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Oil your zippers

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Vin Stefanelli
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Re: Oil you zippers

Postby Vin Stefanelli » Thu Apr 11, 2013 4:51 am

you know what guys,....
i have owned enough boardshorts
kites n kitebags
and wetsuits
and other assorted pieces of
water seeing zippers to know that
some zippers handle salty water better
than others
at this point,...
its the manufacturers whom are responsible for
finding better zippppps!

i gotta flysurfer kite that loooooves saltwater while at the same time its bag-pack
INSTANTLY froze up on its zips

(lets get it together builders)

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Peter_Frank
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Re: Oil you zippers

Postby Peter_Frank » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:36 am

Now it becomes really interesting !

There must be some who both surfs and work in the industri with knowledge about the different materials and their properties ?

What I see over the years, is a bit "confusing" if you think about it, but quite consistent :

Kitebags, surf travel bags, board bags, sport bags, diving bags, "weather" suits, jackets etc etc - every single one of them gets salt "struck" (at least stuck) if not used often, and they are close to the sea and salt water.
Typically getting "slightly" wet or just moist, because of being on the beach for longer periods, and salty kitethings in the bag or car.

Whereas the wetsuit and kite LE zipper never gets stuck ?

Is this because these are even closer to the salt water often, and even submerged fully ?
Or because the wetsuit (or drysuit) zipper is used often ?
Or because wet suit brands KNOW they have to use a specific zipper type for this ?
And if so WHAT is the secret ? As I would like to buy sports and kite bags with this type then, almost no matter what price :thumb:

I've seen some of my old wetsuits that were ditched when worn (and bought a new), that were stored for replacement repair neoprene in the shed - that after some years even these where "salt stuck" too !


The LE zipper on kites that never seem to get stuck - is this because they are plastic ?
Plastic works well if used very rare, as if used they will get worn fast 8)
Or because they are exposed "more" to the salt water, than the other bags and jackets ?

I dont know, I must say, and a bit of a mystery EXACTLY how these salt struck zippers accumulate to such an extreme layer over time, and why some do and others dont....

I think I've seen it on both plastic zippers and aluminium and other types of alloy/metal zippers - but dont know for sure how many and what they were :roll:


Whats the reason for this phenomenon, and how to avoid or keep it down ?

If it is not material specific and nothing you can do about it, then we might still be able to manage better, if we understand the reason and physics behind this :x issue we see year after year on most of our gear.

And if it is, zipper material specific, we might be able to avoid the worst types ?

It is most likely a combination of both the material, AND a fact that salt will accumulate over time, but I dont know much about why and why not :wink:

:D Peter

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Re: Oil you zippers

Postby Hawaiis » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:18 am

There are basically Nylon, Brass, Stainless Steel and pot metal. Some I had to cut off and replace with stainless steel. Pot metal is the cheapest, Nylon and stainless are the best for marine environment. Brass is used on blue jeans.

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Re: Oil your zippers

Postby ronnie » Thu Apr 11, 2013 9:41 am

Quite often the zipper itself would be OK for corrosion, but it gets damaged in the struggle to get the runner going.

It helps to have had the runner parked at one end of the zip, because then if the zip gets damaged, you can side on a new runner and sew across the zip to seperate off the small damaged area at the end of the zip.

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Re: Oil your zippers

Postby KappuhH » Mon Apr 15, 2013 10:24 pm

Peter_Frank, do you already found a solution? I have the same problem and vinegar didn't work so far...

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Vin Stefanelli
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~!!

Postby Vin Stefanelli » Tue Apr 16, 2013 5:15 am

zippers with big teeth are better,... i
live in close proximity to shore air in a nj bay and i have
got ozone Land n snow kites that have never gotten wet
whose zippers have seized,.... its BS!

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Re: Oil your zippers

Postby Europ2 » Tue Apr 16, 2013 9:13 pm

WD40 has always worked fine for me especially with the thin straw which can inject the fluid quite deeply inside the corroded jaws.
Cons: the solvant smell for a few days + stain

My 10min process:
1 - a good WD40 spray inside each side of the corroded clip
Let it rest for 5 min.
2 - After 5 minutes, it's usually OK. If not, I remove the salt in excess around the clip with an old toothbrush
+ second injection + I bend the zip in and out a few times + 3rd injection.
Let it rest for 5 more min.
3 - 10 min later I pull /push the clip and its gone

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Re: Oil your zippers

Postby tautologies » Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:29 am

wd40..spit...water..any solvent really...

really though..there is a super easy solution to this. It is called velcro.

Velcro is this almost unknown weird NASA space technology that no one knows about..well except everybody.

Really though, a solid velcro would work as well as any zipper...especially for bags that are used as day bags. Maybe even just a few velcro straps at the back. no need for zippers on most bags..

a.

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Re: Oil your zippers

Postby William Munney » Sat Apr 20, 2013 3:13 pm

Anybody try this? I have some 303 for my drysuit gaskets, so I'm going to see if it works on zippers:

http://303products.com/product-uses/con ... ld-zippers

03® Aerospace Protectant™ for Conditioning and Renewing both New and Older Zippers - Makes them glide easier.

I have these heavy, plasticky-looking zippers on some heavy coats, sleeping bag, my SUV and the enclosure on my boat. After a while, all of these are harder to work, especially on my SUV and boat. I notice they look a little chalky, too. What's going on?

Answer:
These zippers are made from a durable hard plastic called Delrin. Delrin is a high quality material of almost metal-like hardness. But over time they do become hard to work, especially those exposed to UV light.

303® Aerospace Protectant™ does penetrate and bond to Delrin. Close the zipper, spray 303® Aerospace Protectant™ into it and work it back and forth a couple of times. Then unzip and wipe dry with a dry, absorbent cloth. 303® acts as a wonderful dry lube for Delrin zippers. It will make your zippers work `like new'. Use 303® regularly and you'll never see any oxidation either.

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Re: Oil your zippers

Postby Peter_Frank » Sun Apr 24, 2016 8:35 pm

Would bump this post up, as I had a camera bag that was stuck today...

Anyone who has found the solution, if there ARE any solution ?

Still an issue with most zippers, if they get the slightest contact to saltwater - and every single boardbag or other bag gets stuck, when not zipped for a long time - just BEING inside the car together with wet kitegear :(

8) Peter


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