Club Obi Wan

Hi all,

I've been using shoulder bags for a long time now, and find that most of them wear out after a couple years of daily carry; seams start pulling out, holes wear through the sides, etc. so I'm always on the lookout for something that has a good old fashioned look but is durable.

I've got a Filson, and while I appreciate knowing that the thing will be around for hundreds of years after I'm gone, it's a little stiff and slightly bulkier than I'd prefer for everyday wear. Can anyone suggest other currently available bags that go well with Indygear and will last more than a year or two yet are cheaper than the $130+ Filson bags?

Also, those of you who have put MKVIIs to daily wearing, how long do they hold up long term?

Thanks in advance,

Antone

Well, your best bet, IMO would be to go with the WPG MarkVII repro's. That way, they're cheap ($39) durable, and after a few years, if you have to replace it, it won't cost ya a hunnert bucks on EPay for another original.

I'm getting mine from here.

http://www.lawranceordnance.com/new/equipment-bags.html


I haven't recieved it yet so I can't post any pics. This is the cheapest I've seen the repos.



Pitfall

just a quick FYI, that's a MKVI they've got there, not a MKVII. For many people it's a close-enough alternative, but it's not stricly a screen accurate bag. It also varies internally from the MKVII, something about an extra flap on the back or something. Someone more knowledgable about them ::coughswindianacough:: will have to chime in at some point.

While The MkVII is used most often in the Indy movies, the MkVI is also screen accurate, having been used in ToD.

I personally like the MkVI better for everyday use. The inside pocket arrangement seems to work out better for me and the two extra outside pockets on the back give extra space that the MkVII does not. I put a 16oz. Bottle of water in one and a flask of Bourbon in the other.

As for durability…my MkVI is 5 years old and there are in rips..no runs.. no tears…

Just FYI.
Regards,
Forrestal

Good news, just in case you are not aware: What Price Glory just obtained over 700 original MKVII bags from a warehouse in India. Their condition appears to be un-issued, so they are in mint condition according to them I just ordered one cause I want to have a few extras. They run around $45, so get them while you can.

Erich

Gack, so many good options...this forum is going to bankrupt me! There's a bad side to all the good stuff becoming available and/or going on sale at once.

Seriously though, these are all great suggestions so far. If anyone knows of anything else, I'm certainly still interested. And so people know, I'm not necesssarily only looking for bags that look like the MKVII, just anything that seems adventureworthy and wouldn't clash too much with the rest of the outfit.

Keep 'em coming, I'm still curious what else is out there that you guys have found, although one or two of the previous suggestions are being ordered...

Antone

IndianaGuybrush wrote:just a quick FYI, that's a MKVI they've got there, not a MKVII. For many people it's a close-enough alternative, but it's not stricly a screen accurate bag. It also varies internally from the MKVII, something about an extra flap on the back or something. Someone more knowledgable about them ::coughswindianacough:: will have to chime in at some point.

Yeah, I knew it wasn't the MkVII when I bought it but there really isn't that much difference between the two in my opinion. For the price their offering it at it's a good deal.

Someone on here in one of the threads posted pics of theirs, including shots of the inside of it , and it looks great.

Once I get mine all I'll have to do is add my Todd's deluxe strap and it'll be ready to go.





Pitfall

I would suggest for a MkVI, they are more durable and "stronger" in my opinion

Some cool bags you might like to think about.

Doctor's Field Bag
http://www.nwha.org/news_1Q2003/resources/ramc20.jpg

Italian M33 tactical bag
http://www.italianfront.com/M33_gasmaskbag.JPG

CANADIAN WW2 SATCHEL CHARGE BAG
http://www.germanmilitaria.com/OtherNat ... 0thumb.jpg

Russian WW2 Gas Mask Bag without Straps
http://www.ostfront.com/Merchant2/graph ... 52_350.jpg

WW2 US Army Musette Bag
http://militaryspecialtiesinc.com/image ... OD8var.JPG

If any thing thare fun to look at

The doctor field bag is great!! I want one!!!!

I would never suggest to anyone to buy italian army stuff from WWII and neither from WWI (if something has been left) because it's @#$%, very poor quality.

Erich-

Thanks for the tip, I've got one of the original MKVII on its way to me now. How could I resist?

Pitfall-

I really like the look of the MKVI repros, I think that might become my new standard bag, especially if they hold up as well for me as they do for Forrestal. I guess I'll be ordering a couple of those too...

