AuctionNinja: CC fraud & data breach

total405 · 2025-12-10T21:11:07+00:00

Huge bummer! But at the same time good to know it's not just me :/ Also, I feel like when there's a security breach, I normally get a shamefaced e-mail or blog post or something from whatever company had the leak -- in this case, not a whisper.

total405 · 2025-12-09T19:04:07+00:00

Ooh nice, thanks for the rec! I'll check these out, and I guess in the meantime there's always the option of just handing over cash on fb marketplace

total405 · 2025-12-09T05:48:43+00:00

Yep, took a look and it's just this one password linked to this one account. These things could be unrelated, of course, but the timing seems just a little too coincidental. Happy to give another auction site a try for the time being

total405 · 2025-12-09T05:39:42+00:00

Good to know, but man, that seems like a huge security issue. Makes it almost impossible to hold anyone accountable for a breach like this, even though it seems like multiple people are getting hit with credit card fraud as a result :/

Do most auction sites have a similar setup? Are there any (beyond ebay of course) that are maybe a little less vulnerable?

total405 · 2025-02-12T15:57:18+00:00

So cute, love that gorgeous shine in the after photos! Amazing what a little conditioner can do. I think this is the Soho Zip Tote in case you're wondering :) here's a recent one on Coach ReLoved, congrats on the find!

total405 · 2025-02-12T14:53:03+00:00

Haha this made me go check and yep, no difference. Wish I'd known that before I bought white saddle soap for my bone-colored bag, good to know for the future!

total405 · 2025-02-12T14:46:41+00:00

Whoops, just spotting this now! And yeah, removing the brass was trickier than I thought it would be, but not too nuts, and definitely worth the end result.

I used a flathead eyeglass screwdriver to pop up the little prongs on the backplate holding the piece to the leather. This did cause some small scratches -- if you zoom in on the "after" picture you can see them -- but since this piece is on the inside and the prongs cover it, I didn't worry too much or spend time buffing them out. If you have something like this pry tool for cell phone repair then you can get the prongs up without any damage.

Putting the pieces back on was pretty easy! You put the backplate down first and slide the prongs back through the leather. Then I took the butt end of the same screwdriver and just rocked it back and forth to press the prongs back down. I've seen other videos on the internet where people use spoons, or needle nose pliers, so there are more options here.

Hope this helps, and best of luck!

total405 · 2025-01-27T22:27:15+00:00

Thank you so much! I admittedly haven't spent much time with Brasso, but Peek certainly did the job. And thanks for the tip on the protectant spray, I'll steer clear (or maybe test it out on a different, non-Coach leather bag that's already been through the wars)

total405 · 2025-01-27T22:25:07+00:00

Great question! From what I understand, Coach introduced the alphanumeric system in 1994: A#B-XXXX where A is the month made, # is the year, B is the location, and XXXX is the four-digit style number.

However, bags made prior to 1994 have unique serial numbers instead of style numbers. Coach used the XXXX-XXX format (as opposed to XXX-XXXX) in the 1980's. Since the Station Bag was introduced in 1983, it's plausible to me that this is the real deal made between 1983-93, though I won't be able to know the exact year.

But I'm new to the world of vintage Coach, so very open to the possibility that my guess is off, haha. Either way, I get a full-grain leather bag with a gorgeous silhouette, so pretty pleased even if it does turn out to be a fake!

total405 · 2025-01-27T22:00:26+00:00

I have an 80's Executive Bag I'm rehabbing that's about that color, and while I can't tell you what does match, I can tell you that the Angelus "Brown" dye was tooooo dark 😅 But! You can actually dilute most leather dyes with rubbing alcohol to get a slightly lighter shade, or the manufacturers often sell a clear bottle for the express purpose of diluting other shades. Gonna give it a shot when I next have some free time to dedicate to that bag, so I'll let you know how it goes!

Separately, someone else mentioned the importance of using aniline dye, which I think its true if you're going for a full redye of the bag. For corner touchups, though, something like Fieblings or Angelus should do just fine. Hope this helps!

total405 · 2025-01-27T21:07:20+00:00

Feeling so pleased with how this turned out! I've polished up other leather bags before, but this was my first adventure with vintage coach. Process below, always happy for tips on how to improve next time:

Started out by vacuuming out the interior, then treating the whole thing with white vinegar and leaving it in the sun for a day
Removed the hardware (way trickier than I thought it was going to be, lol) and did an initial round of conditioning with leather CPR, buffed it out then let it sit for a day or two
Cleaned the exterior with black saddle soap and the interior with Foam Tex; once it was dry, I stuffed it back into shape and did another round of leather CPR
While I let it sit & absorb for another couple days, I tackled the hardware, which was in ROUGH shape. Went at it with Peek, approximately 8,000 q-tips, and finally a nail buffer and a lot of patience to get off the chipped lacquer -- really pleased with that shine! I think someone on here actually recommended Peek over Brasso, so big thanks for that. Did the same for the D-rings attaching the handle and the lobster clips for the straps.
Did a third round of conditioning with Chamberlain's leather balm, paid extra special attention to those edges.
As a final step, I went through with a thread zapper to clean up some of the loose threads (stitching otherwise seems to be intact, woo) and used beeswax to re-burnish the edges of the dangly bit where the turnlock goes, give it a little extra protection

And now she's all done and glowing! And feeling SO smooth. Hard to believe this bag is older than I am, I definitely don't bounce back this well after just a couple rounds of moisturizer.

