H18 jib zipper replacement

Is it possible to find a replacement zipper, just the piece you move, for my 30 yr old sail? Or what other options do I have? Can it be used without being zipped? Loose luffed.

The best bet on an old sail is to get your local dealer to sew on a new zipper. I got Rooke Sails here in Memphis to replace my jib zipper and it's bigger ( teeth ) and stronger than the original. It costs around $150 but well worth it.

_________________
Tim Grover

Memphis, TN fleet 134
Hobie 20! G-Cat5.0 and 2 Hobie 14's
Photobucket now wants $100 to post pics on forums......... pass.

Beacon Fabrics has what you need. You want the 186" zipper and UV thread. Costs around $25. I had a seamstress sew mine on.

http://www.beaconfabric.com/vindex.html?cat160.htm

Yep I got mine from the link above. It was actually about 2" shorter than my original but not a big deal. I've been hand sewing it back on myself since my sewing machine hates doing a zig zag stitch on thick stuff

I would not suggest sailing it like this. The luff needs to be zipped.

sm

It might work to replace just the zipper slide, I have not done it on a hobie jib but have done it on quite a few other plastic zippers. Its easy to do just have to unsew or take the little zipper stops of the end of the zipper to get the new slider on then sew it back up or put new little crimps on it. The hard part might be finding the right size slider. Campmore used to sell a zipper repaire kit. might look there to see what they have and also see if they have any directions for doing the repair.