Ulan Officer Restoration

b.loree

b.loree

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Just received this Ulan officer tschapka yesterday. There are chunks of finish already missing and other large pieces that are going to have to be removed and put back into place (glued) using lacquer. In addition, on the rear of the helmet we have cracks that have the potential to spring even larger pieces from the shell. Close to 70% of this tschapka needs stabilization and new finish. The condition of this piece is such that one had to be careful just handling it or finish would fall off. However, it is a great helmet and very restorable.
Some unique characteristics: very fine, light chin scales, an excellent liner made from a heavy cotton with herring bone pattern to it, not silk. The scales are held on by domed split brads and separate from the bosses very similar to the pre 1891 bolt on scales but no bolts, brads instead. Last, something I have never seen.....the ends of the leather sweat band are stitched together like an OR liner not glued. Some before pics as it came out of the box:














The restoration has begun, large chunks of finish had to be carefully pulled off some new finish has already been applied.
 
Sure, Bungo, not much to see but I will. My initial plan was to save the original chunks of finish and put them back in place. However, the ends sticking up (see pics) are so warped that they won't fit back in proper position....more trouble than its worth. Consequently, most of all those large bare spots on the shell are going to be completely redone. To be continued......
 
I'd also like to see photos! It's certainly an interesting helmet. Did the Wappen come with it?
I don't have a single Tschapka, something on my 'to get' list.

:D Ron
 
The wappen did not come with it nor the feldzeichen as I do not need these for the restoration. I can tell you that it belongs to a UR 14 officer and has a beautiful wappen.
 
:thumb up:

We're looking forward to see the result!
Sure this will be great !

Francis
 
b.loree said:
The wappen did not come with it nor the feldzeichen as I do not need these for the restoration. I can tell you that it belongs to a UR 14 officer and has a beautiful wappen.
Click to expand...


Okay! I wondered if this was a restoration commission, or part of your collection, so I guess that answers that one too! :)

:D Ron
 
Yes, restoration for a fellow collector. Most of my business comes up from the US. I have another officer tschapka which arrived last week. This one has dents and missing finish in those areas but not as bad as the first one shown here. I was unaware of this fact as I have not handled many officer tschapkas.....they are stitched together at the front behind the wappen. The lacquer then covers the stitches as does the wappen, just the opposite to infantry officer helmets which are stitched up the back. A thin strip of leather is glued on the inside to hide the seam. Learn something new every day! Both these helmes have this arrangement so I am assuming the same method for all officers tschapkas. OR tschapkas like pickelhauben are made in one piece...no seam. I believe this was done on officer helmets to lighten them.....a conjecture on my part.
 
b.loree said:
Yes, restoration for a fellow collector. Most of my business comes up from the US. I have another officer tschapka which arrived last week. This one has dents and missing finish in those areas but not as bad as the first one shown here. I was unaware of this fact as I have not handled many officer tschapkas.....they are stitched together at the front behind the wappen. The lacquer then covers the stitches as does the wappen, just the opposite to infantry officer helmets which are stitched up the back. A thin strip of leather is glued on the inside to hide the seam. Learn something new every day! Both these helmes have this arrangement so I am assuming the same method for all officers tschapkas. OR tschapkas like pickelhauben are made in one piece...no seam. I believe this was done on officer helmets to lighten them.....a conjecture on my part.
Click to expand...

Brian, some officer Tschapkas shells are also made of four quarters stitched together, like a football. D. Laine told me once that these were higher-quality, more expensive Tschapkas.
Bruno
 
I believe 'stitching thinner leather to make a lighter shell' is absolutely correct. I noticed that the vulcan fiber officer shells are also very light in weight, but probably didn't 'breath' or have the same '(quality?) feel' as leather helmets.

:D Ron
 
Pictures of the work in progress were requested previously so here we go. Thanks to 911 and Max for their "foot ball" contributions to this part of the restoration thread. The tschapka is truly unique in its construction.



[/



A combination of things has been done so far and not for the faint of heart. It looks rough right now but things will be close to perfect in the end. In the original "out of the box" pics we see large flakes of finish which have separated from the shell. These had to be pried off with a knife and the ends which were sticking up broken off. These bits could not be reattached because they were warped up ward and would not fit back on to the shell. Large chunks though have been reattached using new lacquer. the cracks in the finish will be sanded, filled and blended in. It is a long process and quite frankly, you really have to know what the hell you are doing or you can screw up a very valuable piece of History! I really appreciate the trust and above all patience that my fellow collectors place in my abilities. As I often say...it took 100 years to get into this condition, please accept the fact that it can take me months to put things right so that it will last another 100 years. All that I can say is that I always try to do my best.
 
Some pics of where we are at with this Tschapka. This piece had major issues as seen before, far worse than the other one under reconstruction. The original finish on this is totally different than anything I have ever encountered before...there is a thin layer of black but the main finish is white. You can see it in the pics. I tried two methods here...utilize chunks of original finish to fill and then the usual use of new finish in other areas. I am of 2 minds....using the original chunks fills in quickly but then you have to fill in cracks. New finish takes more time.

The right side is the worst. The original finish was quite thick here so we need lots of new finish in this area. Notice how the finish is feathered out to the edges to save on sanding and ease in the blending process from new to old.




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The rear of the helme poses special problems. The rear area shrunk inward causing some long cracks as can be seen. These are major threats as they could have popped the finish off most of the back of the tschapka. However, they are frustrating to deal with. I may decide to moisturize the shell and block it into proper position, then when I have a firm surface, continue the refinish in this area. The rear part of the helme still wants to pull into the centre! In truth, some times I wonder why I get into this....I am dealing with a piece that is worth at least $4K+ and I have it here looking like its in Joes' body shop covered in bondo dust. I guess, the bottom line, is that it has to look ugly and beat up during this process of making it look like new. I am a man who needs challenges......life is good!
 
Yes Dave, this one is going to take months, its the drying time between coats that eats up the time. Drying is faster during our winter because the air is so cold and dry. Now, thank God we are into summer with higher humidity!
 
b.loree said:
The wappen did not come with it nor the feldzeichen as I do not need these for the restoration. I can tell you that it belongs to a UR 14 officer and has a beautiful wappen.
Click to expand...


The Wappen is here : http://www.ebay.fr/itm/TRES-RARE-PLAQUE-DOFFICIER-DU-14me-REGIMENT-DE-UHLANS-PRUSSE-1914-1918-/291146351909" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
Thanks MAX...... very nice wappen. Is that an older style? The tail feathers look to be from an older wappen. I am going to see if we can get a foto posted of the wappen that belongs to this tschapka. It is magnificent. I have come to view some of these wappen as works of art.
 
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