Canada Jones wrote: Which PB bag do you have?
Canada
Mid size 'run bag'. I've had it since it was introduced in 1988. I returned it once to them for a rebuild, and they called me, telling me it was the oldest existing PB run bag they had ever seen, as most of them get totally destroyed within 5 years. 1988 was the year the run bag line was introduced, so they were stunned to see mine come in.
Mine is still going strong.
Regards! Michaelson
Thanks Michaelson. Somehow missed this response until now. Yes, Portabrace make great bags. As you know i teach at a University and all our bags have been portabrace. Without a word of a lie I have had reports of students dragging the bag (with camera inside) across streets and down halls. Amazingly they survive. I have seen the straps on them go but never the handles or the bags. We did have one casualty last year. We had a team doing a documentary about pets and the bag came back reaking of cat pee. Pungent. The bag was thrown out so i rescued it and spent time washing and rewashing it. Got the smell out and the bag is in great shape. It has limited used because it is shaped to the camera but still makes a great bag for other stuff. $500 gym bag....
thanks for the tale. I hope PB gave you something as a reward (like the guy who had a volkswagen who put 1 million miles on it - i think they gave the guy a new car)
Canada
I took the clear plastic card holder off, but that was the only modification I made. (although I'm sorely tempted to distress it. )
The bag is cheap, durable, light, has plenty of room for my stuff, a bunch of cool little useful compartments.
I've bought a bunch of these bags in search of the right one, and this is definitely it. I might sew a strip of olive webbing to the top to act as a handle for when I just want to grab it and go or when taking it off as it only has the long strap right now, but overall I'm pretty happy with it.
Pretty masculine for a pocketbook, the price is right and it's meeting my needs perfectly so far.
IndyDoc wrote:I like the looks of this one and it's actually cheaper.
Then there's this one which you can fit a laptop into, but it's $20, but that's still not bad.
I've seen that one. Pretty cool, but with a velcro closure and only one main compartment and one small interior one that would only hold papers.
With all the junk I lug around (including all the small stuff) I really wanted more compartmentalization.
Man bag, MKVII, whatever other people call it doesn't matter to me.
How many people do you pass you never even talk to and are not gearheads think "that guy looks like Indiana Jones."
Messenger bags, camera bags, lap top bags, shoulder briefcases, I have carried them all (Chrome, Timbuk2, Crumpler, Lowepro, etc., MKVI and VII). It becomes "second nature," and you begin to look for your shoulder carry when it's not around your neck. Give it a chance.
Interesting, no one has ever commented on my "Man purses." (Gosh, perhaps being "way tall," has a benefit. No standard Indy jackets, but large people can carry whatever, they please? )
I think whoever coined the term "man purse" should be dragged behind a truck. Purses are carried by women period – no offense intended toward any of the lovely women on COW. And no it's not a man-bag either. It's simply a bag dang it!
my gf picked up a facsimile bag (no replaceable strap) and i liked that the strap wasn't too long so i could put it just behind my hip and it wasn't banging around. i think when i make the jump to an MK bag w/ leather strap I'm going to go for the shorter strap. i hate it hanging around me like a purse i like it to feel more attached.
I carry all my musical instrument maintenance essentials in my Canadian MKVI – I use a Peterson strobe tuner for my guitars, which is rather large and bulky but is accurate to 1/1000th of a percent and fits perfectly in the bag, along with all my other tools – it’s practically an entire luthier shop in one bag.
My buddies in the band used to make cracks about my “man-purse” – but when they realized I was able to practically strip down and rebuild a Fender Stratocaster all with the tools in that one bag, they suddenly saw the advantage to carrying a “man-purse” and were bringing their guitars to me for adjustments…
Can't speak for everywhere obviously, but here in NY most guys have a messenger bag of some kind.
I mean...guys like gear...we have stuff we need or at least want to take around with us. The only alternative is to wear a utility belt like Batman which I daresay would be uber-goofier and draw more attention than a bag over your shoulder.
No one here gives it a second look anymore.
ShanghaiJack wrote:I think whoever coined the term "man purse" should be dragged behind a truck. Purses are carried by women period – no offense intended toward any of the lovely women on COW. And no it's not a man-bag either. It's simply a bag dang it!
None taken.
And Robby, I seriously think that you can't make the MKvii any more masculine that it already is.
I think whoever coined the term "man purse" should be dragged behind a truck. Purses are carried by women period
Actually, traditionally purses were carried by both sexes.It's only fairly recently (past couple hundred years) that the term has been limited to women. I just don't like either term. "man bag" or "man purse." They both sound silly to me for some reason. I still carry the bag around, regardless of what anyone else calls it. Too useful to let fools bother me...
This is a lot to about nothing. I haven't cared what others thought for about three decades now. I have used the bag to carry equipment to work and have worn it while on vacation to carry maps, waterbottle, camera, etc. If it bothers you so much what someone might say then don't do it.
My best situation to date was being in the San Francisco Alden's shop and having a mother who was buying her teen aged son a pair 405's notice mine. She then saw my Wested and said to her son, "that's the jacket you want." I explained also about my trousers and belt and told them about this site so he could find the right items.
Bottom line, wear what you want and face the consequences.
