Custom bag partner

Zipper specification guide

How Should You Specify a Zipper for a Custom Bag?

Specify the opening route first, then name the component details and the way the zipper must be tried on the actual sample. A zipper that looks suitable in a reference photo is not yet a specified part.

Discuss a zipper briefTalk with a specialist
Black backpack front with a top handle and a visible zipper pull near the upper side

Answer first

Specify the Opening Route Before Naming a Zipper

Start with where the zipper begins and ends on the bag, what must pass through the opening, and how the slider is expected to travel. Then attach the proposed component details to that route and check them on the actual sample.

Ann Saunders' zipper checks put length, route, tape, teeth, slider and stops into the same review. They are prompts for a buyer brief and sample review, not a universal grade, rating, or service-life prediction. The existing trims and hardware guide introduces pulls and general trim planning; this page keeps the zipper specification together.

Name the visible parts

Use a Simple Part Map, Then Confirm the Actual Component

The tape carries the teeth or elements; the slider joins or separates them; the pull tab is the hand-operated part; stops limit travel. The same terms help a buyer mark what needs review, but they do not identify a supplier, material, size, or performance level.

Simplified zipper part mapTechnical diagram, not a product photograph or scale drawing, showing left and right tape, top stop, slider, pull tab, teeth, and bottom stop.Simplified zipper part mapTechnical diagram, not a product photograph or scale drawingleft taperight tapetop stopsliderpull tabelements / teethbottom stop
Original technical part map. It is not a product photograph, scale drawing, repair instruction, or specification for a particular zipper.

Before sampling

Put These Six Fields in the Zipper Brief

  1. Opening route and zipper length: mark start, end, curves, corners and the usable opening on the bag drawing.
  2. Opening purpose: describe the contents, expected access and carry condition to try on the sample.
  3. Construction proposal: request the supplier's component reference and the proposed tape, teeth or element, slider, pull and stop arrangement.
  4. Placement and orientation: mark the slider direction, pull position and any point where it reaches a corner, seam or adjacent panel.
  5. Sample operation check: open and close the proposed zipper in the stated condition; record catching, misalignment, unwanted opening, rubbing, sharp edges, tape distortion or visible damage.
  6. Acceptance evidence: agree the project-specific approval notes and any required test method separately. A smooth first operation is not a service-life result.

A useful message to send: “Please show the proposed zipper reference, its route and length on the filled bag sample. We need to check slider direction, opening access, tape, teeth, pull and stops before we approve the component.”

For a broader review of the physical sample, see the prototype guide. Water, security, load, or life claims need their own defined construction and test method; this zipper brief does not establish them.

Apply the brief to a visible opening

Use This Backpack to Mark a Proposed Zipper Path

Black backpack front with a top handle and a visible zipper pull near the upper side

AltusPack catalog style · AP-R3-041

Custom Business Laptop Backpack with Multi-Pocket Layout

What the photo shows: A backpack front, a top handle and a visible zipper pull near the upper side.

How to use this example: Mark the opening you want to discuss, then request the actual zipper route and component reference on your sample.

Evidence limit: The photo does not identify the zipper brand, size, material, hidden path, construction, smoothness, load rating, lifecycle or test result.

View this catalog style and its photos

Source and limits

What the Source Supports

Ann Saunders, Design, Manufacture and Sell Your Bag Collection (2024), PDF pp. 178-180, discusses closure use and zipper anatomy/quality checks, including length, path, tape, teeth, slider and stops. The six-field brief and diagram are AltusPack editorial tools that turn those checks into a procurement conversation. The source does not establish a universal zipper material, grade, size, failure rate, service life, waterproofness, security level, cost order or performance of an AltusPack product.