Fake German Steel helmets

[jimmyhanklane]

Post war West German Border Guard helmet painted and decaled to misrepresent.

[jock auld]

Guys,

Didn't take long did it?!

To be fair it is listed as probable fake due to rarity.

Jock

[vegas82867]

Hi,
I believe this is another fake to add to the collection, although I wish I were wrong. Thanks for posting what to look out for.

[ssr481]

My first post in this forum.. does anyone have a source for reproduction German stahlhelms, relatively inexpensive?

[bigmacglenn]

Please tell us WHY you say they are fake...and WHERE the discrepancies are...That would be extremely helpful, especially for the new collectors! Thanks,Glenn

[Milan Gard]

Please tell us WHY you say they are fake...and WHERE the discrepancies are...That would be extremely helpful, especially for the new collectors! Thanks,Glenn

decal and chinstrap are fakes IMO

[packin9]

I came upon this site. I don't know if it has been posted before but it's quite interesting. Repro's of helmets decals etc. All seem to look pretty authentic. Check it out. WWW.Fallshirmjager.Biz

[Aldo]

Thanks for the reference site. I think he site is Fallshirmjager.Biz - German & American Paratrooper Fallschirmjager & Militaria WWII
you left out the "c"

[vegas82867]

Hi Glenn,
I had someone take a look at that SS helmet through an on-line source. Although the description describes other aspects of the helmet - in particular the liner as it was German manufacture but a post war Norwegian fix up. The liner itself looks as if it were (and it was) painted or dyed a reddish brown. This was something the Norwegians did for what ever the reason - maybe someone on the forum can clarify that. Also the boot lace that's tying the tongues together - that's way off!
What I was told about the decal was that the scraping was too... lets say perfect. You visualize plenty of the SS insignia but the sides have been scraped to add the effect of field use. I've read that on some fake decals you can scrape the decal off with some pressure using your fingernail - the decal on this one however did not scrape when I tried this. From the on-line site I was told the following: Unfortunately the helmet is not entirely original having been rebuilt with postwar parts, some Norwegian modified parts using original German elements, and of course a fake decal. The chinstrap and the decal are not original. The helmet shell and its paint is, but the leather liner is a postwar repainted (red-brown) original German liner. The Norwegians rebuilt and modified many original helmets for their own army in the 1950's. Overall, the helmet would be worth around $350 as a good replica.
I didn't get much more of a response but it all seemed to fit in place. I've included some more pics of the helmet and the previous liner - I'm stuck with the shell so I replaced it with an authentic liner. This will probably be the closest I'll ever get to owning an SS helmet anyway since the prices are just too high. Which by the way is something to keep in mind - generally speaking if the price seems too good to be true it's usually not the real thing. Like my other blunder (M38 Para) that I have listed for comments as well on the forum. Anyone - please feel free to point out all the details that you see that make these helmets fake and why. Information from veteran collectors would be quite helpful for someone new to the hobby such as myself and I'm sure many of others as well. Plenty of collectors tell you what"s wrong but few tell you why.
Thanks,
Frank


Reference about the M42 SS pictured from:
The Online Guide to WWII German Helmets
The Online Guide to World War II German Helmets

[packin9]

Thanks for the reference site. I think he site is Fallshirmjager.Biz - German & American Paratrooper Fallschirmjager & Militaria WWII
you left out the "c"

Whoops! (c) But the site does go to show how someone could be duped if they don't know better.There are some realistic repro's there. This forum can help a great deal in such matters.