Filson Bag Thread: With Pictures

[Cold Iron]

None of the hunters and fishermen that I know have any Filson. Or anything made of waxed cotton, for that matter. They all wear modern fabrics.

I'm only basing that on a sample of 8 or 9, though.

Before I had children, I was an avid outdoorsman. I never even heard of filson. Outdoor research, TNF, Marmot, Patagonia, mountain hardwear, etc., but not Filson.

I sure know of them now, though, now that I have a better career and my outdoor activities are much more "sporting clays" and much less "backpacking."

So maybe their new market stragedy is working...

Sounds like someone is missing some Heritage...

My grandfathers hunting coat purchased back sometime in the 30's. With his Ithaca 16 ga. M37 that I inherited and ended up refinishing a couple of years ago.

It is waxed cotton and still works to this day, glad he was a coal miner and had a big chest. Although it is a DukBak, which is long gone as is McAlister. Filson is the only left in the US.

Upland bird hunting is hard on clothes, dogs and man LOL. Ruff grouse hunting especially, working through grouse thickets often draws blood. Your blood. But the waxed cotton is still better than any of the other newfangled outdoor clothing mentioned that is made for those that walk on trails. And just like waxed cotton the guns made then still work just as well now.

It has taken until I reached the top of my earnings in my second career to afford the collection of Filson bags that I know own however.

 

[Fueco]

I have a few 257's and 256's with Talon's (including my filson restoration 256). I only have (1) 258 with Talon's. If desired, I can show the leather on all zipper options of the bags from Talon, YKK, and Filson's branded. There is a difference, believe me.

FWIW, my 256 with Filson branded zipper also has a little YKK stamped on the side of the slider.

 

[Fueco]

None of the hunters and fishermen that I know have any Filson. Or anything made of waxed cotton, for that matter. They all wear modern fabrics.

I'm only basing that on a sample of 8 or 9, though.

Before I had children, I was an avid outdoorsman. I never even heard of filson. Outdoor research, TNF, Marmot, Patagonia, mountain hardwear, etc., but not Filson.

I sure know of them now, though, now that I have a better career and my outdoor activities are much more "sporting clays" and much less "backpacking."

So maybe their new market stragedy is working...

There's absolutely nothing wrong with the brands you mentioned there. I'm an avid rock climber and backpacker/hiker; and Filson stuff is not aimed at those activities. The fishing side of me? For sure that's one of their targets. I came to know Filson by way of Pendleton. My high school biology teacher wore lots of Pendleton wool flannels, and started me on the path to appreciating the more classic outdoors brands. Yet I still wear Patagonia and Arc'teryx more than anything else.

The more I dig, the more I dig the differences between brands and what they excel at.

 

[OtterMeanGreen]

Look what I picked up today. More pics later but a Talon-era pre-Bedrock 256. Of course I now have TWO 256's. One older and one newer.

Kind of hard to see the zipper but it's a Talon next to the Filson-branded zipper.

Everything on the bags appear to be exactly the same (from a design standpoint) except for the key holder sewn in the front (which I actually like - may have to modify it)

View attachment 839902

View attachment 839903

Look what I picked up today. More pics later but a Talon-era pre-Bedrock 256. Of course I now have TWO 256's. One older and one newer.

Kind of hard to see the zipper but it's a Talon next to the Filson-branded zipper.

Everything on the bags appear to be exactly the same (from a design standpoint) except for the key holder sewn in the front (which I actually like - may have to modify it)

View attachment 839902

View attachment 839903

Congratulations @mgrennier. I'd love to see a shot of the whole bag if you can manage. Judging by the Label it looks like a nice patina came along for the ride.

 

[mgrennier]

There's absolutely nothing wrong with the brands you mentioned there. I'm an avid rock climber and backpacker/hiker; and Filson stuff is not aimed at those activities. The fishing side of me? For sure that's one of their targets. I came to know Filson by way of Pendleton. My high school biology teacher wore lots of Pendleton wool flannels, and started me on the path to appreciating the more classic outdoors brands. Yet I still wear Patagonia and Arc'teryx more than anything else.

The more I dig, the more I dig the differences between brands and what they excel at.

