Double sleeves for double-opening zips

Repairing a zip that opens in both directions

A zip fastener can sometimes open from both the top and the bottom; these are called double zips. Double zips are most commonly found on jackets, coats, vests, but also on sleeping bag zips. The stop/end of this type of zip fastener therefore does not include the housing and sleeve which allow opening from the top only, but 2 sleeves to allow opening from the bottom.

With wear and tear, a sleeve may come offand you can simply crimp on a new one. However, in other cases, the fabric can become damaged, making it impossible to engage the zip.

When one out of the two sleeves is missing and the fabric is clean, simply insert a new sleeve, crimp it and you're done. It is essential to replace the other sleeve to ensure compatibility between them.

For injected PLASTIC and METALLIC toothed zips which have damaged fabric at the bottom of their double zip, it is possible to shorten the zip and fit 2 new sleeves.

The first step is to cut away the damaged part cleanly. Then remove 3-4 teeth depending on the size of the sleeves to be fitted, and use simple DIY pliers to split the teeth so that they can be removed.

Then simply insert the sleeves onto the clean fabric and crimp with flat-nose pliers or jewellery pliers.

For NYLON SPIRAL zips, it's more complicated. As their name suggests, zips with spiral teeth depend on each other. If you cut one end of the zip, it may "fray". In this case, you need to find a way to "fix" the last tooth so that it doesn't "unravel". In most cases, we advise against cutting the teeth of a nylon spiral zip.

If you have any doubts, write to us with a photo of your problem at: serviceclient@clip-zip.fr and put "DOUBLE SLEEVES" in the subject line.