Chris Stratton
06-23-2004, 09:24 PM
Never transport a sewing machine without the presser foot installed, unless you also remove the screw to a safe place. Mine rode to NY and back without the foot, and now the screw vibrated loose and got lost somewhere in the trunk of the car. The adjustment clamp screw from a spare zipper foot works temporarily, but now I have to find the original or make or buy a replacement...
Anyway, finally finished replacing the zipper on my dance team windbreaker. A year ago the pull got caught on the trunk lid as I closed it with a bag of soda for a dance in each hand, and ripped all the end pieces off the zipper tape. I found an apparently identical one a while back, but didn't get around to actually installing it until tonight.
Got the old zipper out. Thought I'd found a way to turn things inside out via the back vent, but that seam actually doesn't go through to the lining. Finally picked apart an area on the collar I could close back up with topstitching alone, replaced half the zipper, and closed it up again.
It pretty much works - though one suprsising thing is that while the new zipper teeth mate perfectly with the old, the tape seems slighlty longer. So there's a slight wave to the zipper, but it does form a straight rather than curved line when closed. I'm hoping with time it will relax to be right (I actually tried steam shrinking the tape before installing it, but that didn't accomplish anything).
Jacket seemed outrageously expensive when I bought it. After replacing just one small component, now it seems like it was quite a bargain for it's complexity!
Anyway, finally finished replacing the zipper on my dance team windbreaker. A year ago the pull got caught on the trunk lid as I closed it with a bag of soda for a dance in each hand, and ripped all the end pieces off the zipper tape. I found an apparently identical one a while back, but didn't get around to actually installing it until tonight.
Got the old zipper out. Thought I'd found a way to turn things inside out via the back vent, but that seam actually doesn't go through to the lining. Finally picked apart an area on the collar I could close back up with topstitching alone, replaced half the zipper, and closed it up again.
It pretty much works - though one suprsising thing is that while the new zipper teeth mate perfectly with the old, the tape seems slighlty longer. So there's a slight wave to the zipper, but it does form a straight rather than curved line when closed. I'm hoping with time it will relax to be right (I actually tried steam shrinking the tape before installing it, but that didn't accomplish anything).
Jacket seemed outrageously expensive when I bought it. After replacing just one small component, now it seems like it was quite a bargain for it's complexity!