I agree that shooting bags tend to attract a lot of not strictly necessary gadgets like a magnet, and have worked hard to winnow mine down to the bare necessities. I do change its contents based on the type of hunting or outing I’m doing, but this is my all-around usual setup, assuming I'll be shooting one of my 20 gauge smooth bored guns.
Clockwise from 6:00:
double shot pouch of pigskin, brass harness buckle and steel tongue, designed and built by me, sewn with waxed flax thread, treated against the weather with my beeswax-lard patch and gun lube
cow’s knee, treated with the same lube
tow for wadding, and a jackknife to cut it with, not lubed
forged turn screw to fit all screws on gun and lock
extra flint
coil gun worm, fits on threads carved on small end of ramrod
my “medicine”...a buckeye and piece of a round ball from a shot deer
antler tip powder measure, rattlesnake folk art, marks for different loads
pan brush, rawhide and pig bristle
vent picks, one wire, one forged
rubbed brown paper used overpowder ala Thomas Page
original horn, for a day’s hunt, ball or shot, goes in the shot pouch
goatskin ball bag, cane spout, cork stopper
deerskin birdshot bag, rawhide spout, wood stopper
primer made of gourd, with 4F
With this setup I can grab the bag and go, regardless if I’m shooting ball, shot or both, and there are supplies enough for any day hunt. If I am planning a longer outing, I exchange the small powder horn in the bag for a larger one on a separate shoulder strap.
I am aware that priming horns and 4F powder were probably not used in the day, but I use them. That’s a good example of my approach to the hobby. My main thrust is to learn what the old boys did, but I don’t feel constrained to follow what I’ve learned slavishly. Modern knowledge indicates 4F powder yields the fastest ignition, and that’s exactly what I want when I decide to shoot at live creatures, I insist on it, regardless what the old boys did.
This rig is small and lightweight, carries easily without hassle, and has so far not fallen short of my needs when in the field. Any other supplies or gadgets I can’t live without on an outing, say fire kit, or lead and mold, go in my haversack or game bag.
As an aside, in all my reading of the old literature concerning our shooting pouches, I've never found an instance of their being called anything other than shot or bullet pouches, less often shot or bullet bags. If anyone is aware of other usage from the day, please post it. I've also never been able to really understand what the carried in them.
Spence