belgium m71 parachutist helmet

[Greg Pickersgill]

No books on this topic specifically, unfortunately. However, I would recommend Paolo Marzetti's ELMETTI (currenly in third edition with a new expanded fourth due soonish) as an excellent all-round guide to helmets of the 20th&21stC. There are also books like Arnold and Reynosa of the US helmets which also cover the post-WW2 period, and Clawson's RUSSIAN HELMETS comes up to the early 2000s. There's a excellent two volume set on French helmets by Roland Hennequin (a third, covering the 1970s upwards is in the works apparently). Skotte's SCANDINAVIAN helmets is good for Norway and Denmak (unfortunately volume 2 for Sweden and Finland is unlikely to appear), and there's Soulier for the Swiss. There are several others - please see the lower reaches of my webpage here - HELMET COLLECTION COLLECTORS HELMET BOOKS ON HELMETS Helmet collector's webpages - for more information.

Personally I use the better helmet webpages a lot - my favourites are El Jefe Joseba's - PORTADA - and World War helmets - .: World War Helmets - Accueil :. - both of them well organised and reliable. You'll also find a reasonably uptodate listing of good helmet sites on the webpage I indicated in the previous paragraph. Most straightforward questions can be answered by reference to a good website - its what they're for.

Post-WW2 helmets - especially European - are my main area of interest, along with the more modern composite and ballistic plastic helmets. I am continually baffled by people going on about these helmets being 'uninteresting' and 'not collectable'. You only have to look at the startling variety of the French Mle51 variants (a whole collection in itself) or even the difficulty of pinning down the narrative of the Belgian M71 Para to see there's a lot to them, more than many seem to realise.

Postscript - I should also have mentioned Brayley's TIN HATS TO COMPOSITE HELMETS, one of a very very few books on helmets published in the British Isles. Far from perfect, it does not include everything (or even pretend to really) but what is there is sound, and it is a well presented well illustrated book that is easy and comparatively cheap to obtain.

[moaning minnie]

thanks Greg had a look at a couple of sites you recommened top notch,could'nt find one on postwar west german lids,but your right there not boring at all its because there not tied in with the biggest battles of the 20th century,do like the french lids especially the tap 56 para type,well thanks again for the info,dave

[Greg Pickersgill]

Post-war West German helmets. Now there's a topic, something I am definately interested in. And in fact I have some good information and pics from a couple of German collectors that I have been promising to turn into a webpage any minute now for the last eighteen months. Yes, I do feel guilty. Maybe I ought to get on with it, so as to get the story of the M56, the M1A1 (or M59). the M1A1 with I. 60 liner (or M60) and the M1A1 modifiziert (or M81) clarified. And its not as simple as it looks.

And of course there is, to bring things back to the nominal purpose of this thread, the Luftlandetruppen helmet, M1A1 Luftlandetruppen (or M61).

[MySonsDad]

Post-war West German helmets. Now there's a topic, something I am definately interested in. And in fact I have some good information and pics from a couple of German collectors that I have been promising to turn into a webpage any minute now for the last eighteen months.

Now this sure would be nice. I've picked up a couple of these West German BW helmets recently and do plan to collect a few more but man oh man, trying to get the skinny on what is what. Through tons of web searching and mostly help from a few well informed on the subject, here on the forum, I think I've got it all sorted out, but is sure can get complicted. Seems these West German lids have more nick names than Carter's got liver pills.

[moaning minnie]

russ from the west german list above where does the m71 fit in?date wise i mean cheers dave

[moaning minnie]

sorry was meant for Greg,sillyme.

[MySonsDad]

sorry was meant for Greg,sillyme.

Good thing, because I am taking notes from Greg....

[James C]

And here on display

[KRISSE]

Hehe, nice to see that these helmets are appreciated. I have them myself, because I used them myself long time in the Belgian army. :-) And still do, but now we have another kevlartype.

Who Dares Wins,

K.

[MySonsDad]

Great looking display James, very inspirational!

Russ