Filson Bag Thread: With Pictures

[K. Nights]

Keeping production in the USA doesn't necessarily mean the quality will remain the same, unfortunately. I would have liked to hear him commit to that as well

 

[Leander walker]

Generally,a move to overseas production is commensurate with a decline in quality. The retail landscape is littered with companies who formerly produced their products in the US and have either gone out of business or sullied their status with consumers. Some,like Ghurka leather goods,learned their lesson and stopped making g their goods in China. Generally,if a company is committed to manufacturing in the USA,they are going to keep the quality. Of course there is nothing to keep them from lowering it,except the diligent consumer. You can feel the weight and thickness of wool on a shirt made now and one made ten years ago. Difference?

 

[K. Nights]

Generally,if a company is committed to manufacturing in the USA,they are going to keep the quality.

I don't really think that's true. A lot of Filson's made in USA items have declined in quality over the years already. As production in the USA becomes more expensive, companies look for ways to cut costs while still retaining the "Made in USA" label, which has cachet with some consumers

 

[Leander walker]

If that's being done,it's a questionable strategy. The consumer will know items are being made to a lower quality standard and act accordingly. You say "lot of Filson made in USA items have declined in quality over the years". Lots? How many? Which ones?

 

[K. Nights]

If that's being done,it's a questionable strategy. The consumer will know items are being made to a lower quality standard and act accordingly. You say "lot of Filson made in USA items have declined in quality over the years". Lots? How many? Which ones?

The bags for sure are not as well-made as they used to be. The cotton twill on the current version 256 bags is much lighter and flimsier than the one I bought in 2012, even. I still like the bags and will still buy them, but I would much rather that they increase the price than decrease the quality. I actually don't think the average consumer pays that much attention to the objective quality of most products, though

 

[Winston2]

This is certainly a rare one, especially in it's condition and era. The leather is simply beautiful.

Of course it's mislabeled

Filson Medium Tan Field Bag | eBay

This bag is in great condition.

www.ebay.com

View attachment 1535351

Is it a 240 small carry on? And, is it Otter Green instead of tan/brown as listed? My apologies in advance as I’m still learning. Thanks!

 

[thewinedown]

How do you all feel about the latigo medium leather pouch? I’d love to hear your thoughts if you have them. I could potentially get a new one for $60 instead of $100 for a medium, and am intrigued.

 

[Stratkat]

How do you all feel about the latigo medium leather pouch? I’d love to hear your thoughts if you have them. I could potentially get a new one for $60 instead of $100 for a medium, and am intrigued.

They are great, have a small and med.

 

[thewinedown]

They are great, have a small and med. View attachment 1535982

Nice thanks. I’m pretty tempted even though I have no idea what I’d use it for. Have you found a good use for the medium/what do you tend to use it for? The leather looks nice in your pic too.

 

[thewinedown]

They are great, have a small and med. View attachment 1535982

Plus the cloth pouch seems like an added bonus.

 

[Stratkat]

Nice thanks. I’m pretty tempted even though I have no idea what I’d use it for. Have you found a good use for the medium/what do you tend to use it for? The leather looks nice in your pic too.

I keep a J frame in it for car travel, perfect size, toss that in the bottom of my duffle or one of the end pockets.

 

[thewinedown]

I keep a J frame in it for car travel, perfect size, toss that in the bottom of my duffle or one of the end pockets.

Now THAT’S an answer. Nicely done.

 

[mgrennier]

I’m going to try not to be too dramatic here (insert sarcasm). Ultimately, it’s just a brand right? They’re just bags to lug our stuff around right? It’s just a coat to keep you warm and dry right? See, I don’t know.

After 1000 posts and countless conversations and transactions Filson has become something more to me. It’s something to be connected with, if you will. I think it was @speedy611 that said a long time ago that we have an innate desire in this ever increasing age of technology to work with our hands and in this case own items that were built by hand by real human beings. I think that’s a big part of it for me. Every time I pick up my Denim 256 or put on my wool packer coat I get a sense of pride and affirmation that these were expertly made by artisans. Have I fallen for Filson’s marketing scheme hook-line&sinker. Absolutely. But what’s wrong with that ?

