Dilemma about using original MKVII

[Jonesy Jr.]

So I have decided to buy an original W&G MKVII bag. This thing is beautiful and well preserved and the one I got looks straight out of Dial of Destiny, including correct studs.

Here is my dilemma: I bought this bag so I will wear it, not for display. But now that I got it I noticed military stamps and some kind of pencil number markings most likely done by previous owner or by surplus store. Bag also has some minor signs of use. But all this means that this bag was probably used before and since it came with original web strap, I will have to remove it to wear it. If this bag was just laying in the storage since it's manufacture I would not think much about it, but now I feel bad about wanting to remove that web strap, but then again I bought this bag to be worn in Indy style.

Some previous topics I have browsed through mentioned that one can tuck strap into the bag and put leather strap on, but this would not really work well. The O-rings on this one are not large enough and it would not look good.
If I were to remove the strap I would do it by unstitching with precision and not just cutting it off. To bad that it did not came without the strap already so I would not need to think about it.

What do any of you suggest ?
Should I remove web strap and use the bag or should I wait and think about it ?
What did any of you that also use/have used original bags think about when removing that strap ?

Regards

[Michaelson]

It’s a standard dilemma all of us have faced over the years with original bags. You’re not alone.

Personally I’d recommend that if you respect the history of the bag, find a good reproduction for use and keep that one back as an artifact in your Indy collection.

You’ll find the older bags also suffer from dry rot simply due to age, and will wear through with holes at pressure points from use. Nothing wrong with the bag. They’re just made of old canvas, and cotton canvas wears out.

If it’s not a strong feeling toward the history, by all means carefully remove the strap and store it. You can always reverse things and sew it back on, the attach a leather strap.

It’s entirely how strongly you feel about the provenance of the bag to how you plan on using it.

I’ve done it both ways. I finally settled with using reproduction and storing originals.

Regards! Michaelson

[Indiana Jeff]

My take is these bags were made enmasse for use by the multitudes. Yes, they are part of history, but have also been boxed in warehouses untouched for decades, not on display in museums. Thousands would have been thrown in the trash after the war in addition to the ones that were put into surplus warehouses.

When I got my MKVII in the early 90's, I cut the web strap off, put the leather strap on, and went on my way. I didn't even save the web strap. To me it was a costume piece, though I did carry it for years as an EDC until I replaced it with a leather MKVII by Wade Eagan, and now with the Frost River Geologist pack.

As Michaelson said, if you feel you need to preserve it as is, do so and get a reproduction for your EDC.

Regards,

Indiana Jeff

[Rob]

As someone with a deep love of history (something many of us would share, I believe), I feel where you're at, OP. I really do.

The thing is, while it feels very special in your hands (again, I totally get it, I'm not making light of that), you're not holding a rare collectible there.

If these were rare items, I'd be the first to say, yeah, don't cut the strap and just put that away for the next generation. Get yourself a replica bag.

But the thing is, there are tons of these bags still out there. Maybe one way to do this is to buy another, and never use it, giving you piece of mind you've preserved one. It's totally unnecessary, I might add, but it might give you that psychological boost that although you've cut one bag up, and might get it torn or dirty on your travels, that you still have "a good one" preserved at home.

Anyway, just a thought to get you over the hump

[Jonesy Jr.]

Thanks to everyone posting here.
I have decided that I will carry this bag with it's original web strap. I have been carrying two MKVII replicas with web straps for years now, so now I will just switch to original.

The breaking point in deciding was because in DoD the Antikythera fits into the bag, which means that for this to work, divider in the bags main compartment must be removed or cut since the pocket that is in the front is not big enough to fit this thick artifact and I will not do that to the original, even though this original bag that I got looks straight like the one in the movie. Instead I will invest into replica for DoD bag.

[Indiana Croft]

My two cents, and I think you’ve chosen wisely, but there’s a thread regarding a pocket inside the jacket where he puts it.
Been awhile, but I don’t think he ever puts in the jacket.
But hey, there’s a reason for watching it again.

Croft

[Jonesy Jr.]

My two cents, and I think you’ve chosen wisely, but there’s a thread regarding a pocket inside the jacket where he puts it.
Been awhile, but I don’t think he ever puts in the jacket.
But hey, there’s a reason for watching it again.

Croft

Thank you.
Yes he puts it into jacket in the prologue on the train scene. Later in Tangier at auction he puts it into the bag: [youtube] https://youtu.be/0uSYX-S43bM?t=70 [/youtube]

[Indiana Croft]

Yup, it’s all comin* back, forgot about that scene.
Still another good reason to watch it.

Croft