Originally Posted by
chollie
Don't know about those particular suitcases, but if the zipper pulls are secured to something (handle, gear loop), then the zipper can't be 're-sealed' after the ballpoint trick. If the zipper pulls are just locked to each other, they can still be slid along the zipper together.
Exactly! That is one part of the equation.
The zippers that can be pried open and closed again with the ball-point trick are the so-called self-healing coil zippers. The price you pay for self-healing.
The zippers that have teeth (attached to a textile base band) made out of either metal or plastic cannot be pried open with that trick and then be resealed.
Look at Redoxx bags and you know what I mean. Those are teeth. Most luggage today uses coil. Some sew in the coils upside down like Tom Bihn does. This makes the contraption a bit more waterresistant and less prone to getting gummed up. It also looks slicker. But it won't prevent the pen trick.
Till