One of the most difficult pieces of gear to pick up for the 782 gear collection is the USMC specific depot made First Aid pouch. I've been collecting since the early 1990's and this only but the second time I have seen one of these for sale. This is considered the 3rd variation by militaria collectors. By all means if you see one of these for sale pick it up as you might not see one for a very long time. UPDATE 2/6/19: This is one of those posts I've been meaning to get back to. Through two different collectors that this was actually a fraudulent repo from the 1980s-90's. Apparently sometime in the 1980s a Marine Depot closed down and a "dealer" was able to purchase a lot of WWII era materials. This was one of those items that were reproduced using original spare parts and material. The button snaps even have the writing in the dome snap. This was part of the reason why it was so difficult to know it was a reproduction as it was made with original material. The only odd aspect was the name on the back didn't check out to anybody but since the name was Greek, I assumed it was a loan lease item to Greece and had since been returned. It was relayed to me the dealer traveled the country and selling these fraudulent at Gun Shows. Besides the shape of the pouch one other way of telling you might have a fake is the male buttons don't have the stamping on the back in the inside of the pouch. This really is the only times I was burned in a big way, but the work was so well done, it took some great convincing to evidence from two unrelated collectors. So buyer beware, it even happens to the best of us.
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