German helmet question
 

Hello to all! I know this isn't a question about lugers or other firearms but, there is a wealth of knowledge surfing this forum! I thought maybe one of you could help me identify this german helmet. All I know is that it is a post war helmet that a vet. had brought back with them from germany or had bought it in germany (one or the other)and that nothing else was known about the helmet. The seller thought it was a M40, but wasn't sure. Any help would be appriciated!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEBWA:IT

Semper-Fi
USMC (Josh)

USMC,
It appears to be a very abused model 1935 helmet
i just wish the helmet wasnt so abused
Nick

Nick,

What leads you to believe this is a M35 helmet? Is there certain features? Is the 5 fingered medal bracket in the top of the helmet typical of M35? :confused:

USMC, I don't think it's German at all. I think that it is a Spanish WWII helmet. They look like WWII German from the outside, but the liner is held together totally different.

This is a post WWII helmet. Note that there is only a vent hole on the side but no rivet which is used to hold the liner in place. All WWII German helmets have rivets just below and in front of the vent hole. It is definitly not a Spanish helemt The spanish helmets are raw edged but not flared out like the German M-42 model. The Spanish helmets also have a clip on the front to which a badge was attached and the liners are completely different from all leather German WWII helmet liners. Post WWII helmets can be found in much better condition and for less than $50.00.You can sometimes find WWII German helmet shells in the $50-$65 dollar range on EBay.

redbird , i hate to disagree with you but there are several different variations of this helmet , while i agree that this helmet is not spanish it could be of norwegian or swedish as the germans exported to both countries.
Nick

Hi

My guess is that this maybe is a post WWII German Bundesgrenz Sch�¼tz(Vest German border patrol) helmet, the vents is flat and different from the M35. I don't know about Sweden for sure, but to my knowledge Norway used regular german helmets since there was a lot of them there after the war. We used them here in Denmark as well, they was painted in black or grey and fitted with a new liner(big shame), they were issued to local firemen teams on factories and appartment blocks.

HCS