French "Otan" 1955 M51

[aj4010]

Thanks Greg, excellent information as usual, and Opex, thanks for the link. Incredible detail there.

Andy

[MySonsDad]

A very nice example! Been looking for one for the shelf for a while, just haven't found that "perfect" one!

[aj4010]

A very nice example! Been looking for one for the shelf for a while, just haven't found that "perfect" one!

If you get into eBay UK, these will often be listed there as American M1's.
I took a chance on this one as it was poorly photographed under a "Mitch" cover. Although it wasn't really clear as to what it was under there, it was certainly a "high dome" lid, so worth a gamble for the price of a decent cover!

Andy

[MySonsDad]

If you get into eBay UK, these will often be listed there as American M1's.
I took a chance on this one as it was poorly photographed under a "Mitch" cover. Although it wasn't really clear as to what it was under there, it was certainly a "high dome" lid, so worth a gamble for the price of a decent cover!

Andy

Thanks for the advise Andy, I'll keep my eyes open. We've stumble across a couple of realy early dated M51 shells here in the states but have yet to find one with an early liner which is the real prize.

Russ

[Greg Pickersgill]

May I suggest, Russ, that if expense is no real barrier you should check on ebay.fr, which is where I have got a number of very good Mle51 (and a lot of other good stuff). I am reminded of this today as I have just recieved from reliable seller khovan38 a *very* nice Carpentier Cusset shell, with an excellently mis-shapen 'yeti' liner (see one of my previous posts on the mle51). Both dated 1952, and I'm sure they have never been used since manufacture. Actual cost was 20 euro, but almost as much in postage again for here in the British Isles, so obviously transatlantic post would be much greater. But it might be worth it.

Can anyone confirm or deny my suspicion that actual 1951-dated runs of this helmet are pretty rare, in that comparatively few were made and dated in that year?

[James C]

ive heard of the yeti liner greg but never seen an example does it have a pointed or tapered dome ,and if so does the shell accommodate the shape ,it sounds very unusual ,regards james

[Greg Pickersgill]

For some pics of a yeti I own, see here on this other Warrelics thread - French OTAN M51 Helmet

I now have two Carpentier-Cusset shell&liner combos from the early days, with 'yeti' liners. They fit reasonably easily into the shells with no apparent problems. They are misshapen, though not so prone to cracking/breaking as one of the later runs of mle51 liners made of a substance known as Rilsan. Really, the mle 51 is a fascinating thing, worthy of a whole large and varied collection in its own right. Only lack of money and space stops me from building one; I have 17, but that's nowhere near The Set.

[Opex]

I totally agree with your passion for M51's Greg, each one I own is so distinct, so I relate!
The Yeti liner is another fascinating aspect of this genre of French helmet.