Webley-

Some of those are interesting alternatives...hmm...

Thanks guys, I figured this was the right group to ask!

Antone

Well yes it is the right group to ask eheh.

The MKVII and MKVI are both very resistant if they came in good conditions, i only think that MKVI is a bit more resistant than the other.
I never had a repro so i can't say anything for them.

By the way, the MKVI is screen accurate aswell it was in ToD i think

erri_wan wrote:The doctor field bag is great!! I want one!!!!

That's actually referred to as a medic's bag or a field dressing satchel. It's British P 37 pattern and made from very stout cotton canvas webbing. Another, less expensive option is the small pack or haversack from the same webbing equipment set with one brace attached to act as a shoulder strap. These should actually be less expensive and easier to find than the medic's bag since there are more of them out there and the post war dated examples -- particularly the ones using black painted steel fittings instead of brass -- generally go cheaper as they're less desireable to WW2 collectors and reenactors.

Cheers!

Thanks for the info bagger, i'll have a look around

I've been thinking about getting a map bag, they're pretty nice. Third item from the top.

http://www.imsplus.com/ims5c.html

Floribama Steve wrote:I've been thinking about getting a map bag, they're pretty nice. Third item from the top.

http://www.imsplus.com/ims5c.html

I have a map bag that I bought from my local army surplus store for about $14.

I bought it because I thought it would make a good Indy bag to go with the rest of my gear. It's an ok bag and looks close to the Indy bag but it's still not exact. I kind of wish I didn't buy it because I ended up buying the deluxe strap from Todd's costumes and it doesn't quite look right. The two things that stick out is that my bag is a deep olive green and the shoulder strap rings aren't located on the sides of the bag like Indy's but instead located together on the back of the bag.

I ordered a MKVI bag from a website I found for $25 and I'm still waiting for it to arrive.



Pitfall

Floribama Steve wrote:I've been thinking about getting a map bag, they're pretty nice. Third item from the top.

http://www.imsplus.com/ims5c.html

Hi Floribama,

I've got a couple of those map bags now and was thinking of selling one, actually. They're good bags but since I've been given all these recommendations I've got a MKVII and a MKVI repro (thanks for the link Pitfall!) on the way and I don't think I'll need to keep quite this many extras around...the map bag is nice though if you're not a strict "screen accurate" kind of guy. I haven't had mine long enough to see how they hold up, but it seems to be solidly made.

All of this information has been very helpful though, thanks guys! Now stop posting before I have to go buy something else against my will!

Antone

Yeah, I thought about selling my map bag on Ebay once I get the MKVI bag in the mail but I'm not sure yet.


Hey, Antone. When did you order your MKVI bag? The reason I'm asking is because I got an e-mail from the store letting me know they were shipping it out and that it would take around two weeks to arrive. Well, it's a little over two weeks now and still no bag.

I wrote an e-mail to the company tonight to ask for a tracking number so I could figure out where it's at.




Pitfall

Pitfall,

I just ordered mine the other day, and I just got the email it was shipped, so I'm not expecting it for another couple of weeks. If it's only a few days over two weeks I wouldn't worry too much yet, I think we're into postal busy season for holidays at this point. Hope you get yours in soon though!

Antone

Antone wrote:Pitfall,

I just ordered mine the other day, and I just got the email it was shipped, so I'm not expecting it for another couple of weeks. If it's only a few days over two weeks I wouldn't worry too much yet, I think we're into postal busy season for holidays at this point. Hope you get yours in soon though!

Antone

I got the confirmation that mine was being shipped out on 11/21/05. So it's been a little over 2 weeks.

If it doesn't get here this week or I don't hear anything from them soon then I'll start to worry.

Just got my original MKVII from WPG, and I'm quite happy with it; it smelled a bit musty just out of the bag, but after it aired out for an hour or so it's not nearly as bad. I'm also happy with its not-greeness.

Now I'm just waiting for my leather strap and MKVI repros, but I must say my MKVII is better in person than it looked in pictures. The size and shape are pretty much perfect for the kind of stuff I want to carry around with me, and it feel like it could really take a beating!

Antone

Hey Pitfall, when you receive your MKVI, post some pics. I noticed in the description, it said the bag was made from a light tan material. I have an original Canadian MKVI that is tan.

