How reliable are vintage zippers?

[Deleted member 16736]

Hi. I'm ordering a custom jacket from Johnson Leathers and I've taken it upon myself to supply some of my own materials. I'm supplying the horsehide and I'm thinking about sourcing some vintage Talon bell zippers too (it's a motorcycle jacket with three zippered pockets as well as zippered sleeves). Are vintage zippers less reliable than modern brass YKK zippers? These particular zippers are NOS. I'm doing it more for the shape (bell vs. rectangular) than the nostalgia, and I wanted to get some feedback on the longevity of 40-50 year old zippers. if the vintage zippers are going to fail, I'll skip it and take the free zippers the jacket comes with. Thanks.

 

[nick123]

I have no real experience with vintage zippers, but I've used the heaviest YKK zipper Johnson offers, and there seem to be no durability issues or problems. Very easy to lock into place. Although the one I have is not as visually pleasing as some of the vintage ones.

 

[Dumpster Diver]

you can pretty much bet your bottom dollar the grade of metal used in a vintage zipper is far superior to any modern substitute. Think of all the cheap White metal that has to go somewhere.

Its pretty safe to assume.

As a collector of vintage things, I can tell you one thing for sure;

They dont make stuff like they used to.

 

[Seb Lucas]

They may not be cool but I'd go YKK any time. Vintage zips are variable in their capacity to survive.

 

[tonypaj]

I'd look at things as with all other stuff. Mechanical appliances have been bettered, materials have been differentiated, often bettered. There is no answer, the zippers are "so" reliable.

 

[ButteMT61]

Depends on how much you zip a jacket. YKK will prolly last forever. I'd rather have a more finicky repro or real vintage zip myself. It's a small but important detail. My 2¢

 

[rocketeer]

How about a 'vintage' reproduction. That is a modern copy of an original zip? I think there is a supplies store in Japan that sells them, saw it linked here somewhere, MASH? They sold all the parts seperately, zipper tape, pullers, top stops and boxes I think but the site is in Japanese.
If you find it[The site] try Google translate, that will really confuse things

 

[ButteMT61]

That's what I said . Yes, they make repops. I think I've got a couple on my jackets. I "think" the Waldes on my Ventura is the real (vintage) deal. Looks like it will last longer than me. But she's a bit finicky.

 

[rocketeer]

That's what I said . Yes, they make repops. I think I've got a couple on my jackets. I "think" the Waldes on my Ventura is the real (vintage) deal. Looks like it will last longer than me. But she's a bit finicky.

Think I wrote mine as you wrote yours. Fastest finger first

 

[ButteMT61]

Think I wrote mine as you wrote yours. Fastest finger first

FFF lol Yeah, I think new zips work great. They just don't have much character. But that may not be what some folks want - and that's reasonable. If I lived in the cold. I'd not want a fussy zipper.

 

[rocketeer]

I have had a couple of Sam Walker Aero copies and both were fitted with YKK. Yes they worked ok but similar to what Scott writes above, the modern type do not quite look right in a 'vintage styled' jacket. A modern repro of an original style just looks right.
Aero fans(and I am one of them) please dont turn this into a Sam v Aero discussion, there are other threads for that.

I like Gary Eastmans RiRi zips on his basic Luftwaffe jacket but dont really like the puller. The old style ball pulls on many British motorcycle jackets have some style also, and tend to last well.
But, the large alloy zips on some jackets tend wear quite badly. The slider gets worn and the teeth do not engage properly, sometimes the teeth corrode and pull away from the zip tape, probably from wearing in the wet.
I always keep pullers and zip hardware from old jackets that are not really rescuable or that have broken, I shall try to post some pics soon of the salvageable ones.

Back to the original question, post:
Many here have vintage jackets still fitted with original zips, I wore my WWII 'Lucky 7 Seven' A2 on a fairly regular basis back in the mid 1980s. Yes it has worn but is in a basically usable state so why would a NOS(New, old stock) zip of that war time vintage or newer be of poorer quality? Also many of the repro jacket makers offer NOS zips in their products and I am sure they would not want them returned due to faulty components.
I have to admit though that were I ordering a NOS zip in a 'modern vintage style' jacket I would choose a plain, era correct style in brass or nickel rather than some fancy alloy with a spring puller and fancy teeth as there would be less to break, wear out etc.
JTee

 

[EmergencyIan]

I would go with a vintage zipper, as well. I have several jackets that have 60-70 year-old zippers (NOS) and they serve me very well.

Hopefully, this latest custom made jacket will work-out better for you than the last one did.

- Ian

 

[handymike]

I've had a few older jackets and the zips were fine:
Conmar worked well in a 40s Hercules, but I thought it was a tad small/ Lightning was small too/ and a Talon in an older Aero that was good... I like the style of the older ones. And I imagine they would be fine unless you abuse them....