M42 Hkp66 new purchase

[ackb]

Great helmet Dan.. Honest and complete example :-)


Cheers Alex

[Danmark]

Well today it arrived! ....... and here are some detail photos. It looks to me to be a field repaint with sand or sawdust / grit as you can see the factory paint underneath. It DOES look like a bleeder on the rear tongues and they ARE noticeably stiff compared to the rest.

One of the things I like is the broken and repaired chinstrap. Dated 1944 ( I think as the stitch goes through the date ) it must have been to hard to get another in the field because of the trouble he went to with the repair ....done several times, near the buckle and in the middle. I am worried it may break it is so fragile - should I take it off and keep it flat separate to the lid?

Anyway, I am imagining a post D-Day British soldiers trophy as Monty's troops moved ( too slowly according to Patton ) eastward through France and proudly brought home to Norwich only to eventually spend the next 1/2 a century in a shed....... ahh, imagination is a great thing!

Cheers, Dan

[KradSpam]

I like the look of this one Has it been oiled/cleaned or anything? It looks like it has a bit of a sheen to it. I'd leave the chinstrap unless it really seems fragile, it looks sturdy enough to survive to me. I tuck them up the side of the liner band. It does seem a bit odd to me that the soldier would bother to repair the very tip of the strap, maybe collector done to save the markings? That doesn't really take anything away from it though

[Danmark]

Thanks Kradspam, No, it isn't oiled but it does have sort of a dull sheen ( if that makes sense? ) ...I don't think anyone's touched this one in a while but who knows, maybe it was waxed years ago?
Dunno about the repair to the tip - it is the same work as the middle break and same age look. I cant undo the buckle as the repair may be fouled & possibly break ..... probably just leave it and be careful I suppose?

[VolksJager]

Good looking lid Dan, defiantly been a field repaint and certainly been there and done that. I do like the repair as well, adds that personal touch. I would leave it on there as well, been on there since the war and survived so far.

Good pickup mate

Jason

[Danmark]

Thanks Jason,

It's the closest thing I'll get to a cammo for a while ( stretching the funds each purchase but cant seem to justify breaking the "five bills barrier" )
So it's the big toys for the big boys I think - while for me, I'll go for quantity over quality - I'm gonna post my "wall o' Helmets" tomorrow ... Watch out!!

Dan

[4md]

Nice one Dan, looks great

regards Paul

[VolksJager]

I havent broken the 5 bills much either mate

Looking forward to your wall-o-helmet! You might start a trend

Jason

[DougB]

Looks like a good one, certainly appears to have a heavily textured overpaint. The strap is very cool, certainly looks to be a period repair job. The strap markings are also very interesting, looks to be a late war maker, I've never seen this maker before that I recall. I'll check the maker database at GHW when the forums back online there. Nice grab, I'm always interested in seeing any wall o' helmets too!!!

[4md]

I havent broken the 5 bills much either mate

Looking forward to your wall-o-helmet! You might start a trend

Jason

Im always up for a wall o' helmets