Not so happy experience with Vanson repair

[JMax]

It got cleaned up in the end. We should give all makers an opportunity to do just that. Prior to the TFL strafing run.

 

[whataboutalifetime]

It got cleaned up in the end. We should give all makers an opportunity to do just that. Prior to the TFL strafing run.

No it's different. I notified the guy who called me yesterday about the original quote, and he apparently failed to honor the price. Today I don't know what happened they determined to refund me, maybe someone noticed this post. This shouldn't happen in the beginning. Again, if next time someone gets a quote by phone call instead of email like me, he may have to accept the loss of money and time.

 

[Hh121]

As much as I hate their customer service, I think the nick guy probably give you the wrong quote, I just checked their repair price, any work with waist starts from $155, $60 sounds too low for the work.
Of course, they should honor the price they quote the first time, no question about it, it shows their integrity.

 

[JMax]

No it's different. I notified the guy who called me yesterday about the original quote, and he apparently failed to honor the price. Today I don't know what happened they determined to refund me, maybe someone noticed this post. This shouldn't happen in the beginning. Again, if next time someone gets a quote by phone call instead of email like me, he may have to accept the loss of money and time.

Sounds like it was ok after it all got back to the dude who gave you the original quote. Glad it worked out. I’ve dealt with Vanson. A lot. Fortunate all were easy interactions.

 

[JMax]

As much as I hate their customer service, I think the nick guy probably give you the wrong quote, I just checked their repair price, any work with waist starts from $155, $60 sounds too low for the work.
Of course, they should honor the price they quote the first time, no question about it, it shows their integrity.

Exactly. They did.

 

[whataboutalifetime]

Sounds like it was ok after it all got back to the dude who gave you the original quote. Glad it worked out. I’ve dealt with Vanson. A lot. Fortunate all were easy interactions.

Yeah, I know it's like I returned an Amazon order and still give it a one-star review. I will update here if they refund me as agreed. I want to make it fair as possible.

 

[JMax]

Yeah, I know it's like I returned an Amazon order and still give it a one-star review. I will update here if they refund me as agreed. I want to make it fair as possible.

I feel ya. I definitely woulda been pissed if I felt they scammed me. And probably said regretful things to them on the phone and been banned. Lol. I do hope they make it right and honor their OG quote. Not all would.

 

[Carlos840]

As much as I hate their customer service, I think the nick guy probably give you the wrong quote, I just checked their repair price, any work with waist starts from $155, $60 sounds too low for the work.
Of course, they should honor the price they quote the first time, no question about it, it shows their integrity.

That Nick guy is useless...
He spent some time trying to tell me that my CXL Vansons couldn't actually be made by Vanson as the underside of the leather was brown and Vanson only used leather that was black all the way through...
I told him i thought he was confused, explained the situation, that was a week ago no answer since then.
I miss Constantine...

 

[Fifty150]

I have a leather jacket that I just did not like the sleeve length. Relaxed, with my arms at my side, the sleeve covered the first knuckles of my fingers. I wanted to shorten it a few inches, so that the sleeve would go to the first joint of my thumb.

I brought the jacket to a local leather shop. I won't mention the shop by name, because so many Fedora Lounge members love this shop, and I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. The shop's tailor, whom some here know on a first name basis, was ever attentive. I put the jacket on. He pulls the sleeves and straightens it. We both agree that the sleeve is too long. We go out to my bike, I sit on the bike and grab the handlebars. He takes a few measurements. We go back into the shop. He makes his chalk marks. It is a motorcycle jacket, so the sleeves should taper to the wrist so that wind does not blow rain up the sleeve. 2" off the cuff. 2" tapered circumference. Just as I measured at home.

Turn-around time is irrelevant. I didn't ask him to rush the order. Just call me when it's ready. In the days before e-mail and text. We'll just say that kitchens and bathrooms are remodelled in less time.

Pricing is irrelevant. They are expensive. We all know that. A dry cleaner could have done the job for 1/4 what they charged. I could have had dinner at Peter Luger with that money. But that's okay. I figured that I was paying a premium for a leather specialist. It was expensive enough that some may have to work several days to pay for that alteration.

Eventually, after I got several haircuts and the seasons changed, I got the call. Your jacket is ready.

I try the jacket on. Something didn't feel right. We're both standing in the mirror. He's pulling, and tugging, and trying to make the jacket sit square on my shoulders.....then I can see the smile turn down. He suddenly looked like he smelled something distasteful. I showered that week. And I did not pass gas. Maybe he did. Then I saw it also.

