Desert Tan MKVI/VII ??

Doug C · Post by **Doug C** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 11:14 am

So I've been thinking of getting an MK bag and I think I remember seeing one in a Tan color at some point, but don't know where. Did they come in Tan? Are they easier or harder to come by? I'd prefer this color to the green, screen accurate one's. Anyone here know for sure?

Doug C

Tristan · Post by **Tristan** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:00 pm

What Price Glory offered a tan MKVII reproduction bag a few years ago but now they only offer green repros so tan bags are harder to come by. I'm pretty sure original MKVII bags have come in various shades of tan and green over the years. You might be able to get a tan original from What Price Glory while they are still offering original bags separate from their reproduction bags.

Swindiana · Post by **Swindiana** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:16 pm

A Canadian or Australian one would be more of a tan color and even lighter than the British tan ones, generally speaking.

Regards,
Swindiana

Erri · Post by **Erri** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:23 pm

I had a MkVII G&S LTD 1942 that was green http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y157/e ... ashed1.jpg, a (canadian i think) MKVI W&G 1941 that was desert tan (i sold this one to a COW member) http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y157/e ... G_1081.jpg.

The MKVII that i have now is not desert tan, just a middle way between light green and desert tan i think [/code]

Last Crusader · Post by **Last Crusader** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:29 pm

As far as I know there were MkVII bags in tan only for the British troops in Africa. They were tan for camouflage in the desert. It´s much more easy to get a green one because they were much more produced. So an original British Africa tan MkIV is rare and not easy to find.

Erri · Post by **Erri** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:33 pm

If you have a green one, just wash it with soap and warm water and you'll see how desert tan it will become!

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:35 pm

My MK VII was tan and green! Some panels were tan and the others green. I dyed the entire thing green.

Texas Raider · Post by **Texas Raider** » Tue Aug 16, 2005 2:06 am

Personally, I like the tan and VERY light green versions. They are less obtrusive then the dark greens and match a wider range of clothing. So they are easier to wear without being too noticeable.

have a nice day.

Skippy · Post by **Skippy** » Tue Aug 16, 2005 11:33 am

So many companies were licensed to produce these bags during the war that the colour of the bags varies from maker to maker depending on what dye they used.

I have seen a Canadian marked MKVII & it was a tan colour, but then I have seen British bags the same colour as a result of being VERY faded.

Erri-wan is right thought, if you get a green bag & wash it, the colour bleed out pretty quickly.

Panama Tom Jr. · Post by **Panama Tom Jr.** » Tue Aug 16, 2005 12:41 pm

The first bag I got was an actual MKVI Canadian bag that was a very faded tan - probably due to use. I ended getting a new WPG bag second, but it definitely needs to be faded out - I agree that the deep green just doesn't fit the look...

NewJerseyRaider · Post by **NewJerseyRaider** » Sun Aug 21, 2005 10:15 am

The tan MKVII your prolly thinking about is a recent repro, called the Indiana by Travelproof. Its only sold in stores over in England, and its tan it color, with more outside pockets that the original MKVII, plus a zipper too. I cant think of the store of where I got mine from, but do a search, there was a recent thread about it.

NJR

Mojave Jack · Post by **Mojave Jack** » Sun Aug 21, 2005 2:20 pm

Actually there is a huge variation in color throughout the war, especially once the US began producing war aid materials which included web gear, but the 37 pattern web gear was pretty consistently a dark khaki color. Bear in mind that the gear was also produced in all of the Commonwealth countries, so the colors were close but by no means exact. There was no special web gear issue for the troops serving in North Africa; it was all the same no matter where you were stationed. Blanco came about in the pre-war years as a solution to the variation in color and mismatched pieces of gear, and later was used as a way to camoflage the gear, e.g. coloring it green for for jungle use. Here's a picture from Khaki Drill and Jungle Green. Note the guy on the back right. His bag is two tone, probably much like HJ's bag is.

The color is not quite right in the picture, since I had to scan it, but it is pretty close. The main thing is, there is/was great variety. Finding two the same color would be difficult.

Texas Raider · Post by **Texas Raider** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 2:20 am

I believe that guy in the back is carrying two bags- one green one on top of the khaki. Note the two top flaps, as if the back bags flap is laying over the front bag. But - I may be wrong.

The two tone ones that I have seen normally have the bottom section slightly different, or the interior in slightly different or just the flap and top section. It isn't drastic ,though. Check out this pic of me- I have a MKVI and that lower section is slightly different from the rest. (clic pic for larger image!)

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backpacking in undisclosed ... nice day!

Bufflehead Jones · Post by **Bufflehead Jones** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 3:17 am

Texas Raider, your face has some really bad kind of fungus on it. You should go see a doctor about that.

Thank goodness, it doesn't seem to have affected your arms and legs, yet.

Texas Raider · Post by **Texas Raider** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 3:33 am

That's real nice, Bufflehead.

Bufflehead Jones · Post by **Bufflehead Jones** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 3:37 am

You're the one that did that to your picture, not me.

Pyroxene · Post by **Pyroxene** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 9:36 am

Ok. That's enough. Let's all return to the topic at hand. If we have nothing else to say or "these aren't the droids your are looking for" then "move along".

Pyroxene

Mojave Jack · Post by **Mojave Jack** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 3:53 pm

Texas Raider wrote:I believe that guy in the back is carrying two bags- one green one on top of the khaki. Note the two top flaps, as if the back bags flap is laying over the front bag. But - I may be wrong.

Actually that particular bag was modified with the additional material to add another pocket. It wasn't the best picture, but illustrated the different color materials that were commonly used. I couldn't find a better picture, so I just grabbed that one.