AUTHENTICATE this COACH

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#5,986
sawred14 said:
Hello, trying to get a gift for the GF, and ran across some Coach bags on Craigslist. I understand i am not giving enough info to get a definitive answer, but i wanted someone who knows more about this stuff than I to give a second opinion: are there any obvious red flags for this purse? Going to check them out in person today so if there's anything i should be aware of it would be great to know.

Item Name (if you know it): Coach Sig Stripe Scarf Small Hobo (Not 100% sure on this)
Link (if available): N/A

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sawred14 said:
Going to check out this purse in person today, don't have any additional photos right now. Does anyone see anything here that should give me red flags?

Item Name (if you know it): COACH KYRA NYLON TOP HANDLE TOTE (Not 100% sure on this)
Link (if available): N/A

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They both look good.
 
#5,990
Morning,
This one is in my possession. I believe it's a Lexington? Hope it's the real deal. TIA.
 

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#5,991
DalGal said:
Morning,
This one is in my possession. I believe it's a Lexington? Hope it's the real deal. TIA.
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Sorry, I don't think it's genuine.

Thye creed stamping is really blurry and hard to read and it shouldn't be. The leather lining inside the flap has a serious problem, what we call "elephant-skin" wrinkles, and I believe that's a sign of overprocessed or overstretched leather. You would NEVER find that on a genuine Coach (that briefcase would never have been allowed to leave the factory with so much damaged leather) but it's in thousands of fakes and is always a red flag when it's on areas on the bag where the leather never gets pulled or stretched, like in the briefcase.

The creed stamp says it's made in the US but "E" has always been the code for Italy. Below is a creed from an absolutely genuine Madison Royalton showing the exact same prefix meaning they both were supposedly made in the same month, year and plant, but the genuine Madison, like all Madisons, says Made in Italy. Here's the listing:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-COA...883?pt=US_CSA_WH_Handbags&hash=item565b93a3fb

ETA - Below that is a creed stamp also from the Italian plant with the "i" month code and with the same creed statement (scars, scratches veins and wrinkles) as your briefcase. Look at the difference in the actual creed stamping - the clarity of the letters, the lack of any "puffiness", always a red flag in 1990s creeds, and the shape, font and details of the Coach logo above the creed, etc.
 

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#5,992
Hyacinth said:
Sorry, I don't think it's genuine.

Thye creed stamping is really blurry and hard to read and it shouldn't be. The leather lining inside the flap has a serious problem, what we call "elephant-skin" wrinkles, and I believe that's a sign of overprocessed or overstretched leather. You would NEVER find that on a genuine Coach (that briefcase would never have been allowed to leave the factory with so much damaged leather) but it's in thousands of fakes and is always a red flag when it's on areas on the bag where the leather never gets pulled or stretched, like in the briefcase.

The creed stamp says it's made in the US but "E" has always been the code for Italy. Below is a creed from an absolutely genuine Madison Royalton showing the exact same prefix meaning they both were supposedly made in the same month, year and plant, but the genuine Madison, like all Madisons, says Made in Italy. Here's the listing:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-COA...883?pt=US_CSA_WH_Handbags&hash=item565b93a3fb
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Thanks Hyacinth, I appreciate you taking a look at it. I had my suspicions when I saw the wrinkles under the flap. Is there a list somewhere of what letter corresponds to what plant/country? I have been reading the guides, but haven't seen one for plant codes, of course it's very possible I missed it. I will be requesting a refund on the item.
 
#5,993
DalGal said:
Thanks Hyacinth, I appreciate you taking a look at it. I had my suspicions when I saw the wrinkles under the flap. Is there a list somewhere of what letter corresponds to what plant/country? I have been reading the guides, but haven't seen one for plant codes, of course it's very possible I missed it. I will be requesting a refund on the item.
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I added another paragraph and photo after you posted your reply.

There's no Master List of plant codes because Coach has never released a list of any kind. All the codes we've managed to pin down have been found by the members of this board and the old Ebay Purses board.

