Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[Esquared72]

Just as an FYI... rather than calling Coach, I submitted a request through the 'Contact Us' on the Coach website. I literally had a response within 5 minutes!!

The response was that they are very happy to provide me a replacement and asked for address, registration number and leather/hardware colors.

Very impressed by the super fast response time!! Hopefully the mailing of the tag will be speedy, too.

 

[MRSBWS]

I am not surprised, but I just noticed all our "chatting" was removed from the vintage reference thread. I realize it's against the rules, but I feel like the vintage thread is different than the modern stuff because things are rarer and it isn't a very over crowded thread over all. OH WELL. I guess we can talk to each other about our posts elsewhere.

Yeah, I was so excited about your pics I forgot it was a "No Chat" thread. Is there a "Chat about your Vintage Coach" thread?

 

[Jessi319]

Yeah, I was so excited about your pics I forgot it was a "No Chat" thread. Is there a "Chat about your Vintage Coach" thread?

I don't think there's a specific response thread. there have been so many times I wanted to respond to photos I see on there too. I guess we just have to send private messages. I wish there was a better option.

 

[Porter4]

Was hoping for some feedback. I am rehabbing a very abused Basic Bag. The things was so dried out it felt like cardboard inside. It also had hairline cracking on the outside. I have bathed it and am planning on initially using almond oil on it to start. I know to start pretty early on this bag so it doesn't crack while drying, how damp do you think it should be? I am anxious to get something into the leather, but don't want to start too early

 

[m3rma1d]

I had a dr appt today which just happened to be right next to a Rite Aid, which just happened to carry the Oxi Max gel stick thingy. They only had ONE left and I got it YAY!

So now what do I do with it? Apply it along the stain line? Let it sit? How long?

 

[katev]

I don't know if it will help that stain but I would rub it into all the stained areas (inside and out) and let it sit for an hour or so - then apply some more to the stained areas and give it a soak in the suds and a vigorous washing.

But I have never rehabbed that bag or a leather bag with such a bad stain. I have used oxygel on a stained british tan city bag but then I cycled it through the washer, and it came out a little cleaner and brighter - but I don't know if it was the oxygel or the washing cycle or both!

 

[ledobe]

Hi all! I am a relative Coach newbie, I have 5, and I'm ashamed to say I have not been very careful with them and never cleaned or conditioned my older bags.( hangs head in shame) I would love to give them a good cleaning, so I've been lurking- reading up on methods. I have an '04 Willis that shows signs of normal wear, I think I can ( hopefully) handle giving her a bath, reshaping, and conditioning her.
I also have a medium Zoe who needs some TLC. She's what I call " pearlized" leather. I did a search of this thread, and didn't see any methods. Would any one here know if there is a different methods/products to use for cleaning "pearlized" ( not sure what it's really called, sorry ) leather?
Here she is...

View attachment 1819157

Is there somewhere on the leather where you can spot check with a damp cloth and maybe a little soap to see how the finish "handles" it? That's where I would start. Well, I'd probably start by throwing it in the washing machine, but someone more conservative would probably start with a damp cloth in a hidden area. If it handles that OK, you might try a little mild soap and test with that.

I have been away from a computer (sort of) for big chunks of my days so I haven't been able to comment on everything I wanted to, so apologies in advance for when I get back on here in a few days and post a bunch of comments all in a row.

 

[m3rma1d]

I don't know if it will help that stain but I would rub it into all the stained areas (inside and out) and let it sit for an hour or so - then apply some more to the stained areas and give it a soak in the suds and a vigorous washing.

But I have never rehabbed that bag or a leather bag with such a bad stain. I have used oxygel on a stained british tan city bag but then I cycled it through the washer, and it came out a little cleaner and brighter - but I don't know if it was the oxygel or the washing cycle or both!

Thanks so much for all your advice!

 

[2Blessed]

I don't think you need a leather shop unless you think you need to replace the zipper. You can go to any fabric store and get something to repair the fabric. I'm thinking ideally of something you can bond to it from the underside to hold it together, but most of those have to be ironed.

Good evening ladies! I wanted to report back on the zipper problem. I wasn't able to do anything with it. I couldn't even get into the area to attempt any kind of repair. I decided to e-mail Coach Repairs to see if they could help. This is the response I got:
We are sorry to learn you are having a problem with your COACH item. It is our policy to stand behind our goods against manufacturing defects for the natural life of our merchandise, excluding normal wear.

