Learned a new thing with zippers

Hello, everyone.

As y'all may recall, there is a project in hand to make back pack duffels, for protecting the packs from airport conveyor systems.

The sewing has begun. The first strap has been made and attached, and the next step in assembly was to make the end of the bag that has a zippered pocket for stowage.

The zipper with the flip pull is way, way too long for this use--and this was the smallest it came. (It's also quite sturdy, but that may be more of a "feature" than a "bug." If the stowed bag is used as a pillow, the user will have to point the zip side away from the neck for comfort, but on the other hand it's sturdy enough that it probably won't come apart in transit.

The lovely videos at byannie.com include one on how to add a pull to a piece of zipper tape, either because you had leftovers or because you bought the whole roll of tape that some places sell. So when I ordered the flip zipper, I also ordered some catches to use up the leftover lengths of tape.

It can be done! But when sewing the stop, it's a really good idea to make sure the zigzag stitch is wide enough for the zipper you are working on. Otherwise you can end up with broken needles.

Also, I learned the hard way that I should have sewn the too long zipper into place at the bottom end, not the top end. The instructions in the video, which work well, show how to thread the new slider onto the bottom of the piece of tape. And that seems to be the only workable way to get the little teeth to interlock correctly. So, user top: put the too-long zip into place with the bottom stop at the edge of the spot, not hanging out in the breezes. The top end can hang out all it wants!

More pictures when the first duffel is completed, I think. It's not so exciting to show pictures of the blow-by-blow of the thing--straight seams mostly and lots and lots of red and gray nylon oxford cloth.