I think the leather strap throws off a lot of people. One of my friends used to wear a gas mask bag (not a Mk VII) with the original strap and I don't think he thought it looked like a purse. I think a cool strap for a Mk VII would be a black ballistic nylon strap or similar. That is of course unless you're looking for screen accuracy.
The original web strap is very "messenger bag". I agree the leather strap is more purse like, though that depends on how rugged looking your leather strap is I guess.
I'll bet if you hang a couple dummy grenades off it nooone will call it a man-purse. And of course, you can easily store a lipstick or two inside each....
well, it IS a man purse (with all his pockets he probably didnt really need it though)...at least its not a fannie pack, that said, id only wear it to costume in...
A quick crack from your whip will keep mom and sis in check!!! It worked for me with my sis-in-law!! Well just the mere posing to do so clammed her up! Well................not really...........no this never happened!!!
Dirty it up a bit, darken and weather the leather strap, and add moth balls to the bag. Makes it look and smell ancient. It also helps if you pull a snake out of the bag while standing infront of your female family members and yell, "Snakes! Why does it always have to be snakes!?"
I just convinced my sister to be the first to hold one of my whip targets....After cutting it into five pieces while leaving her fingers intact, she'll never utter the words 'man purse' again....Hmmm...Therapeutic...
Hey, people even calling it a man purse/bag is better than an alternative that popped into my mind.. the infamous fanny pack! I've been carrying a non Indy bag some, I actually get more looks/comments from my Dad than I do strangers. But I live in Orlando, filled with cross dressers and other characters. I just walk tall and give folks the evil eye if they look as though they're thinking man purse thoughts.
Man bag, well I am comfortable with my Mark VI as I use that or my Maxpedition Fatboy S-Type for daily carry. Neither are what you would call man bags as far as I am concerned... My wife calls her Mark VII her adventure bag, I kept my well seasoned distressed Mark VII for my gear collection and find the Mark VI handier with the 2 pockets in the back for EDC.
I have humped around enough back packs in my day and find them rather unsuitable for urban carry esp on the tube, (unless I am carrying gym gear or lots of books for study) whereas a cross the shoulder is more secure. I certainly would not envisage a batman style utility belt... that would look a little toooooo funny. I also hate having a jacket loaded to the hilt with stuff in all pockets..
I am very secure in my orientation...
Being in London, its not an issue.
This thread is mad. Man purse indeed. This bag is perfect for cameras, snacks, passport, gold idols and so much more. Anyone making snarky remarks should plainly be ignored. I've used mine locally, in London, and around France. No one has even looked at it twice. Man purse, sheesh.
Edit: I should clarify that local is in Ottawa, Canada. Not London, UK.
Last edited by Hunter Jones on Tue Mar 11, 2008 4:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Hunter Jones wrote:This thread is mad. Man purse indeed. This bag is perfect for cameras, snacks, passport, gold idols and so much more. Anyone making snarky remarks should plainly be ignored. I've used mine locally, in London, and around France. No one has even looked at it twice. Man purse, sheesh.
Europeans are more open to such things it seems. Americans are more leery of appearing effeminate. [spelling?] But, I just chimed in for humor's sake with the fanny pack thing.
theinterchange wrote:I am too.. just sometimes carrying a bag can be exasperating around an old school Dad.. "hey boy.. men don't carry bags! that looks like a purse!"
Tell him it's a gas mask bag and ask why he doesn't have one.
If I had a spare $500.00 lying around I’d order one today.
Just FYI,
Forrestal
I have the coffee brown one for my briefcase. It is a truly remarkable piece of work. Heavy duty and meant to take a beating. It is a bit expensive, but you can say the same thing about Aldens, Wested, AB, etc. In every case you get what you pay for.
Have you seen what kids wear today? If they can run around with faces full of metal, holes in their ears you can put your fist through, and wearing black make up....nobody can say anything about a bag.
It's like someone here said, who cares what anyone thinks? Do your thing, don't be a sheep.
And if anyone gives you too much flak you can show them that you not only dress like Indy, you can throw a punch like him too.
IndigoJuliet wrote:Saddleback bags look great but I bet they weigh a ton
It is heavier than say a nylon bag (i.e. mec) but it looks so much better and as it ages it is just going to look even better than new. I carry it daily and I don't really notice the weight that much. Any bag is going to be heavy when loaded up, but the Saddleback has a great strap that is perfect for shouldering a heavy load.
I've been using several "messenger bags" for my world travels over the last few years and have had nothing but compliments, although it's been searched several times including a recent exit out of the Louvre. (Not sure if they thought it was a relic... lol
Since I am currently traveling with a pregnant woman and two little girls, I have discovered that my Indy bag has become an essential item for carrying a water bottle, snacks, wet-naps, etc. I don't leave home without it.
See there, all you guys who were worried about wearing a purse take heart....it could just as easily be a baby bag.
I'm just teasing. That's what is great about wearing a bag is you can carry so much more stuff without having to do like guys normally have to do and load up your pockets. Especially if you arent wearing a coat with big pockets. So, who cares, it's a purse.....maybe the ladies are on to something.
Just don't let your wife make you carry her female "supplies" in it. lol.
torch, Leatherman, belt cutter knfe, and a Cyalume light stick... plus the basic first aids bits amd yes mini umbrella as I do live in London and it rains all the time... even when the sun shines... (that pocket is supposed to carry a water bottle.. but with sooooo may pubs around london, its not needed..
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