joerookery
Well-known member
Randy received another interesting example a cork helmet with two leather visors. The liner is attached backwards. There was a line Prussian plate that was broken on the front. The method of attachment was loops.
Cork with two leather visors
- Thread starter joerookery
- Start date
I love it. This to me, would be a cork helmet that had smashed visors that were (hopefully) period replaced with leather ones from a trashed leather Pickelhaube. Completely legitimate in my opinion.
A question here because I see a rule of thumb of mine going down the drain. I thought that visors on pickelhaubes are always brown on the underside - for me that was a means of quickly telling converted firewere helmets which are usually blackened on the underside. Is this rule generally not true for such ersatz freaks, is this a misconception of mine or is this haube simply an exception?
joerookery
Well-known member
I feel like Bill Clinton -- I feel your pain -- if only I had a quarter for every time my rules fell apart. I have seen both prewar and M15 helmets with a black underside. I have also seen several black undersides that look legitimate that have had the unit markings removed. I owned one once. It would be interesting to hear what Brian has to say -- I'm always trying to look for easy boxes but have pretty much given up. Maybe I should keep the faith!
Wyliecoyote
New member
This might sound a tad bit gruesome, but if the depots received helmets damaged from the front, and were canabilizing parts off of the damaged helmets, maybe they were blackening the re-cycled visors so the splatter marks were not visable to the owner of the reconditioned helmet? Also it would not matter what regiment the parts were used for if the old Regt. stamps were darkened out. Would eliminate any confusion as to ownership. Maybe?
I have seen a few ORs' helmets with leather black visors so this is legit as far as I am concerned. They also put lacquered card board viosrs on leather shells which of course were also black painted on the underside. My weirdest collector experience was handling a Prussian M15 OR helmet made from papier mache......very light but no protection!!
One last thing in regard to contemporary refurbished helmets, from the ones that I have handled and worked on, they often skipped every other original stitch hole along the visor and used coarser thread. So larger stitches than normal could indicate an original repair of the helmet. I have also handled many M95 helmets that were converted to M15 grey fittings. Brian
One last thing in regard to contemporary refurbished helmets, from the ones that I have handled and worked on, they often skipped every other original stitch hole along the visor and used coarser thread. So larger stitches than normal could indicate an original repair of the helmet. I have also handled many M95 helmets that were converted to M15 grey fittings. Brian