Posting any kind of a list would only be confusing because some code letters were used for more than one plant - if a plant shut down permanently the code letter or number often would get passed on to another plant. So those "floating codes" would stil have to be analyzed by someone who knew or could find out the dates.

I also try to be careful about what kind of information I post publicly, and so do the other authenticators. Since I have a strong hunch that someone somewhere is STILL making fake "classics" from the 1990s there's no way I'm going to give them that kind of information so they can make their fakes more accurate.
 
#5,994
Hyacinth said:
I added another paragraph and photo after you posted your reply.

There's no Master List of plant codes because Coach has never released a list of any kind. All the codes we've managed to pin down have been found by the members of this board and the old Ebay Purses board.

Posting any kind of a list would only be confusing because some code letters were used for more than one plant - if a plant shut down permanently the code letter or number often would get passed on to another plant. So those "floating codes" would stil have to be analyzed by someone who knew or could find out the dates.

I also try to be careful about what kind of information I post publicly, and so do the other authenticators. Since I have a strong hunch that someone somewhere is STILL making fake "classics" from the 1990s there's no way I'm going to give them that kind of information so they can make their fakes more accurate.
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I never thought of it that way, but it makes absolute sense. Why help the criminals become better criminals....they do pretty good all on their own.
 
#5,995
whateve said:
The padding above the turnlock is a very distinctive shape. That's the first thing I always look at. The padded piece holding the male part of the turnlock should be symmetrical. An authentic Willis will have leather covering the dowel ends. On some fakes, they just paint the end of the wood. This isn't always 100% proof because the leather could have come off. The back of the turnlock on the inside of any bag with a turnlock is another thing the counterfeiters often miss on. The inside zipper pull should have the chain. Some fakes will have a large ring on the pull. The inside zipper will have metal stops at both ends. Check the shape of the handle and the distance between the edgings on the handle. Check for straight, not sloppy stitching.
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Thanks Whateve, that's really, really helpful. My only Willis was authenticated here, so I have that to compare to. Are the back of the turnlocks very different? I'm not sure what to look for there. I know that's difficult to answer, without helping the bad guys as discussed above...
 
#5,996
Hyacinth said:
I don't think it should be reported without a clear readable photo of the creed that actually shows a fake number. To me it looks like there's a 5-digit style number but the first digit is badly stamped and impossible to read - there are definitely 5 marks after the dash. The details look right for a Kristin and the bag shouldn't be reported based just on what the seller posts as the serial number.
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No problem. That's why I came here first to consult :)) THX again!
 
#5,997
Katherine2020 said:
Thanks Whateve, that's really, really helpful. My only Willis was authenticated here, so I have that to compare to. Are the back of the turnlocks very different? I'm not sure what to look for there. I know that's difficult to answer, without helping the bad guys as discussed above...
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You're welcome. Sometimes on the counterfeit bags, there will be leather covering the back of the turnlock or the counterfeiters will use a turnlock that is similar but not exactly like Coach turnlocks. On the back of the oval opening part, there should be 4 triangular shaped prongs. You can look at the back of the male part of the turnlock on your Willis to see what it is supposed to look like. The bags I have with turnlocks that were made in New York City look the same on the back of the oval opening part but are different on the back of the male part.
 
#5,998
whateve said:
You're welcome. Sometimes on the counterfeit bags, there will be leather covering the back of the turnlock or the counterfeiters will use a turnlock that is similar but not exactly like Coach turnlocks. On the back of the oval opening part, there should be 4 triangular shaped prongs. You can look at the back of the male part of the turnlock on your Willis to see what it is supposed to look like. The bags I have with turnlocks that were made in New York City look the same on the back of the oval opening part but are different on the back of the male part.
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Okay, I thought there might have been a leather covering on the fakes. I looked at one last week that had a piece of leather glued over. It also had an unreadable creed because it was stamped onto wiggly, overstretched leather, so it was pretty obvious. Thanks again! I appreciate your time.
 
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