Post: #1

Haven't come across a specific thread for repairing buttons, zips and other stuff to do with pants.

This is a common problem for me. I always have a torrid time with my flies. Either the button pings off, falls off or the zip fucks up somehow.

Rather than throw away perfectly good pairs of pants, I always try to fix them.

This is one site that's golden in my experience: http://www.wikihow.com/Fix-a-Broken-Zipper

But, alas, I have encountered a new problem that I cannot find the answer to:



Any inventive engineering solutions? safety pin? string and glue? baking soda?

I have like nine pairs of these pants and six of them now have this problem: The zipper is now on only one side of the flies. I can't re-attach it without some engineering work.

I know, I know "Buy better pants" is probably gonna be the first answer. But these fit perfectly and I spent hours trying to find ones that fit as good as these, so I don't want to wear different ones

Cheers, and hopefully other pant-repair tips/queries can follow below:

Post: #2

Easiest: Take them to a tailor and ask them to put a new zip in. You might be able to get to the base of the zip and reconnect it yourself with some careful cutting, but it's going to break again.

Maximum peacocking: Get a pair of eyelet punches and convert the fly to lace-up. Use neon laces to highlight your groin.

"I'd hate myself if I had that kind of attitude, if I were that weak." - Arnold

Post: #3

If I ever need something tailored or fixed, I usually go to my local dry cleaner. The alterations are cheap and don't take all that long.

Post: #4

(03-26-2014 04:32 AM)LeightonBlackstock Wrote:  This is a common problem for me. I always have a torrid time with my flies. Either the button pings off, falls off or the zip fucks up somehow.

...

I know, I know "Buy better pants" is probably gonna be the first answer. But these fit perfectly and I spent hours trying to find ones that fit as good as these, so I don't want to wear different ones

Stating the obvious here: if your pants fit perfectly then "button ping off" or "zip fucks up" should not be common problems. Sounds like your pants fit more like this:

Post: #5

(03-26-2014 10:20 AM)Soma Wrote:  Stating the obvious here: if your pants fit perfectly then "button ping off" or "zip fucks up" should not be common problems. Sounds like your pants fit more like this:

Nah it's not the case here.

The 'button ping off' case was when I did used to wear pants too tight around the waist about a year ago.

Nowadays I always make sure they're generous around the waist. I've deliberately been buying pants once inch wider than I am to give my balls room in the hot weather. It's the fit around the shoe that I'm most concerned with. Just after about twenty instances of pulling the zip up it comes off the track and eventually doesn't reconnect.

Just a very cheap zip on the pants. They are cheap pants though, from a boutique store, 300 Baht, but they fit the best. The next best fitting pair was 2,500 Baht and they didn't fit as well and looked cheap so I thought I'd go thrift shopping.

Plus sometimes the thread just comes off the button easily as that's cheap too. All repairable though, look legit otherwise

Post: #6

(03-26-2014 04:32 AM)LeightonBlackstock Wrote:  This is one site that's golden in my experience: http://www.wikihow.com/Fix-a-Broken-Zipper

A more pertinent WikiHow for your situation: http://www.wikihow.com/Repair-a-Zipper-w...Completely

Post: #7

(03-26-2014 10:44 AM)Soma Wrote:  

(03-26-2014 04:32 AM)LeightonBlackstock Wrote:  This is one site that's golden in my experience: http://www.wikihow.com/Fix-a-Broken-Zipper

A more pertinent WikiHow for your situation: http://www.wikihow.com/Repair-a-Zipper-w...Completely

I appreciate the link

Saw it earlier though and it pretty much looked like I'd have to take the zipper off first in each case.

Was wondering if anyone had an engineering method like the ol' keyring connector to combat the absent button method

But yeah, this is probably far too many pages now for such a non-problem

Post: #8

I would cut the stitching on the bottom of the zipper, from the inside part of the pants, in order to expose both sides of it.

Then slide the machine out, put it in the correct way, than sew the zipper back on.