Cleaning a Yucca Pack?

[Aardvark]

I used one of these WAAAAY back when I was a Scout (was my Uncles) and have purchased a couple off Ebay.

 

As you can imagine, they are a little dirty. Whats the best way of cleaning them?

 

In the washer than air dry? Dry cleaning?

 

My partners son has a birthday coming up, and I thought about giving one of them to him (along with the book on Baden-Powell, Swiss Army Knife and some Boy Scout stamps).

 

I use the other for toting stuff to Roundtables (I'm a Roundtaable Commish)

 

Thanks!

[Trevorum]

I remember my yucca pack. Bigger than I was, and uncomfortable.

 

I'd put it in a big washtub with some detergent and scrub it by hand for 15 minutes or so. Be sure to get all the soap out and just air dry. They're sturdy.

[kenk]

Yeah, I still have my Yucca pack. It still has my big leather 1973 National Jamboree patch sewn on it. I loved that thing.

 

As I recall, my brother had an older style that had leather buckles that held the small flap on the front down but mine has red cord ties. It seemed that the leather didn't do well over time.

 

Now I'll have to go down to the basement and look at it to be sure.

[inctrl]

I have a Yucca pack with the letters "WFS" as part of the printing on it. Does anyone know what those initials stand for?

[Eagle69]

WFS - World Federation of Scouting? I have no idea if that is it or not ,but when I saw the initials that popped into my head. I have a 1960's era Yucca Pack and I'll have to look at it now to see if it has that on it somewhere.

[Aardvark]

Was surfing this site, saw the title of this thread and thought to meself, " Hey I asked that question a long time ago!"...

 

Then I saw it was the thread I had started two years ago!

 

The young Scout I gave the pack to is now a Life Scout, has finished his Eagle Project, is working on his last required merit badge.

[PaulNix]

 

Does Anyone know the history of the Yucca Pack .... what years was it produced ?

 

(Background)

My old Yucca Pack is in pretty bad shape (especially the leather straps) so I started

looking for a replacement in the past year (not that I really need one at this point

in my life but you never know ....).

 

Within just the past couple of months I've found two and bought both. One was for sale

on a Scouting related Web Site on the west coast and the other I stumbled-across just

a couple of weeks ago while going to some antique stores with friends on a Saturday.

 

The pack I bought at the antique store appears to have never been sold and there

was a second pack also in perfect condition. I don't know if the BSA continued the

practice but when I was a kid (late 50's/early 60's) it was common for Scouting

clothing and related to be carried by retail stores in the small towns where I grew

up in central Texas. The antique store, where I bought the 'new' Yucca Pack a couple

of weeks ago, is in a medium/small town about a half-hour's drive south of Dallas

and my guess is that the two packs came from some store's inventory when they were

either discontinuing carrying Scouting supplies or it may be that the Yucca Pack

was too long out of production and they decided to sell it off.

 

Something I've noticed .... whereas my old (from when I was a kid) Yucca Pack, and

the one I bought off-the-Web a couple of months ago, both have the shoulder straps

with buckles on the bottom so that they can be unclipped from the bottom of the pack,

the 'new' Yucca Pack that I bought a couple of weeks ago has the shoulder straps

attached permanently to the bottom of the pack; the straps still can have their

length adjusted but they can't be unclipped from the bottom of the pack.

 

Any thoughts on Yucca Packs ?