing I need to do is to close the slide all the way until the slide hits the "stop", but my slide doesn't go all the way down to the stop. The slide is about two teeth short of closing all of the way. I'm already off the telephone with Jack and see that my slide doesn't close all the way to the stop so I "Bing" repair a zipper slide and find that if you pull on the slide in the direction of the stop while simultaneously pulling on one slide at the timein the opposite direction, (doing this to both sides of the zipper) you can work the slide down to the zipper, MOST of the time. I manage to do that in about 8 seconds without any additional damage to the zipper. Instead of some dikes I have these enormous but curved pliers that insure that I won't have to apply much pressure the top and bottom of the slide to "close" the gap of the slide so that it more closely rides on the teeth and it seems to be the perfect tool to fit inside of the pouch and still have plenty of leverage. I doubt needle nose pliers would work. I "gently" press the large-handled pliers together over the top and the bottom of the brass slide and think I have applied enough pressure to make a slight crimp and I attempt to close the zipper. That took about 5 seconds to do and now the zipper seems like it is as good as new. That Jack Justis. What a guy!
Jack also suggested using some Chapstick as a lubricant for the zipper if I got it working. Have to find a tube, the one I had probably fell out of my cue case.
JoeyA
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