I enjoy fly fishing and I wear several brands - my waders are Patagonia, my boots at Simms. But my absolute favorite items are my Filson Tin Cloth Packer hat and my Filson fly vest. To me, those two products are just excellent for fly fishing.

 

[mgrennier]

Congratulations @mgrennier. I'd love to see a shot of the whole bag if you can manage. Judging by the Label it looks like a nice patina came along for the ride.

Thanks and I will post pics later. It definitely has a patina - and a bit of a musty smell right now. Going to pack it with dryer sheets for a bit. Hang it in the sun, etc. before I use it.

I'll then be selling my slightly used tan 256.

Interestingly, I bought it from a guy in Chicago (from ebay but I met him locally- because he can't ship to SW Florida where I'm currently living!). He has an interesting story and has a friend that works for the Filson restoration dept. In other words, it appears that he has access to older Filson bags for those that may be interested. He does quite a bit of business on the Bay.

 

[Soletrane]

Thanks and I will post pics later. It definitely has a patina - and a bit of a musty smell right now. Going to pack it with dryer sheets for a bit. Hang it in the sun, etc. before I use it.

I'll then be selling my slightly used tan 256.

Interestingly, I bought it from a guy in Chicago (from ebay but I met him locally- because he can't ship to SW Florida where I'm currently living!). He has an interesting story and has a friend that works for the Filson restoration dept. In other words, it appears that he has access to older Filson bags for those that may be interested. He does quite a bit of business on the Bay.

MGrennier, is OMG's relentless posting about Talon era bags and pre-Bedrock turning you into a Talonite?;-)

I seem to recall you mostly buying new bags though I think you had some older pieces like a medium travel bag and a medium duffle a while back.

OMG may singularly drive up (further) the price of vintage Filson on EBay! Look for "Talon" in the posting headers to become more frequent.

I have seen it before with Rolex Submariners - "old" models with plastic crystals and tritium, matte dials started to overtake prices on the shiny new models as collectors started to value attractive patina more than mere newishness.

I sometimes wonder if the leather on new bags was an attempt by Filson to preserve the "new look" longer and ironically prevent the fading and aging that many now seem to prefer.

 

[OtterMeanGreen]

Thanks and I will post pics later. It definitely has a patina - and a bit of a musty smell right now. Going to pack it with dryer sheets for a bit. Hang it in the sun, etc. before I use it.

I'll then be selling my slightly used tan 256.

Interestingly, I bought it from a guy in Chicago (from ebay but I met him locally- because he can't ship to SW Florida where I'm currently living!). He has an interesting story and has a friend that works for the Filson restoration dept. In other words, it appears that he has access to older Filson bags for those that may be interested. He does quite a bit of business on the Bay.

Awesome!!
By any chance is this the guy? I nearly bought a MTB from this guy. His prices are a little high and he usually only has TAN lol

http://www.ebay.com/usr/gzstudio77?_trksid=p2047675.l2559

Also I found a Small Duffle for you. Its Pre Bedrock and possibly a Talon era (judging by the Padless strap). I realize you had originally asked for a Small Duffel in Otter Green but this is the best I can do so far.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/filson-small-duffle-bag-/232475629197?hash=item3620a0968d:g:xocAAOSwH2hZrF2F

 

[mgrennier]

Awesome!!
By any chance is this the guy? I nearly bought a MTB from this guy. His prices are a little high and he usually only has TAN lol

http://www.ebay.com/usr/gzstudio77?_trksid=p2047675.l2559

Also I found a Small Duffle for you. Its Pre Bedrock and possibly a Talon era (judging by the Padless strap). I realize you had originally asked for a Small Duffel in Otter Green but this is the best I can do so far.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/filson-small-duffle-bag-/232475629197?hash=item3620a0968d:g:xocAAOSwH2hZrF2F

Yes. That is him. He's a great guy (rarely do we get a chance to meet an online seller in person). He was very knowledgeable about Filson bags and has several in his possession and uses them himself. He has a restoration dept zipperless tote which looked nice - he had bought it for his wife but she didn't want it.

