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My next ersatz need no other introduction. My own Bing made, tin pickelhaube. Since there are a few good threads about Bing and its ersatz variants, I won’t add anything that isn’t already known. Just a nice, solid ersatz haube

Holy smokes, what a rare beauty! Nice find!

If the plate is original to the helmet, a couple of things might have happened: 1) this really was to a grenadier regiment as suggested, but due to the lack of special plates or just to simplify supplies, it was given a standard plate 2) it could also be that this did have the original plate and...

Here’s one I have from Würrtemberg that has a similar shape like the one you have Clovis, albeit it’s missing the brass visor and neck rails and has a back stud. Does it look like the same manufacturer made this too, or someone else?

I absolutely love the his one. Paper/Cardboard ersatz are my favorite ones to collect. I’m very fascinated that Bing made other ersatz variants.

My next ersatz pickelhaube I will post was a case of mistaken identity on my end. Initially, I assumed this to be a paper ersatz Saxon haube. Upon closer inspection and what I could find in references, I believe this is instead a shellacked felt model, with the felt being in an orange color. I...

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I’m very happy to have this one into the collection

Thanks for info correction Clovis. Makes sense for this pickel to stay within the same units.

This definitely saw service during the war. The bottom stamp and the one above have been found on a few other of these birds. The bottom is for 1st battalion, reserve infantry regiment 50, and above that one is for infantry regiment 137. The one on the very left is harder to make out, but I...

The felt color on this one, while dirty, is red. These also have been found in pink and green. The drawstring is identical to a normal felt that I own. The last photo shows shows that a leather wedge that holds the wappen has been replaced by a small twig

The signature design of these ersatz helmets is the imitation leather than runs the bottom circumstance. Its color gives an idea of the original cloth color. The orenleder underneath the cockades is made of leather and is usually rotted away on these. This ones’ in remarkable condition

Some up close photos of the cotton cloth. The cloth seems to have been stitched together from a few separate pieces and then covered over the helmet. The patterns will sometimes vary on these pickelhauben. On the last photo is an upclss shot of the front visor. Note the two different pattens of...

My latest find arrived a few days ago and the miltaria gods have smiled on me. A felt covered ersatz pickle. Like my previous cork ersatz, this would have been originally field gray, but has since faded to kaki.

Gents, thanks for the compliments on this helmet. Again, I absolutely love this one. I will of course post more of my collection, but I also would like any info on the manufacturers of them. Starting with the cork ersatz, does anyone know who made these? Was it similar to the Van der Hayden kit...

Clovis, thanks for the break down of these helmets and the manufactures involved. I’m really eager to learn more about the manufactures of all ersatz pickelhauben

I love it. I don’t see these in the field gray color often. Congrats on the find!

Rounding out these posts are a few more details and misc. stuff. It has an undyed liner, with the only markings I can find is a potential size marker. It definitely has some wear, stains, and tears after 100+ years, but overall is a solid and fine pickelhaube.

Of course, what also makes it stand out is its cloth chinstrap. This too, has a defect in that the buckles are completely different. The one on the left is brass made and has more rounded corners, while the one on the right seems to be made of steel or pained brass and has more sharper corners...

This pickelhaube seems to have been made with inexperienced and/or rushed hands. The chinstrap post with the Prussian state sites higher above the liner than the Riechs side does. This makes the pickelhaube look crooked when viewed from the front and back