"Please take your item to your nearest COACH store for evaluation or you may mail it directly to the Repair Department referenced in the link below:
http://www.coach.com/online/handbag...US/CustomerService/ProductInformation/Repairs

There is a $20 shipping & handling charge (plus tax, where applicable) per item that covers evaluation and processing, return packaging and shipping expenses. We offer repairs, when possible, on items such as bindings, zippers and hardware. Unfortunately, we do not offer a cleaning or refurbishing service.

If you need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,
Nick
COACH Online Consumer Service"

So my question, has anyone had a vintage bag repaired by Coach? It would seem the issue I am having with the zipper fabric would fall under the "life of the item" or would it be "general wear?" I'm over an hour from a Coach store and there is no leather repair shops here. Your ideas and suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Tia!

 

[GoStanford]

Good evening ladies! I wanted to report back on the zipper problem. I wasn't able to do anything with it. I couldn't even get into the area to attempt any kind of repair. I decided to e-mail Coach Repairs to see if they could help. This is the response I got:
We are sorry to learn you are having a problem with your COACH item. It is our policy to stand behind our goods against manufacturing defects for the natural life of our merchandise, excluding normal wear.

"Please take your item to your nearest COACH store for evaluation or you may mail it directly to the Repair Department referenced in the link below:
http://www.coach.com/online/handbags/genWCM-10551-10051-en-/Coach_US/CustomerService/ProductInformation/Repairs

There is a $20 shipping & handling charge (plus tax, where applicable) per item that covers evaluation and processing, return packaging and shipping expenses. We offer repairs, when possible, on items such as bindings, zippers and hardware. Unfortunately, we do not offer a cleaning or refurbishing service.

If you need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,
Nick
COACH Online Consumer Service"

So my question, has anyone had a vintage bag repaired by Coach? It would seem the issue I am having with the zipper fabric would fall under the "life of the item" or would it be "general wear?" I'm over an hour from a Coach store and there is no leather repair shops here. Your ideas and suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Tia!

I got the exact same response today about an unused older not quite vintage bag. Since customer service suggested sending it in I am going to do that. I kind of feel like the extra 20 dollars might be throwing good money away but at this point I want to see if they can repair an area with dried up flaking off glue.

I will let you know if it works out. FYI some people have posted that they don't get their bags back if they can't be repaired and instead you get a discount coupon. So you may want to specify they should return the bag. I am not sure if they will obey that.

More experienced tpf folks please advise. TIA.

 

[chowlover2]

I got the exact same response today about an unused older not quite vintage bag. Since customer service suggested sending it in I am going to do that. I kind of feel like the extra 20 dollars might be throwing good money away but at this point I want to see if they can repair an area with dried up flaking off glue.

I will let you know if it works out. FYI some people have posted that they don't get their bags back if they can't be repaired and instead you get a discount coupon. So you may want to specify they should return the bag. I am not sure if they will obey that.

More experienced tpf folks please advise. TIA.

If you want the bag returned, make sure you mention it in your letter, they will return. If not, they will dispose of and send you a 20% off coupon at any Coach store.

 

[2Blessed]

I got the exact same response today about an unused older not quite vintage bag. Since customer service suggested sending it in I am going to do that. I kind of feel like the extra 20 dollars might be throwing good money away but at this point I want to see if they can repair an area with dried up flaking off glue.

I will let you know if it works out. FYI some people have posted that they don't get their bags back if they can't be repaired and instead you get a discount coupon. So you may want to specify they should return the bag. I am not sure if they will obey that.

More experienced tpf folks please advise. TIA.

Thank you GoStanford. I would be interested in hearing how yours works out so please post the outcome if you would. Glad you forewarned me about the bag return, I didn't know about that!

 

[2Blessed]

If you want the bag returned, make sure you mention it in your letter, they will return. If not, they will dispose of and send you a 20% off coupon at any Coach store.

Thanks chow lover! I will do that. I would have been shocked if they threw the bag out because I didn't tell them I wanted it back!

 

[m3rma1d]

So now that my Crescent has dried for a couple days, I thought I'd show the progress so far...

The stain on the front is still visible, but on the back it hardly shows! This gives me hope!!

I am now about to tackle with the Oxi Max gel stick thingy.

 

[Porter4]

So now that my Crescent has dried for a couple days, I thought I'd show the progress so far...

The stain on the front is still visible, but on the back it hardly shows! This gives me hope!!

I am now about to tackle with the Oxi Max gel stick thingy.

YEAH! I am stalking your posts, as I have a courier pouch that I have been nervous about taking the oxi gel to, but I think I need to face the fact that I need to move to more drastic measures with her. Glad your bag is coming out so nicely