I’m a fairly passionate person in general and I absolutely love the escape that goes along with being around others that are equally as passion in understanding and appreciating the smallest details and changes that we have seen over the years. I guess I just want to say thank you to all of you who have unknowingly helped me keep a smile on during both good times and challenging times. To those of you who I have built friendships with and shared coffee and tea and even a virtual whiskey I couldn’t be more thankful. I’m not going to list you all, but you know who you are. This forum in a small corner of the internet, while about Filson bags, has brought an amazing and positive force into my life and I appreciate you all. Looking forward to 1000 more.

View attachment 1535485

Hey @TinMan3 great post.

Agreed wholeheartedly.

This has become a great way to disconnect from our digital lives (although the digital world has brought this group together, so there’s that).

I formally propose that we arrange an in person, whiskey sipping, Filson wearing get-together this summer assuming COVID is behind us.

 

[TinMan3]

Who’s that distinguished chap you are with in the photo and why are you wearing his tin cruiser?!

Thanks for posting this. It is heartening to have this unique group with it’s passion and breadth, and I always appreciate your posts. (That denim jacket of yours from above looks fantastic!)

Fingers crossed the current oddness ends soon and we can all get back to using our gear and having more stories and photos to share. Meanwhile I look forward to your next 1000 posts...

That tin cruiser just about had me marching to the closest Filson store to get my own. Unfortunately I couldn’t bring my entire wardrobe to England though I would have like me to. I too am looking forward to traveling again! I have friends I need to see and a brand new nephew I need to meet. I’ve gotta size him up for his first Filson; he’s only 6 months so it might be a while .

 

[TinMan3]

There were a couple of interesting subs on the Filson Reddit that I thought folks here might be interested in checking out. It started with a complaint going to Filson's customer service, and ended with the original poster having a phone call with Tom Kartsotis (head of Bedrock, which owns Filson) and a lengthy e-mail from Paolo Corinaldesi.

Original sub:
https://www.reddit.com/r/filson/comments/kq940a/filson_frustration/

Follow-up sub:

Reddit - Dive into anything

www.reddit.com

I thought these subs went along well with what TinMan3 wonderfully wrote earlier. I share a similar affinity to my Filson products. For me, it stems back to the late 80's when my dad extolled the value of well-crafted products. At the time, my dad was frequently traveling across the country, and had a Filson duffle bag that he took with him on all his trips. Then when I graduated high school, he bought me my first Filson product: a 257 in otter green.

Flash forward a couple of decades, and I find myself living just down the road from Filson's HQ. I pop up to their showroom regularly, whenever I have to be in Seattle. I love chatting with the craftspeople in the restoration shop, swapping stories about bags and dreaming about unicorns. Inevitably during those chats, other customers get involved and before long the retail space becomes more of a living room of sorts where a bunch of strangers enjoy talking about Filson and the adventures that their Filson products have accompanied them on.

Soooo, yeah, Filson has cultivated, quite naturally it seems, a community that has wonderful little nooks all around the interwebs and globe.

And for fun, my latest bags:

View attachment 1535728

First of all— thanks for the kinds words. Second— I saw those emails on Reddit and I thought about posting them here but forgot, so thank you. It’s actually kind of neat to hear someone from the actual company tell us what we have hypothesized, that the foreign made products are what make continuing the US manufacturing operation a reality. I do find it interesting that he thinks the company charges a “fair” price for their products. With the rate they have inflated over the last few years I’m still calling BS. I think the Mack cruiser is still a fair price at $395, but $850 for the double with a hood and $800-$1000 (Shinola Collabs) for a quartz watch is totally crazy pricing and they’re making massive margins. I guess maybe they need to to cover overhead, but I don’t think I’d call their pricing “fair” per say.

Thirdly and most importantly. Hot damn that camo 256 is incredible. Maybe one of the coolest I’ve ever seen. What a great couple of bags you have got there. I even like the orange leather on the 261. Very very nice.