Are vintage bags made in Costa Rico not as good as the ones made in USA?

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#4
PlatinumSerenity said:
Really? why would you say the bags in Costa Rica are better than the bags made in USA/ NYC ?

I would have thought the NYC bags would be better, no?

When were the vintage bags from Costa Rica made (like which years) vs. the USA/ NYC bags made during which years??

Thank you
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They must be the same, I was correcting the name of the country. oops
 
#7
PlatinumSerenity said:
Really? why would you say the bags in Costa Rica are better than the bags made in USA/ NYC ?

I would have thought the NYC bags would be better, no?

When were the vintage bags from Costa Rica made (like which years) vs. the USA/ NYC bags made during which years??

Thank you
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she was just correcting the typo.
 
#8
The excerpt below is from a message I posted a few months ago on the authentication thread. We were discussing different generations of bags, places of manufacturer, quality of zippers and hangtag styles.

I compared 4 City Bags including one made in Costa Rica, one made in Turkey and 2 made in the US.

Since then I have given away the Costa Rica bag but it was a gorgeous, well-made bag. However, I think that the older made in US bags were better made with thicker leather and heavier zippers and hardware.

But the flip-side is that the Costa Rica bag was newer than the USA bags and it was in much better shape and looked great!

Here's my earlier post:

"I currently have 4 City Bags in my possesion (I really have to stop buying rehab projects and/or do something with my vintage collection!)

Red City Bag: made in 1992 in Costa Rica, the hangtag is finished on both sides. The inner pocket has a small, brass YKK zipper pull and the zipper has plastic threads.

Black City Bag #2: Made in Turkey in 1996, the hangtag is finished on both sides. The inner pocket has a larger, brass YKK zipper pull and the zipper has brass threads.

Black City Bag #1: Made in the United States circa 1980s, it has a replacement hangtag and a larger YKK brass zipper pull and brass zipper threads.

British Tan City Bag: Made in the United States circa 1980s, the hangtag is finished on 1 side only. It has a slightly smaller YKK brass zipper pull and threads.

The leather on the US made bags feels thicker! "
 
#9
So I had to go shop in my closet (and my daughter's, since my stuff is taking up real estate there too) and compared my Stewardess which is NYC to my Patricia, which is Costa Rica. They're both fab, but I must agree with Katev that the NYC feels thicker. It's going with me on a biz trip to Phoenix next week, and I'm kinda excited about being the only vintage wearer of my group. So glad I've hung on to these bags...
 
#10
thank you for everyone's comparision between their Costa Rica bag vs. NYC/ USA bags.

So I guess so far, the leather on the USA/ NYC bag is thicker.

Is there much of a difference between "made in NYC" bags vs. "Made in USA" bags ?

Also, when did they start making bags in Costa Rica?
 
#11
WOW, this is great insight. How many of us can compare several generations of the same bag all at once? I was just thinking about this since I just picked up a Costa Rico station bag.
I have 2 Costa Rico bags a murphy K8P- 9930 and a Station D9P- 5130. Both feel great however, the Murphy which I believe is slightly older feels like better leather. Not sure but the other bag may be a rerelease? My Creed reading sucks, but I think the bags were 88 and 89 or is that 98 and 99???? What the heck does that P stand for????
My USA leather on my older bags feel slightly more lush than the Costa Rico bags. Zippers and hardware feel sturdier. Since the styles are different though, I can not make concrete observations on the two. I see no huge differences.
 
#13
PlatinumSerenity said:
thank you for everyone's comparision between their Costa Rica bag vs. NYC/ USA bags.

So I guess so far, the leather on the USA/ NYC bag is thicker.

Is there much of a difference between "made in NYC" bags vs. "Made in USA" bags ?

Also, when did they start making bags in Costa Rica?
Click to expand...

I've never noticed much difference between the made in the NYC and the USA bags.
 
#15
PlatinumSerenity said:
So when comparing the leather quality on CostaRica vs. NYC/ USA... is the difference in leather quality SUBSTANTIALLY HUGE difference? OR just a minor subtle detail on quality difference??
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Just minor differences. And the bigger the bag is, the more someone might appreciate a slightly thinner leather. Coach DID make an effort to take a few extra ounces off their bags in the late 1980s and 1990s because some customers were complaining about the heavy bags causing problems with the nerves and muscles in their necks and shoulders. That's why they introduced the Lightweights which later became the Sohos. I've had several Taft Bags from different countries and with that large and heavy a bag, the one from Costa Rica is probably the easiest to carry. Of course it doesn't hurt that it's red.

I have leather bags from every place Coach made them and probably the only ones (besides the recent Chinese ones) that I wasn't completely happy with were Hungary and Turkey. My top-rated plant locations would be Italy, US, and Costa Rica in no particular order.

JMO. Your mileage may differ.
 
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