Japanese Combat Helmet - Iwo Jima vet bringback?

**GIZMO8Z** · 08-17-2011, 06:27 PM

It happened again! My family owns a recycling facility. Pople dump militaria all the time. This time, a customer saw a sign I made and donated a JAPANESE COMBAT HELMET to me!

He said his grandfather took it as a souvenir while fighting on Iwo Jima! He said he would come back with more information on his grandpa and his time in the service.

I'll be sure to post better pictures once I get home.

**Blitzkrieg Bop** · 08-17-2011, 06:34 PM

WOW

That is pretty generous.

**Gary J** · 08-17-2011, 06:37 PM

Keep Going ! ..... Keep Asking ! ....

Gary J.

(Liner AND net .... thats a belter !!!)

DON'T ... Push it ... Pull it ... Dismantle it .... DO NOTHING !!!!! Leave it EXACTLY how you received it !

**davejb** · 08-17-2011, 06:43 PM

Holy cow , how lucky can one guy get, your starting to get a really nice collection, for next to nothing, thats the way to do it, thats a nice looking helmet

**Alan M** · 08-17-2011, 06:55 PM

i`d love to see clearer photos and close up`s , looks untouched from those images

**Neil Hever** · 08-17-2011, 07:29 PM

Holy s**t! If you can get provenance for this being from Iwo Jima that would be fantastic. When vets took items that were passed as OK to bring home they were issued a small brown slip of paper describing the item. My uncle got a helmet on board ship and it was listed as "1 Jap helmet." If they have a document like that it will nail this down. NJH

**GIZMO8Z** · 08-17-2011, 07:44 PM

by Gary J

Keep Going ! ..... Keep Asking ! ....

Gary J.

(Liner AND net .... thats a belter !!!)

DON'T ... Push it ... Pull it ... Dismantle it .... DO NOTHING !!!!! Leave it EXACTLY how you received it !

Don't worry! I promise to take good care of this treasure!

When he handed me the helmet the net was half falling off. The only thing I "did" was make sure the net didn't fall off the helmet.

The man who gave it to me said when he was taking it out of his attic, he got it stuck on something and there is a small rip in the liner band that pins into the helmet.

I noticed the liner band is in general, VERY fragile... years in his hot attic probably didn't help that. However, the liner itself is still supple and is in very good shape.

I am still currently at work, but my shift is over in 15mins. When I get home I'll take pictures with my good camera.

**GIZMO8Z** · 08-17-2011, 10:19 PM

Here are better pics as promised. Sorry if they are a little bright... it's VERY sunny here in NY right now. Please let me know if anyone requires more pictures.

As you can see, the band that attaches the liner to the steel helmet is VERY fragile.

Here you can see the little rip that the man who donated it to me mentioned...

... is that white mark a Japanese character?

I really do not know ANYTHING about Japanese militaria. How rare are these helmets/ how much are they worth?

**GIZMO8Z** · 08-17-2011, 10:39 PM

I decided to look for more markings on the helmet.... FOUND SOME!

Here is the white mark from before that I hope is a Japanese character. There is also a "S" or "8" stamped into the skirt of the helmet.

Here is the big one! I'm hoping it's a name or some other important information!

**Wagriff** · 08-17-2011, 10:49 PM

Beautiful helmet-the net Alone is worth a good bit! What's next? Someone is going to throw away a Himmler Honour dagger? A Knight's cross with oak leaves,swords and diamonds? Wow.... William