If any of you are looking for an original MKVII, I have seveal very nice ones listed in the classifieds here. I thought I would give board members first chance at these, if you guys don't need them, I'll post them on the dreaded Evil-Bay.

M.L. Jones

Jim wrote:Hey Pitfall, when you receive your MKVI, post some pics. I noticed in the description, it said the bag was made from a light tan material. I have an original Canadian MKVI that is tan.

I sure will as soon as it get's here!

I wrote the company and gave them my order number and asked them if they could give me a tracking number to see where it was at. They wrote me back and told me that they have no way of tracking the pkg but did tell me it got sent out 11/23/05. It's been over two weeks now and it was sent by airmail.

Does anyone know if "Airmail" means that when it gets to the US it's delievered by the regular post office and not a delivery service like UPS?

The company said it might take longer because of the Holidays and that if I didn't get it by next week I should contact them and they would send out a replacement.

This is driving me nuts. I only hope my Wested doesn't get lost or something when they send it out. Ugh!


Pitfall

M.L. Jones wrote:If any of you are looking for an original MKVII, I have seveal very nice ones listed in the classifieds here. I thought I would give board members first chance at these, if you guys don't need them, I'll post them on the dreaded Evil-Bay.

M.L. Jones

Thanks for the offer but I have one repo on the way.....I hope.



Pitfall

Pitfall Harry wrote:Does anyone know if "Airmail" means that when it gets to the US it's delievered by the regular post office and not a delivery service like UPS?

The company said it might take longer because of the Holidays and that if I didn't get it by next week I should contact them and they would send out a replacement.

This is driving me nuts. I only hope my Wested doesn't get lost or something when they send it out. Ugh!


Pitfall

I'd probably send something like that out on "Small Packet Airmail" it's handled by the normal postal service not a courier.

UK to US usually 10 days to 2 weeks, a bit longer at this time of year, remember that coming from Australia might take longer and be going to you via the Pacific routes. Like the company said give it another week then drop them a line.

I ordered a pair of LLBean pants two weeks ago and they just arrived yesterday. And that was just from Maine, as we all know. Normally I can get stuff from them in four or five days. This is just a poor time of year to order Indy gear.

Maybe if these distributors knew that there wasn't just one person waiting for these packages, but HUNDREDS of us waiting in the wings they might be a little more dilligent in getting this stuff delivered

Antone wrote:

Floribama Steve wrote:I've been thinking about getting a map bag, they're pretty nice. Third item from the top.

http://www.imsplus.com/ims5c.html

Hi Floribama,

I've got a couple of those map bags now and was thinking of selling one, actually. They're good bags but since I've been given all these recommendations I've got a MKVII and a MKVI repro (thanks for the link Pitfall!) on the way and I don't think I'll need to keep quite this many extras around...the map bag is nice though if you're not a strict "screen accurate" kind of guy. I haven't had mine long enough to see how they hold up, but it seems to be solidly made.

All of this information has been very helpful though, thanks guys! Now stop posting before I have to go buy something else against my will!

Antone

Oh yes, I understand that the map bag isn't screen accurate; I just need something that can handle an 8"x10" sketch pad.

Well, I'll see if I get it this week.

Yeah, this is a bad time of the year to be ordering this stuff but you guys know how it is. You find something and you order it and how long it takes to get there is an afterthought.

I HOPE they give me a tracking number for my Wested jacket. I don't want to loose track of that puppy.


It just gets me that my BAG is probably off on some adventure and I'm not with it!!!



Pitfall

Well, a quick -sigh- of relief.....

I got my repo MKVI bag in the mail this evening. Here are the pics of it I promised. I put my deluxe Todd's Costumes strap on it also.












Pitfall

Glad to hear it finally came in! Looks great, I'll have the same bag and strap by early next week with any luck...so now I'll just stare at your pictures in envy for a few days...

Antone

Antone wrote:Glad to hear it finally came in! Looks great, I'll have the same bag and strap by early next week with any luck...so now I'll just stare at your pictures in envy for a few days...

Antone

I was suprised at the color when I got it out of the pkg. I was expecting a lighter greenish / tan but instead got a deeper green. I'm very happy with the color and the way it feels when I put it on. The bag was much lighter than I thought it would be too. I bought a map case from an army surplus store that I was using for my "Indy Bag" and that thing feels like putting a brick around your shoulder compared to this.


It's a great item and you won't be dissapointed when you get yours.




