Just bought a MKII on impulse, is it British?

[ynot]

Hello all,

Well, I’m not sure if I’ve ended up buying a Greek helmet or not.

I saw it online, the photo was very bright but I could see some textured paint so was hoping it was British army in a very overexposed photograph.

It’s a strange kind of green, somewhere between light khaki and pea soup after it’s gone cold I’d say, or maybe even a touch lighter than a MKI Brodie.

The only markings under the brim I can find are very faint and look like V 88, the liner is 1952 and as the liner bolt shows no trace of paint I’d say it was added recently. I think the strap which isn’t elasticated, is a MKIII.

Can someone tell me anything about it?

Thanks
Tony

[tinlid]

I can't say I've seen that finish before, but would expect it's been refurbished post war,by who?
Could be British refurb, or by an European Country.

[ynot]

Thanks for giving it the once over Aaron. When it arrived I thought the colour was strange and when I saw the liner date I immediately thought I should probably stick to WWI helmets.

Tony

[tinlid]

Wartime helmets should be smooth shiny paint inside, whereas yours looks matt. Is there an ink stamp on the inside somewhere like this one?

[ynot]

I thought I replied to this earlier, something must have gone wrong somewhere.

Anyway, no Aaron there's no ink stamp inside the helmet. There's only V 88 stamped in the brim at the back near to where the ends of the rim meet on the brim.

Yes it's very matt looking, it's only if I rub over the inside with my finger that it appears a little less matt.

Could it be Egyptian?

Tony

[PhantomGuitar]

Wartime helmets should be smooth shiny paint inside, whereas yours looks matt. Is there an ink stamp on the inside somewhere like this one?

What is the significance of that ink stamp? Probably refurb, but where? I've got a shell that has a very similar stamp on the inside.

Shell is British ww2, with it being dated 43.

[tinlid]

They are an British post war refurbished helmet.
Whether the 54 is the date I'm not sure, but your 43 dated helmet would have been painted inside and outside textured brown paint.
37-41 dated helmets would have been painted textured khaki green outside and smooth inside.
Unless home front then black.

[Jerry B]

It appears to be a Dutch Vb helmet with the numbers stamped into the brim near where the ends meet, and someone has pimped it, probably a re-enactor. I assume the stamping is VB56 or VB55

[PhantomGuitar]

They are an British post war refurbished helmet.
Whether the 54 is the date I'm not sure, but your 43 dated helmet would have been painted inside and outside textured brown paint.
37-41 dated helmets would have been painted textured khaki green outside and smooth inside.
Unless home front then black.

Thank you, i had speculated that but wasn't sure. I have mine with a repro early war style liner and a net and use it for reenacting. Cheers, Ben

[ynot]

It appears to be a Dutch Vb helmet with the numbers stamped into the brim near where the ends meet, and someone has pimped it, probably a re-enactor. I assume the stamping is VB56 or VB55

Jerry,

Do you mean my MKII? If so I don't think it's a Dutch one, the stamp V 88 (no more is visible) is under the brim, not on the underside of the rim. There's something else stamped underneath as well but it's too faint. The letters are about the size of the small BMB stampings, 7mm or so high.

Tony