Condition: Excellent
Pattern: Fixed Bale
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Product Description: This is a great representative example of a wartime made WW2 M1 Helmet. This is a textbook pre-1945 piece, with a front rim seam and desirable, earlier pattern fixed chinstrap bales. The original, factory applied, textured OD green paint on the shell rates at approximately 98 percent, with a light, pleasant patina. Some honest wear exposes the shine of the early type stainless steel rim. Both spot welded chin strap bales are intact, with no damage or repairs. The khaki webbing chin strap is complete and sound, and still factory sewn, with typical light surface corrosion to the metal fittings. This WW2 M1 Helmet is complete with its original liner. The exterior of the liner has been painted white, most likely by the veteran who held on to it after the war. The interior of the liner is complete with all of the original suspension. The leather sweat band and visor chin strap are complete, with normal age toning. The name “FOX” is inked on the liner interior, beneath the brim. This wartime combat helmet displays very well, and remains in excellent condition.
Historical Description: The US military adopted the M1 helmet in 1941, near the outbreak of WWII. This helmet was a replacement for the outdated 1917 pattern “Kelly” helmet, which saw only limited use very early in WWII. WWII production M1 helmets featured a rim around the edge, made of a separate steel strip, with the seam in the front. Early helmets had chin strap bales that were fixed, and simple wire fittings that were brazed into place. Later wartime production helmets had a more complex “swivel bale” chin strap attachment system. The M1 helmet had a removable liner, initially made of a pressed composite material with a cloth color, later replaced with a more rigid liner made out of a plastic material that did not have a cloth cover. The shell itself was made to be one size fits all, and was made by only two manufacturers, while the liners were made by a variety of different companies. For camouflage purposes, the United States Marine Corps issued a cloth cover for this helmet, while the US Army generally used a helmet net for this purpose. M1 helmets existed in a variety of paint finishes, including gray helmets for US Navy use, and were further customized with a variety of indicators such as rank or unit assignment.
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