Prussian Feld Artillery Officer

b.loree

b.loree

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This helmet came in last week from a regular customer. The front visor needs a restitch, all fittings are to be cleaned and the extensive finish crazing smoothed and filled in. There is also a small puncture on the side of the shell which will have to be patched and then filled in. The helmet was manufactured by AWES one of the top makers. My post title is a bit misleading, the helmet is totally officer private purchase but we have OR's domed spike base brads and NCO kokarden. These would suggest a senior NCO helmet or perhaps a OYV. The before pictures:
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The dent in the wappen will be taken out by applying pressure with the end of a wooden spoon while the piece is on a soft surface.
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The crazing around the top of the shell is so prevalent that it actually feels spongy to the touch. However, new finish will fix this and stiffen everything up.
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The puncture mentioned previously, a small thin leather patch will be glued on the inside of the shell to secure this area. The kokarden are M91 NCO style but the helmet is totally officer except for these and the OR spike base brads instead of stars.
 
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Photos of the restoration process:
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All fittings except for the spine have been removed, it will be cleaned in place. The shell is lightly sanded first to remove any loose flakes and provide a rough surface for the finish. The shellac dust will be melted back into the cracks using a cotton ball dipped in thinner.
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A couple of coats of shellac have been applied and the shell is beginning to stiffen. This process of sanding, cotton ball/ thinner/new shellac will be repeated until all crazing is filled in and the shell back where it should be.
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As per the customers wishes, all fittings have been cleaned except for the scales. The scales, although of a different patina still have 99% of their original gilding on them so I only cleaned them lightly with "Never Dull". The NCO kokarden are also clearly visible.
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These would have looked spectacular when new.
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The near mint interior, showing the gold AWES mark and TOP Liner. I believe this was their top of the line officer helmet.
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The company was certainly proud of its quality helmets..... as we see here with this gold embossed logo.
 

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Yes, hard to understand how the outside got to be in such rough shape while the interior is pristine. However, I am going to improve that.
 
Brian,
I agree this pickelhaube has a fantastic interior, while the exterior looks very rough. How the M91 NCO kokarden kept in placer? However, I would assume that the large holes on the Kocarden with the smaller prongs on the Rossette would allow them to drift down.

An interesting side note is that A. Werner & Sohne, Berlin used AWES marker; besides top-of-the-line pickelhaubes, they also sold outstanding Iron Crosses back in the day.
Best regards,
John
 
Yes John, the usual Officer prong rosettes hold the kokarden in place. They are large enough though, that they cover the M91 holes. Thanks for the background information on AWES. I am working on another Arty Officer helmet at the moment from FAR 46. This also has an AWES marked kugel but not the gold embellishments nor the ribboned liner. I would say that it is the model one step down from this but still excellent quality. All the best to you as well John.
 
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Great start .
I have a Brunswick veteran's helmet with the same condition .
The out side is worn but the interior is a pristine chocolate brown.
 
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Another fantastic restoration Brian now the outside of this AWS Pickelhaube looks like it’s inside.
 
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Thanks everyone. This was a cool helmet to work on. The stitching on the front visor was very fine but I managed to get the holes lined up properly and it turned out well. I only stabbed myself once with the needle! 😊 This was a high quality helmet originally.
 
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