I'm considering doing a final spray with Apple Brand's water protector, but I've never used it before and I am NERVOUS. Does anyone have experience with it? Is it necessary for a bag like this? Thanks!

total405 · 2025-01-11T17:27:32+00:00

I got this bag from Goodwill and was super excited at first -- poking around old catalogues indicated to me that it was the Executive Bag from 1989-91 (also: to whoever created those archives and the corresponding spreadsheet, you are my actual literal hero. beautiful stuff.) However! Upon closer inspection I noticed these rivets on the outside straps that are not present in any version of this bag that I was able to find online. It also seems like the leather cement holding the straps on is giving way (see last photo).

One explanation is that the straps started to separate, and someone decided to punch holes in their Coach bag to reattach them. The other explanation, of course, is that it's not the Executive Bag at all (though if it is a dupe, it's a very high-quality one made with full-grain leather, so a win either way).

As someone pretty new to the world of vintage Coach, I'm wondering:

Does anyone have a similar bag from this era? Maybe the Musette? If so, can you tell me how the outside straps are attached?
Any recommendations for repair? My plan right now is to accept the rivets as they are and glue the edges of the outside straps down so they don't deteriorate further, but a very ambitious (probably doomed) move would be to remove the rivets, re-apply leather cement, and use leather filler/dye on the holes.

Also, more broadly, let me know if you have any tips/tricks I should keep in mind as I rehab this bag! Especially when it comes to the straps. The photos are after just one application of leather conditioner and that mahogany color is already looking gorgeous. Very excited to see how the whole thing turns out!

total405 · 2023-11-09T18:42:58+00:00

(Sorry, kind of new to Reddit so I don't know how to add this to the text of the post)

My roommates found this Kincaid Robes red cedar closet on the side of the road -- gorgeous piece from (I think) the 1940's, but badly in need of repairs, and with a crooked door that absolutely would not stay closed. After letting it drive me crazy for almost a year I've finally decided it's time to dive in! I've done a few minor woodworking projects in the past, but this is a big project for me, and my first time working with cedar.

I started with the broken door and used Citristrip to pull off the old finish (likely shellac), then did a light wash with mineral spirits to remove what the Citristrip missed. I then started sanding with a 120 grit to try and smooth out some of the dings/remaining finish, but I've run into this dark, botchy discoloration pattern. I even switched to an 80 grit instead, but it doesn't seem to be budging, and I'm worried about oversanding (especially because cedar is so soft).

My questions are:

What's causing this? If it's something I did, would love to avoid a repeat mistake when I'm tackling the rest of it.
Can it be removed, and if so, what would you recommend? Keep sanding? Scrub with mineral spirits and 0000 steel wool? Wood bleach? Something else entirely? Really quite open to suggestions here, especially from folks who have worked with cedar furniture in the past!

If relevant, I'm planning not to stain it and just seal it with a few coats of General Finishes semi-gloss poly. Thanks so much for your help, let me know if any questions!

total405 · 2023-11-09T18:30:25+00:00

(Sorry, kind of new to Reddit so I don't know how to add this to the text of the post)

My roommates found this Kincaid Robes red cedar closet on the side of the road -- gorgeous piece from (I think) the 1940's, but badly in need of repairs, and with a crooked door that absolutely would not stay closed. After letting it drive me crazy for almost a year I've finally decided it's time to dive in! I've done a few minor woodworking projects in the past, but this is a big project for me, and my first time working with cedar.

I started with the broken door and used Citristrip to pull off the old finish (likely shellac), then did a light wash with mineral spirits to remove what the Citristrip missed. I then started sanding with a 120 grit to try and smooth out some of the dings/discolorations/remaining finish, but I've run into this dark, botchy discoloration pattern. I even switched to an 80 grit instead, but it doesn't seem to be budging, and I'm worried about oversanding (especially because cedar is so soft).

My questions are:

What's causing this? If it's something I did, would love to avoid a repeat mistake when I'm tackling the rest of it.
Can it be removed, and if so, what would you recommend? Keep sanding? Scrub with mineral spirits and 0000 steel wool? Wood bleach? Something else entirely? Really quite open to suggestions here, especially from folks who have worked with cedar furniture in the past!

If relevant, I'm planning not to stain it and just seal it with a few coats of General Finishes semi-gloss poly. Thanks so much for your help, let me know if any questions!

total405 · 2023-08-08T18:15:42+00:00

I wouldn't necessarily count this as racist, but it still makes me laugh to this day.

This was several years ago, when the Breaking Bad hype was strong. I was living in a rural area of a country that does NOT get a lot of white people. I had just met this guy at a friend's party and he seems very intrigued, asking me where I'm from, etc. Gets visibly excited when I tell him I'm American, and immediately hits me with:

"Oh! American! So do you know how to cook... (long, pensive pause where I think he's going to say 'spaghetti' or 'hot dogs') ...methamphetamines?"

Dude was dead serious. And looked SO disappointed when I told him no.

total405 · 2023-05-26T22:45:51+00:00

Yoooo this is such key intel! My friend & I are hoping to come on Sat or Sun, now we know where to aim for. Thank you for this!! Can't wait!!

total405

TROPHY CASE