The other thread about German WWII helmets made me think about the one in my family.

This helmet was sent back home by my Great Uncle Bud (Mom's Uncle), who was all over the European theater as a Lieutenant with the 29th ID.  He was wounded several times and awarded a couple of Bronze and Silver stars.  Much of what he "collected" was lost at one time while he was recovering from wounds, but this helmet was one item that made it home.  Apparently he taped an address label to it and just mailed it home!  (He also brought home a very nice Luger that he gave to my brother upon his graduation from West Point).









Family History says that the scratches on the two side markings were done by the original owner BEFORE the helmet was captured.  Like the guy was trying to distance himself from them.

The chin strap is gone and the liner is not in good condition (missing the drawstring if nothing else).  My mom's brother played "army" with this for many years when he was a kid so it is surprising that the condition is as good as it is.

What model helmet is this?  Can anyone see the stampings well enough to identify them?  Any idea what the unit mark on the left side is?  Any estimate on the value "as is"?

Now that I know such things exist, I wonder if I should find a replacement chinstrap and/or parts to repair the liner?

No, this is NOT for sale and never will be.

Thanks for any input, folks!

Rob

It is an M-42 shell, stamped in ventilation holes, flared, unrolled raw edge...

Rough combat finish.

The decals are police, but with the rough combat finish, it surely belonged to a soldier in the 4th SS Polizei Division, or one of the SS Polizei combat regiments....

Its in very good shape, and nice liner....

Its a super helmet, and could be worth a shitload...single decal SS helmets are worth around $4-5k....this is likely worth $2500 and up on the collector market...

The 31C is the steel/heat lot, it is a 66 sized shell (pretty big), and the bkp is the shell manufacturer (don't know it off the top of my head, but can look it up....)

I would get rid of the wire "chinstrap"....the fingers of the liner were held together by a simple piece of string through the holes in the ends. The chinstrap...very nice repros can be found, originals will set you back $150-$250...

If it were mine, I would find a piece of old string and gently snake it through the holes and lightly tie it, and find a really good repro chinstrap, and add it on. That's it. Just dust it, and don't ever touch the shell with any sort of oil, varnish, cleaner, anything...

I'd add it to your insurance....

ETA Oh, and the scratchouts....most likely done to adhere somewhat with the orders that came down in 1942/43 to remove insignia, as they made a good aiming point....that's why the move to single decal helmets, then no decal helmets....field guys were ordered to scratch off the decals, and this was how it was done many times, kind of a token scratch off.

Wow!  Thank you for the quick response!

Since posting, I had looked at http://www.german-helmets.com and ID'ed as a 1942 model with National Socialist Party decal on the right and a Polizei decal on the left.  Is it that combination that points toward an SS combat Polizei unit?

EDIT to add:  hkp code = Sächsische Emaillier und Stanzwerke

I'll look into a replacement chin strap and ditch that wire.

I guess I should also bring it in from the garage (it has been hanging from a shelving unit for many years).

Rob

The Nazis had email? Who else knew this?

Uh, yeah, better bring it inside...its a very valuable helmet.

The National Colors decal was standard for SS units, the Waffen SS used the same decal on their double decals, the only difference is the SS Polizei units used the Polizei decal on the left.

But the rough, matted feldgrau paint definitel points to a combat helmet, as opposed to a smooth, glossy paint finishes....

https://www.ebay.com/itm/German-Army-HELMET-CHIN-STRAP-Aged-Black-Leather-WW2-Repro-Field-Gear-Uniforms/122788844761?hash=item1c96c914d9:g:7McAAOSwxp9W7~jA

This is a decent repro strap...its not going to add any value to the helmet, really, but it will look good complete....

Awesome family heirloom!

Yes, not trying to add value, but having it more complete would be good.  That one you link would look way better than the new one at https://www.atthefrontshop.com/product_p/gghhpcs.htm

Thanks!

Rob

ATF stuff is top notch, I didn't think of them, but that is a nice strap...I'd maybe go with the ATF, and oil it up and age it a bit...plus it is SS marked, so it would be perfect for your helmet...

The scratches over the decals look more to in line with de-nazification rather than compliance with the directives to remove the national colors in 1942.

Still a very nice Polizei helmet.

either way - get it out of the garage!!!

Nice helmet!

Absolutely! What an heirloom.

IMA just sold one of the same type as mine, but an M34.  They asked and got $500 for it.

IMA

What, if anything, is substantially different between my helmet and the IMA one (other than the model of shell)?

Rob

Thanks for sharing those great pictures 1srelluc!

Rob

IMAs is a not a combat helmet, like yours.  Its light weight and was cheaper to produce.  M34s were issued to non combat troops, police, fireman, etc.

Thanks!  That's the info I was missing.

Rob