Be careful about depending on what you find in a google search. Yeah, there's certainly "more information then would ever be on this board" but you're more likely to find ACCURATE information on TPF!
answers to AUTHENTICITY questions!!!
- Thread starter kallison
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Although after a statement like that, who knows how much people will want to help.
1/2 kidding.
1/2 kidding.
Maybe I'm sensitive but I find it MORE than "a bit" insulting.
Sorry - did not mean to insult - I guess I was peeved that everytime I ask a question on here - my question is not answered and is directed somewhere else - I guess I should know better since I have been on here for 13 years - it was more personal back in the day - All I wanted to know was the style names for my bags and did not know it was so easy to find out by typing the serial number on Google.
I am just glad that there is a place I can come to get accurate information on all kinds of Coach, but especially vintage. I don’t mind being redirected. However, since I lurked for months before I ever posted, ( I came on board about two and a half years ago) it gave me the a feel for how the topics are organized here in Coach land. I am pleased with my interactions here and all I can say is it has been quite personal. There are a few women here that are the only thing standing between us posters here that are prospective secondary buyers and sellers that are dishonest or ignorant. I completely appreciate this set up.
I also google style numbers too. Then I come back here and do a search to confirm the information.
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Guess what! I also google style numbers - but it's not to "authenticate" items or to attach a style name to them.
No, I do it when I'm bored and feel like saving buyers' hard earned money. It's a great way to pull up fakes to report. These are fakes that have "correct" style numbers that match the style of bags they're on but the bags are fake!
If you're (@Nancy in VA ) skilled enough to know your items are authentic, fine. But be aware that unless you are the first owner of your bags and you purchased them yourself from a legitimate retailer (Macy's, Nordstroms, Bloomingdales, Coach, etc.), you may be mistaken in thinking items are authentic when they aren't.
As a couple of examples, here are some bags that have "correct" style numbers but are absolutely fake:
1. FAKE style 9085 and NOT a duffel sac but LOOKS LIKE one:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Co...469249?hash=item593235b281:g:qsIAAOSwSgpdTJO~
2. FAKE 5659 and NOT a scribble tote but LOOKS LIKE one:
3. FAKE 9135 but looks like style is supposed to look.
Sometimes I wonder why people come here when they assume they know how to get the answers to their questions.
Good luck! I do hope your items are authentic!
I suggest from my heart that you read the Salearea Guide on Authentication Guides before you follow ANY information found in other online guides, unless you would rather have volume than accuracy. Start here:
https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/salearea-guides.983575/#post-32252957
One particular problem is a "guide" on dating bags by serial numbers that was published about 15 years ago and is almost completely wrong. That invalid info has been posted and reposted over and over agian by other clueless "experts" who never made any attempt to verify it and is STILL being quoted. The dates in that guide are about TEN YEARS off.
The dating information in both the Creeds and Serial Numbers parts of the Salearea Guides are accurate and have actually been researched and verified by me, unlike all those anonymous guides on dates and "how to prove a Coach is genuine", almost all of which is BS.
Read my Siggie under my posts and read the Salearea Guides. If you need more info that's actually ACCURATE, ask here. Unless you like being lied to.
And what meakes you sure that the names on Google are correct? Search Google and Google Images for "Coach 308-9875" and tell me what you find.
I'd also like to see some of those examples you mentioned where you claim that "everytime I ask a question on here - my question is not answered and is directed somewhere else". I couldn't find any in the most recent pages of your posts.
The way these forums work, if you ask a question in the wrong forum especially about the authenticity of a specific item or listing, you're going to get redirected to the CORRECT place to post such as the "Authenticate This Coach" thread so you'll be assured of getting an accurate answer. That's the way these forums work and the way the Mods, whom will ALSO redirect authentication requests posted in the wrong place, want to keep them working. If you post in a Reference Only or "No Chat!" thread with what's considered "chat", you're going to get redirected. It's the poster's responsibility to make an effort to be sure they're posting in the right place and there are easy ways to make sure of that.
Please explain your complaint.
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W
And - yes - I do not trust everything I read on the internet - including here - I have been buying Coach for a long time and the bags I mentioned I purchased at a Coach outlet back in the 90's - before they even had "made for outlet" bags. I am pretty good at telling which is real and which is not and I appreciate all of you on here who have even more knowledge -
I had a general idea what the bags were called but needed to make sure. I checked several sources not just trusting one. Back when TPF started this was the only place to get information but now there are tons of resources and I am happy about that.
From now on I will be very careful where I ask my questions so I do not get redirected -
Sorry to get everyone all hyped up - it is no big deal - doesnt anyone on here get cranky? My last question was asking if the Dinky 24 was discontinued - happily someone on the general forum answered my questions. All I needed was a yes or no. I think it took more effort to redirect me.
And - yes - I do not trust everything I read on the internet - including here - I have been buying Coach for a long time and the bags I mentioned I purchased at a Coach outlet back in the 90's - before they even had "made for outlet" bags. I am pretty good at telling which is real and which is not and I appreciate all of you on here who have even more knowledge -
I had a general idea what the bags were called but needed to make sure. I checked several sources not just trusting one. Back when TPF started this was the only place to get information but now there are tons of resources and I am happy about that.