The tailor's sewing machine operators simply cut off a few inches, and hemmed the cuff. They did not follow the chalk marks, or take take the cuff in at a taper. They did not follow all of the chalk marks for the bend of the arm, in relation to the jacket's seams, to taper to the wrist. Then something else felt odd. The elastic knit wrist of the jacket's liner was up on my arm, to the elbow. I took the jacket off. The sewing machine operator also cut the liner, which was not a part of the alteration plan.

"Don't worry. I can fix it." He frantically looks through the racks on the sales floor and pulls a jacket off. It was similar. He measures it, measures my arm, and he takes a pair of scissors and cuts 6" off the sleeves of a jacket that was supposed to be sold at retail. That was attached to my jacket, which the seamstress butchered. That part was fixed in 15 minutes, as I stood there. Then he says that he can send the jacket back into the work area, and they could fix the leather part of the cuff (which was why I originally brought the jacket in).

I cut my losses short. Thanks for fixing the liner sleeve. I'll leave the jacket as is. I'll go to another leather shop, with the chalk marks and all, and someone else will do it right. I'm just not willing to let my leather go back into the work area, where they could do more damage. And I don't want to wait until another president is elected into office, before I can wear my jacket.

I've got to give it to the guy. As we are both displeased with the shoddy work his shop performed, he says, "give me another chance, buy another jacket, I will make sure the next jacket is right". What? Are you kidding me? You couldn't make sure that this jacket was right. After your shop chops up a jacket wrong, you think I'm putting another $$$XXX into buying another jacket from here? Some of the jackets in this store are as expensive as rent on an apartment.

 

[Carlos840]

I have a leather jacket that I just did not like the sleeve length. Relaxed, with my arms at my side, the sleeve covered the first knuckles of my fingers. I wanted to shorten it a few inches, so that the sleeve would go to the first joint of my thumb.

I brought the jacket to a local leather shop. I won't mention the shop by name, because so many Fedora Lounge members love this shop, and I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. The shop's tailor, whom some here know on a first name basis, was ever attentive. I put the jacket on. He pulls the sleeves and straightens it. We both agree that the sleeve is too long. We go out to my bike, I sit on the bike and grab the handlebars. He takes a few measurements. We go back into the shop. He makes his chalk marks. It is a motorcycle jacket, so the sleeves should taper to the wrist so that wind does not blow rain up the sleeve. 2" off the cuff. 2" tapered circumference. Just as I measured at home.

Turn-around time is irrelevant. I didn't ask him to rush the order. Just call me when it's ready. In the days before e-mail and text. We'll just say that kitchens and bathrooms are remodelled in less time.

Pricing is irrelevant. They are expensive. We all know that. A dry cleaner could have done the job for 1/4 what they charged. I could have had dinner at Peter Luger with that money. But that's okay. I figured that I was paying a premium for a leather specialist. It was expensive enough that some may have to work several days to pay for that alteration.

Eventually, after I got several haircuts and the seasons changed, I got the call. Your jacket is ready.

I try the jacket on. Something didn't feel right. We're both standing in the mirror. He's pulling, and tugging, and trying to make the jacket sit square on my shoulders.....then I can see the smile turn down. He suddenly looked like he smelled something distasteful. I showered that week. And I did not pass gas. Maybe he did. Then I saw it also.

The tailor's sewing machine operators simply cut off a few inches, and hemmed the cuff. They did not follow the chalk marks, or take take the cuff in at a taper. They did not follow all of the chalk marks for the bend of the arm, in relation to the jacket's seams, to taper to the wrist. Then something else felt odd. The elastic knit wrist of the jacket's liner was up on my arm, to the elbow. I took the jacket off. The sewing machine operator also cut the liner, which was not a part of the alteration plan.

"Don't worry. I can fix it." He frantically looks through the racks on the sales floor and pulls a jacket off. It was similar. He measures it, measures my arm, and he takes a pair of scissors and cuts 6" off the sleeves of a jacket that was supposed to be sold at retail. That was attached to my jacket, which the seamstress butchered. That part was fixed in 15 minutes, as I stood there. Then he says that he can send the jacket back into the work area, and they could fix the leather part of the cuff (which was why I originally brought the jacket in).

I cut my losses short. Thanks for fixing the liner sleeve. I'll leave the jacket as is. I'll go to another leather shop, with the chalk marks and all, and someone else will do it right. I'm just not willing to let my leather go back into the work area, where they could do more damage. And I don't want to wait until another president is elected into office, before I can wear my jacket.

I've got to give it to the guy. As we are both displeased with the shoddy work his shop performed, he says, "give me another chance, buy another jacket, I will make sure the next jacket is right". What? Are you kidding me? You couldn't make sure that this jacket was right. After your shop chops up a jacket wrong, you think I'm putting another $$$XXX into buying another jacket from here? Some of the jackets in this store are as expensive as rent on an apartment.

