M40 helmet!

[SeanMonaghan]

hello guys i was wondering if i should clean the rust off of this helmet. It looks to retain a lot of its original paint but i'm not sure what to do, also i wouldn't know what to clean it with. Can yous guys please help me?

[Danmark]

Just wax it or matt lacquer. Just to stop it rusting further.

[DeLuxxe]

I dont think you can clean rust off of rust... It wont rust any further if you have it stored inside. I'd leave it as is

[Walkwolf]

Agreed - not enough paint to worry about - leave it as it is.........

[Mikel]

Way past rust-serious pitting.
Its a goner-flower pot candidate.

[Glenn66]

An oxalic acid treatment will remove the red surface rust, you MIGHT get some paint color back but then a wax treatment will be necessary to stop the bare metal rusting again. With the pitting you will have a hard time waxing the shell without the wax building up in the low spots leaving white residue everywhere. If you do attempt it, try to keep a photographic record of your progress for the benefit of future people in a similar dilemma.

[Dean]

Possibly an electrolysis treatment will be less invasive than oxalic acid. Or WD-40 spray will bring the any original color out and the red/orange rust color will disappear ,protect it and prevent further corrosion. This has always worked for me.
Dean.

[davejb]

You really should consider just how deep the rust goes into the steel,there is heavy deep pitting in areas that you won't be able to address without filling the pits, trying to limit the rusting process is your best course and provided its kept in a dry area this will slow the rusting down to a minimum,by removing rust you remove the thickness of the steel and if its very deep you risk leaving holes in the helmet, try Deans method with WD 40, it can help to bring out any colour that remains but it can also remove paint if not used carefully

[António Fragoeiro]

Hi, its only a rusty shell but has character.
I would not change a thing in it, just keep it in a dry and warm place, it will stop the rusting process.
Thank you for sharing

Cheers
Nuno