And. @Soletrane? Yes. OMG's influence played a part in convincing me to get it. (Damn you, Otter!). I was NOT in the market for a talon-era 256 (at all), but when I saw the post I jumped on it. What the hell. There are a lot of worse ways to spend our money, right? Plus - if/when I sell my slightly broken in 256, I'm sure the net price differential will be very small (less than 50-75 bucks, probably).

 

[mgrennier]

Awesome!!
By any chance is this the guy? I nearly bought a MTB from this guy. His prices are a little high and he usually only has TAN lol

http://www.ebay.com/usr/gzstudio77?_trksid=p2047675.l2559

Also I found a Small Duffle for you. Its Pre Bedrock and possibly a Talon era (judging by the Padless strap). I realize you had originally asked for a Small Duffel in Otter Green but this is the best I can do so far.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/filson-small-duffle-bag-/232475629197?hash=item3620a0968d:g:xocAAOSwH2hZrF2F

Thanks for finding the tan small duffle - looks to be in pretty good shape. I think I've decided that I want all my luggage pieces to be either navy or green (for now) as my EDC is the 256 (talon-era of course now!) which is tan.

I tend to shy away from the matchy-matchy look of tan brief and tan bag - I like to carry different colors. Just a personal thing - probably rooted from my youth when my mom (and nearly every one around me) had the matching sets of luggage - usually Samsonite in light blue or something gross.

That said, I appreciate you looking.

Btw- I did tell that ebay seller about our little forum so he poke his head in once in a while. He had not heard of it which surprised me.

 

[Soletrane]

Yes. That is him. He's a great guy (rarely do we get a chance to meet an online seller in person). He was very knowledgeable about Filson bags and has several in his possession and uses them himself. He has a restoration dept zipperless tote which looked nice - he had bought it for his wife but she didn't want it.

And. @Soletrane? Yes. OMG's influence played a part in convincing me to get it. (Damn you, Otter!). I was NOT in the market for a talon-era 256 (at all), but when I saw the post I jumped on it. What the hell. There are a lot of worse ways to spend our money, right? Plus - if/when I sell my slightly broken in 256, I'm sure the net price differential will be very small (less than 50-75 bucks, probably).

Yes, this is key. If you continually sell off bags to buy new, the net cost is actually quite low.

 

[Soletrane]

Incidentally, I have also jumped into the vintage Filson EBay buying frenzy.

I found this early 2015 Filson paper tote. Unlike later models, it has the desirable 'twisted twine' handles which fray in a most gorgeous way when used. The colorways is forest green (not like later bags which use an ugly dark green color that doesn't fade or patinate) with the larger point Seattlevica font like from the 1958 Filson catalog! I am so psyched about using it!

 

[speedy611]

View attachment 840179 Incidentally, I have also jumped into the vintage Filson EBay buying frenzy.

I found this early 2015 Filson paper tote. Unlike later models, it has the desirable 'twisted twine' handles which fray in a most gorgeous way when used. The colorways is forest green (not like later bags which use an ugly dark green color that doesn't fade or patinate) with the larger point Seattlevica font like from the 1958 Filson catalog! I am so psyched about using it!

WOW. That’s a real grail find. What advice would you give for twine care? Top only, or underside too? How often? What compound? Leave to soak for 24 hours, or wipe off excess immediately? (Sorry OMG ;-)

 

[bembel]

View attachment 840179 Incidentally, I have also jumped into the vintage Filson EBay buying frenzy.

I found this early 2015 Filson paper tote. Unlike later models, it has the desirable 'twisted twine' handles which fray in a most gorgeous way when used. The colorways is forest green (not like later bags which use an ugly dark green color that doesn't fade or patinate) with the larger point Seattlevica font like from the 1958 Filson catalog! I am so psyched about using it!

It's not pre-Bedrock, unfortunately.

 

[Soletrane]

Yes, it's that time again. It's another episode of Filson Leather Roundup.

Today's contestants are two leather straps on my Journeyman backpack. One looking nearly pristine. And the other like someone threw it in a microwave.



Filson, if you're reading this, you need better QC in your supply chain or in your manufacturing process. Not acceptable in a bag that retails in the mid 300s!