View attachment 388252

A MC jacket with wool knits at the cuffs? Never heard of that, do you have pics of that jacket?

 

[jonbuilder]

If you have the quote in writing, they should honor it. If they determined once it arrived that they could not do the work at the quoted price, they should have communicated with you the options, proceed at the new price, or return unaltered.

I agree with you Guppy Vanson should have communicated with the OP before proceeding with the repair. There is a difference between an estimate and a written hard quote. I would think most businesses would not give a hard written quote until they receive the jacket and without a hard quote or work order signed would and should not proceed. This is how Johnson Leathers and Great Leathers does business

 

[El Marro]

That Nick guy is useless...
He spent some time trying to tell me that my CXL Vansons couldn't actually be made by Vanson as the underside of the leather was brown and Vanson only used leather that was black all the way through...
I told him i thought he was confused, explained the situation, that was a week ago no answer since then.
I miss Constantine...

Yes, Constantine was great.
I can’t imagine how frustrating that conversation about the CXL must have been. It’s not like your jackets were some one of a kind thing either, there was the Left Field Commamdo CXL collaboration that they made a couple years ago. It must’ve felt a bit surreal educating a Vanson employee about their own product.

 

[Canuck Panda]

@whataboutalifetime Sorry for the trouble you went through. Good that Vanson came through and reimbursed you the difference in the end. To be fair, I believe the original quote was way off. A seasoned sales person would've offered you a trade credit for a custom jacket instead of accepting the alteration order. I've dealt with Nick for my last few Vanson purchases. He seemed to be a newbie sales guy. This would definitely add to his experience.
Please post pics of the final result. In order to do the alteration you ask for, most of the torso would have to be disassembled first before doing any work and then put back together. That's basically the same or more labor hours for building a new jacket from scratch.
FWIW, Vanson builds excellent products at the price they ask for. Their marketing department can use an update to keep up with the times though. Similar stories has happened before with their race suit repairs.

@Fifty150 Please share the shop's name. I assume it is on the East Coast given the Peter Luger reference. It does sound like the shop owner was under a lot stress and was willing to make things right. Sorry it didn't work out that way.

 

[El Marro]

@Fifty150 Please share the shop's name. I assume it is on the East Coast given the Peter Luger reference. It does sound like the shop owner was under a lot stress and was willing to make things right. Sorry it didn't work out that way.

He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and he brought the jacket to a local leather shop. One that is held in very high regard around here. That should be all the info you need to make a guess.

 

[El Marro]

@Canuck Panda I have to agree with you that the original estimate was off. Receiving a jacket, processing it for a repair, completing the repair, and then preparing and shipping the jacket out costs Vanson more than $60 in labor alone.

 

[TREEMAN]

The orig. $60 estimate was unrealistic in the first place and the OP should have waited and spoke to someone else to get the rite price. Obviously he didn't know what the hell he was talking about.
The other guy who fu__ked up the jacket would still be enjoying his diner thru a straw.....

 

[Fifty150]

A MC jacket with wool knits at the cuffs? Never heard of that, do you have pics of that jacket?

The knit cuff is on the liner. A liner which zips into the jacket.

Please share the shop's name.

That's not necessary. The shop should not be slandered for a mistake from decades ago. But keep in mind that mistakes can and do happen. Even the best of the shops, can have an employee in the back room with a pair of scissors, who gets it wrong. They learn from that.

Oh, and it wasn't Mr. S.

 

[Fifty150]

The guy who fu__ked up the jacket would still be enjoying his diner thru a straw.....

The Universal Language. Violence. The world over is able to communicate with brute force.

 

[Marc mndt]

The orig. $60 estimate was unrealistic in the first place and the OP should have waited and spoke to someone else to get the rite price.

Who says it's unrealistic? I know makers who do alterations / repairs free of charge. Maybe you'd have to be a regular customer for that but who says the OP isn't? Or maybe Vanson thought they'd give him a good deal on the repair, hoping he'd become a regular customer. Who can tell? It's not the customer's responsibility to assess whether a quotation is realistic. He's not the specialist, Vanson is.

 

[AeroFan_07]

I'm sorry for the experance you had. Sounds like in the end, they are making it right for you.
That said, Vanson has a really complete menu of repairs & associated costs, much more complete than I had expected:
https://www.vansonleathers.com/content/332-repairs-resizing

As to other "oops" that have happened recently or years past, well, life & mistakes happen. Best to try and let go and move on with life. Has happened to me more often than I can count (not usually with jackets). I try to hold "things" loosely, if that makes sense.