Bavarian police helmet (arrived)

I used a headshaper that I brought from a guy. I cannot remember his name though. I noticed that Brian uses an antique one but I couldn't wait to get my hands on a head shaper, so I bought it from the guy. Think its about $25 that I have paid. If you are interested, I can check and get back to you.
 

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I have one of those antique hat stretchers too and I have found that you need to be really careful with them. They have a tendency to stretch the helmet from front to back while collapsing the sides. They can also put strain on the visor stitches which can cause them to rip.
I prefer to use a tapered glass bowl. I measure the inside circumference of the helmet and purchase a cheap glass bowl that has the same circumference. These bowls are easy to find at Dollar Stores, Walmart, Target, etc. and they usually are very inexpensive.
I place the helmet on the bowl with very little pressure until the shape is correct and then I wait. After a couple of days I push the helmet on a little further. I continue this until the size and shape are correct. I then let it set, sometimes for months. It took a hundred years to become mis-shapened, so it takes some time to bring it back.
Good luck.

John :)
 
Two good suggestions/methods. The modern hat stretchers are available on EBay, although as was mentioned, I use the antique ones. I have never had any problems with these ripping thread etc. I am always careful though, as 95% of the time I am working on someone else’s helmet. Nice police helmet! :thumb up:
 
Hello guys, I have been doing research on the helmet and haven’t found any silver colored ones before, is there anything different about them? Did a specific group wear them? What are they? Thank you!
 
Prussian Garde said:
Hello guys, I have been doing research on the helmet and haven’t found any silver colored ones before, is there anything different about them? Did a specific group wear them? What are they? Thank you!
Click to expand...

That seems odd. It seems to me that I have seen more silver/nickel ones than I have brass.
I'm not sure that a specific unit could be identified, but nickel is commonly found on these.

John :)
 
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