From now on I will be very careful where I ask my questions so I do not get redirected -
Re; your first question about the Dinky 24. It was asked in a Reference thread, as I pointed out when I replied. Not only does the first post in that thread give instructions for what should and shouldn't be posted there and that it's not a question and answer thread :
"Hopefully this thread will be able to answer Coach's most frequently asked questions.
This will be a Reference only thread, no questions should be asked ..."
but most major or Pinned threads here have the same information right up front, always check the first few posts and the most recent ones to get an idea if you're in the right place.. Your chances of getting an answer to your question were a lot better in the main forum which is why I redirected you there, and you DID get answers right away,.which you probably wouldn't have done if you'd stayed where you posted originally.
https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/dinky-24.1015360/#post-33260014
Sending you somewhere where you actually had a chance of your question being answered seems like the sensible thing to do, don't you think? So why did you make it sound like you were constantly being ignored or given the runaround? "...I guess I was peeved that everytime (bolding is mine) I ask a question on here - my question is not answered and is directed somewhere else". Everytime ???
You may feel that you're pretty good at "telling what's real", but thousands of buyers and seller of classic and vintage "Coach" have felt the same and been proved wrong, and it's often cost them money and even affected their selling privileges at sites like Ebay. That Google Search for "Coach 308-9875" is just one example. For more, read the Daria48 Fake Coach Numbers list toward the end of the same thread here in this Coach Selling Forum as the Salearea Coach Guides, every single one of that list of numbers was "assumed" to be real by at least 2 people and usually a lot more, sometimes VERY experienced Coach buyers and sellers Even the authenticators here have unknowingly bought fakes before we were aware of the possible problems or were able to take a close look at the bags. We volunteer our time and our resources free of charge here so others don't make the same mistkes.
THAT'S why we spend our spare time analyzing both fake and real items and building up libraries of photos and information on both real and counterfeit Coach-branded products. We also spend money out of our own pockets for things like old Coach catalogs to add to our reference files - have you priced Coach catalogs on Ebay recently? So when someone claims that a blind, deaf and dumb search engine like Google can give her the same information as we can and with the same accuracy, we DO take it as an insult. It's like "Thanks, Doctor, but I really don't need your help any more. A lady in the checkout line at the grocery store was complaining of almost the same thing so I'm going to take her advice instead."
Your "tons of resources" can be just the same 10-or 15-year old misinformation tweaked and re-re-re-re-posted for the umpteenth time. Just because there's more of it doesn't mean it's right, just that more people are repeating it, that's what the internet is so good at . If you took time to really read theSalearea Guides you'd find a lot of reasons why depending on anonymous and usually seriously outdated "guides" on the internet is so dangerous. The Salearea Guides, the Daria48 Fake Numbers List, and the questions posted in these forums are neither anonymous nor outdated as long as you search for the most recent posts on a subject. Relying on a search engine that has no way of distinguishing accurate information from complete BS isn't the smartest thing to do either. Can Google tell you if your Coaches are genuine? NO. The proof is right in that Google search for "Coach 308-9875".
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If I may... when we come here as new members, some of us feel a bit lost or overwhelmed... we might even think "what the heck is this about rules, etc...", but if you want to be part of the forum, you do it the right way and with time you understand why the sections and threads are set up a certain way, and rules are to be followed. This way the very generous and helpful ladies that authenticate and answer questions, know where to go and be faster and more effective.
As a newbie here, I also left questions on the wrong threads or didn't use the format, when I was reminded of the rules, I apologized and was more careful in the future, I didn't get all defensive about it.
I also research on Goggle, selling platforms, etc... before coming here with my questions, so I ask if this info is correct, sometimes I feel proud of myself I got it right, but others not. They have saved me in a few occasion from making a costly mistake, and I am very grateful.
Google has NOTHING on them, they are a living Coach encyclopedia.
As a newbie here, I also left questions on the wrong threads or didn't use the format, when I was reminded of the rules, I apologized and was more careful in the future, I didn't get all defensive about it.
I also research on Goggle, selling platforms, etc... before coming here with my questions, so I ask if this info is correct, sometimes I feel proud of myself I got it right, but others not. They have saved me in a few occasion from making a costly mistake, and I am very grateful.
Google has NOTHING on them, they are a living Coach encyclopedia.
Hello ladies,
I was told before that in some Sonomas was not unusual to see some of the letter/number transposed.
Could it be the case on this bag as well?
I was told before that in some Sonomas was not unusual to see some of the letter/number transposed.
Could it be the case on this bag as well?
Hi! I acquired this Willis yesterday from my local thrift store and had it authenticated in the AT thread. I forgot to ask for guidance on how to identify what year the bag was made. I just finished re-reading the Salearea guide and it mentions that factory code letters ran out so Coach switched to numbers. Was this bag made in 2004, with a factory code 3? I appreciate your time and expertise! 