Pitfall

Pitfall,
I'm glad your bag arrived safe and sound. It looks great, especially with that strap on it.

I'm surprised, however, that yours is more green than you were expecting. Perhaps it's just a matter of individual perspective, but I look at mine as being very tan, particularly when compared to the WPG repro Mk VII which is definitely green. And the pictures you posted really don't look much different from mine, even though the lighting in your shots is different. Rest assured, though, that when compared to actual issued webbing equipment the LO Mk VI compares favorably. In fact, I think it has a very golden tint to it like all the Canadian made webbing I've seen. And remember, original respirator cases came in a wide range of shades of khaki, from tan to green.

Now load that baby up, sling it over your shoulder and use it! I'll be carrying mine today.

Cheers!

Baggers wrote:Pitfall,
I'm glad your bag arrived safe and sound. It looks great, especially with that strap on it.

I'm surprised, however, that yours is more green than you were expecting. Perhaps it's just a matter of individual perspective, but I look at mine as being very tan, particularly when compared to the WPG repro Mk VII which is definitely green. And the pictures you posted really don't look much different from mine, even though the lighting in your shots is different. Rest assured, though, that when compared to actual issued webbing equipment the LO Mk VI compares favorably. In fact, I think it has a very golden tint to it like all the Canadian made webbing I've seen. And remember, original respirator cases came in a wide range of shades of khaki, from tan to green.

Now load that baby up, sling it over your shoulder and use it! I'll be carrying mine today.

Cheers!

Thanks.


Yeah, I did notice some of the other repo bags that they are selling on some other sites are truely a green color.

The lighting in the pics make it look a tiny bit darker that it looks in person but not much. I'm very happy with it and I can't wait to get my jacket from Wested. Then all I'll need to order is a Indy Bullwhip.



Pitfall

I'm diggin' that bag, PH. In fact, I think you just convinced me to order one (maybe I'll wait until after Christmas). It looks green enough to me. Like I said, I've got an original 1942 MKVI that is light khaki. It's a great bag, but not Indy-enough for me.

Jim wrote:I'm diggin' that bag, PH. In fact, I think you just convinced me to order one (maybe I'll wait until after Christmas). It looks green enough to me. Like I said, I've got an original 1942 MKVI that is light khaki. It's a great bag, but not Indy-enough for me.

Yeah, with the post office the way it is your best bet would be to wait. I had this airmailed and it should have taken two weeks but it took longer than that and I thought it got lost.

To me the color is perfect. Alot more like the color onscreen than some of the other ones I've seen on here.




Pitfall

My MKVI repro finally got here, and I'm very happy with it, this is pretty much exactly what I was looking for. I like the division of the pockets a little better than the MKVII actually. I think the color is perfect, and I like the way the hooks for the stap are made, though I'll change it out in a couple days when my Deluxe strap from Todd's gets here.

Pitfall-
I see what you mean about it being lighter than you expected, I had the same reaction. In fact, comparing the repro MKVI to the original MKVII I notice that the MKVI uses a thinner canvas.

If anyone here has an original MKVI and the repro, was the original MKVI made with heavier canvas than the repro, or was the original MKVI made of thinner canvas than the MKVIIs?

Antone

To me atleast the bags color matches the one in the films. I also like the divided pockets on the inside. For as cheap as it was I think I found a real good deal.

The Deluxe strap is just icing on the cake!





Pitfall

Hey Antone:

I have an original MKVI, and I'd say the canvas is pretty darn heavy. Despite the fact that the bag is at least 60 years old, I have every confidence that the bag will hold up to whatever I put it through. Though I usually just use it for hiking and camping.

By the way, I was in a small historical town in east Texas called Jefferson for the last few days, and went to a local museum to learn a bit of the towns history (it was established in 1836).
Long story short, in one of the rooms were a few artifacts from WWI, and included were two bags that were unbelievably similiar to the MKVI and MKVII bags. The differences were there was no drain holes, and instead of snaps, there were eyelets with twist and turn rods. The size, the pocket flap, the original web strap, and the strings to tie it around the waist were dead on, though. They were described as napsacks.

I'm thinking that particular bag style must have been aroung for awhile, and was just improved upon over time. Unfortunately, I couldn't get my hands on them to open them up and peek inside. Still an exciting find, though. The best part is, I've trained my new wife on Indy gear so well, she saw them first and recognized the bag style immediately.