Newest Field Sketching Bag from the Army Surplus Store

While most of the time I'm quite happy to lug around my regular sketch bag loaded with all the supplies I might want to use. Sometimes travel circumstances and weather conditions call for something light and compact for maximum sketching efficiency. Thus I was always in the look-out for a map case after reading this blog.
Found this neat sketching case (originally a German map case) in a recent trip to an Army Surplus store, proving that suitable art supplies can sometimes be found in the unlikeliest of places with just a little ingenuity. Its made out of rubberized heavy cotton canvas and features a webbing strap and 3 aluminum clasp to customize its fit.
Back view. Bottom view shows the accordion-effect from the two main compartments.
Side view.
Loaded case for drawing with dry media. The Cretacolor 5.6 mm drawing leads are the perfect fit for the narrow pencil pockets on the front of the bag. Regular size Tombow and Staedtler pencils could fit in some of the front pockets, but they could not slide all the way down and the fit was rather tight. The two main compartments can hold a slim tin with sketching pencils (a Cretacolor Monolith set in the example above) and 5"X8" sketchbook (like a Handbook or large Moleskine journal). Compact, light, and easy-to-carry: this map case makes for a very functional and practical sketching bag for field trips where you might want to keep the carrying weight and bulk down to the bare minimum for optimal mobility (like hiking in the country side, visiting the zoo, doing sketchcrawls downtown, and touring museums).
The small pocket can hold a tube of graphite leads or a wedge sharpener. It is a tight fit, so sometimes they get stuck. They can be easily ejected by pulling the tab of the strip attached to the pocket.