Zipper Pulls

[Climb14er]

I added the zipper pulls to my Co-Pilot years ago and have never had any difficulties. I specifically did not remove the metal zipper handles as this would void the warranty.

[AlaskaGirl]

Greetings,
I have a couple of bags where the metal zipper pulls have been removed. In theory I have no objection to this. As it turns out, in actual use I can't abide it.

The pulls have been replaced on one bag with the cord pulls that Tom Bihn provides in every bag. While functional, they now seem too floppy to me. The other bag has no replacement zipper pulls and the metal tabs have been removed, so it's awaiting a suitable replacement.

I'm planning to experiment with a few more paracord knots, but I seem to be busy with other things this month. Maybe November will have a spare minute.

My advice, if anyone is considering cutting the metal tabs:
Test it out on a cheap bag first. Maybe you have an old bag already that would be perfect to cut the metal tabs and experiment on. Perhaps you can find a bag at a thrift store to use just to try modifying the zipper pulls. There might be a cheap bag at a discount retail store that will be suitable for this purpose. See if you like it on an inexpensive bag first.

Good luck! elisa

[G42]

It's interesting... I notice the jangle and it vaguely bothers me. Through trades and sales I've acquired some of the older S19s that didn't have the metal pulls and they are noticeable quieter.
They seem fine/easy to me to open/close, so I did cut the pulls of my newer Original/Island S19 because I can't see ever trading or selling that one... I've left them on all the other bags though, just in case.

[terayon]

The pulls have been replaced on one bag with the cord pulls that Tom Bihn provides in every bag. While functional, they now seem too floppy to me.

I have replaced my metal pulls with tightly-tied snake knots (I learned from Snake Knot Tutorial) which, while certainly not as rigid as the metal tabs, aren’t floppy. They feel fairly substantial to grab onto, and are silent.

[AlaskaGirl]

Thank you for sharing! I'll check it out. elisa

[backpack]

I had a heck of a time trying to do this as well, but here is the method I used.


Attachment 23477

I really like your method, it is very easy. I used the ones given by fellow forum member Maverick and used the methods on Tom Bihn's zipper pull video tutorial. https://vimeo.com/112929038

[linh.n]

Maybe you have an old bag already that would be perfect to cut the metal tabs and experiment on.

I have a 5yr old S25 that had the paracord pulls by default. It's exactly why I went straight to cut the A45, lol. They're still going strong

[aedifica]

It's interesting... I notice the jangle and it vaguely bothers me.

When I notice the jangling I find it vaguely comforting! But I think it's reminding me of morris bells, which have a lot of pleasant associations for me. (An example of morris dance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKA0R_565dE I know a bunch of the people in this video clip!)

[G42]

When I notice the jangling I find it vaguely comforting! But I think it's reminding me of morris bells, which have a lot of pleasant associations for me. (An example of morris dance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKA0R_565dE I know a bunch of the people in this video clip!)

Total digression here, but I'm rereading Terry Pratchett's young adult Discworld books about a character named Tiffany Aching... and the 'Wintersmith' book plot revolves around the Dark Morris Dance (totally made up, but logical)

[aedifica]

Total digression here, but I'm rereading Terry Pratchett's young adult Discworld books about a character named Tiffany Aching... and the 'Wintersmith' book plot revolves around the Dark Morris Dance (totally made up, but logical)

To briefly continue the digression: I've seen performances of the Dark Morris or Anti-Morris dance! There are some people here in Boston who often do it at Halloween (and yes, it's inspired by Pratchett). I've stopped going because watching them makes me sad that I'm not with my own morris group in Minnesota for our own very different Halloween traditions (dancing Abbot's Bromley and Hop-Tu-Naa). I haven't read the Tiffany Aching books yet, but the Dark Morris is also in... it was one of the other Discworld books, I think it was Lords and Ladies.

[linh.n]

Thanks Pahs, I was trying to do it on zipper and realized I could just pre do everything as loops and feed it through. So much easier, lol! Now I wish I did this on my A45 instead of cutting them. Only because it's technically voiding.. but the absolute silence of the A45 is definitely nice, lol.

[carlesque]

I'm surprised and a bit upset to hear that cutting the pulls off voids the zipper warranty. When Tom Bihn started including baggies of nylon strings and plastic zipper pulls, I naturally concluded that they were there precisely to provide the option of silent zipper pulls for those who want them, so I cut off the jangly zipper pulls from ALL my tom bihn bags (not counting organizers), which is probably over $600 worth of product at this point. If doing this voids the warranty, then I think it's really incumbent on Tom Bihn to put a warniing note in with the bag of nylon/plastic pulls that they send out with their bags. Also, I don't think it really makes sense, if anything, a nylon zipper pull should be MORE gentle on the zipper itself then a metal pull, because theyre so flexible, they'd be less likely to transfer lateral forces to the zipper.

I would love it if we could get an official clarification on this point from a Tom Bihn employee.

[linh.n]

I would love it if we could get an official clarification on this point from a Tom Bihn employee.

It's fairly clear cut here: https://www.tombihn.com/products/cor...nt=37395455047

Now, I'm not sure if anyone has ever had problems? But there has to be a reason they moved to the metal pulls? I hope it's because of preferences. I suspect this is needed because not everyone will properly cut the pulls.

[Darcy]

I'm surprised and a bit upset to hear that cutting the pulls off voids the zipper warranty. When Tom Bihn started including baggies of nylon strings and plastic zipper pulls, I naturally concluded that they were there precisely to provide the option of silent zipper pulls for those who want them, so I cut off the jangly zipper pulls from ALL my tom bihn bags (not counting organizers), which is probably over $600 worth of product at this point. If doing this voids the warranty, then I think it's really incumbent on Tom Bihn to put a warniing note in with the bag of nylon/plastic pulls that they send out with their bags. Also, I don't think it really makes sense, if anything, a nylon zipper pull should be MORE gentle on the zipper itself then a metal pull, because theyre so flexible, they'd be less likely to transfer lateral forces to the zipper.

I would love it if we could get an official clarification on this point from a Tom Bihn employee.

It only voids the lifetime guarantee as it pertains to the zipper pulls. So, let's say you cut off the metal pulls, but then decide that was a mistake and want metal pulls put back on; that's not covered as a lifetime guarantee repair. Or, if in cutting the metal pulls off, you cut or damage the zipper, that's not a lifetime guarantee repair either, but we'd fix it for a reasonable charge. If you cut the metal pulls off, and then a buckle breaks, that's still covered by the lifetime guarantee because it's nothing to do with the zipper pulls being cut off. If a zipper fails prematurely, it's almost always because someone is putting a too-large-for-the-bag object in the bag, putting undue pressure on the zipper, but if in the rare case it's a defect of the zipper and it's nothing to do with the metal pulls being removed, we'd cover that too. Our lifetime guarantee covers defects in materials and workmanship; choosing to remove metal pulls is not considered a defect.

One can also weave the baggy of cord zipper pulls through the metal pulls; this effectively silence the pulls w/out having to remove them.

Does that help? Feel free to ask more questions, we're here to help!

[carlesque]

Thanks Darcy for the explanation. Yes that answers (and relieves) my concern just fine!