M35 DD Luft Camo with net

[MrMiler]

Hi!

Some of you might know me from the edged weapons forum, as I am primarily a dagger-guy. However, last falI I came across my first helmet.

It´s funny how sometimes the stuff we collect just seem to turn up when you talk to people about your hobby. I came across a guy whos father used to steal ammunition and helmets from german bunkers as a kid. Naturally I asked if he still had these things. He replied that he had one helmet, but he doubted that it would be something I would be interested in. He told me not to get my expectations up as it was old and rusty.
To be honest, as a dagger guy with, at the time, limited knowledge about helmets, I thought the same when he pulled it out from his garage.

However I still bought it because I liked the fact that it was a local woodwork find. He also signed a letter telling the story of where his father stole the helmet. Second hand story, I know, but still better than no provenance. I took a picture of the helmet and letter outside the house when I picked it up as «proof».

Sad thing though, he told me he had thrown two other helmets on the landfill a couple of months earlier when cleaning out his late fathers house(!). They were the same with the net on top. I drove to the landfill and asked every single worker there if they had found them, but it was hopeless.

Here are my thoughts on the helmet:

M35 DD Luftwaffe drop tail eagle.
Reinforced aluminium liner marked D.R.P Schuberth-Werk K - G Braunschweig 1938.
Makermark is ET 66, lot number 3768.
Leather stamped size 58.
Green camo paint and old fish net.
Possible old white camo under?
Domestamp: "Fliegerhorst-Kom(or Komp)”. Probably for Kommandantur or Kompanie.
FP-number: L12790
Please note the white letters IS/IC right next to the lot number. I guess its part of a name or something.
Newspaper under the liner leather.
Chinstrap is shortened.

A few thoughts on the net. I understand they are highly debated and that it is hard to know when they were applied. I have asked an old colleague who is very much into fishing. He is certain that this is the kind of net they used to trap large groups of fish. I believe so too. Fishing was a huge industry here on the west coast of Norway those days. Combined with the helmets history I personally have no doubt it was applied during the war. I have applied some photos that shows the interaction between the paint and the net.

As you can see on the one picture there is a newspaper under the liner. The leather is very dry and I´m afraid to damage the leather if I try to bend it any more.
I think I will leave the newspaper where it is.

Even though I thought this helmet initially was old crap I have since realized that I did quite well on my first helmet.


All the best
MrMiler

[Blackdog]

Hi, this lid certainly has everything going for it, net, camo, luft stamp, newspaper, decals peeking through, did I miss anything? And it all looks original imo. Great catch.

[MrMiler]

Hi, this lid certainly has everything going for it, net, camo, luft stamp, newspaper, decals peeking through, did I miss anything? And it all looks original imo. Great catch.

You did actually.
You forgot the feldpost-number.
Thanks for the comment.

[FALLSCHIRMJAGER]

A great M35 helmet, I particularly love the none reflective green field applied over paint, that if my memory serves me correctly was of a "style" used heavily just before the invasion of France (although it could be slightly later). If the other two were like this your friend literally threw away a great deal of money! Leon.

[MAP]

I think as a dagger guy you should stick to your knitting and pass this to someone who loves M35's and who loves Camo's and who loves netted helmets and who loves helmets with names/markings...LoL (that would be me btw if it wasn't so obvious...LoL)

Anyway. Congratulations!!! You have done very well.

I have a similar story...but with daggers... I was speaking to a neighbor who bought a house contents and all. Cleaning out the basement he came across a nice RAD Hewer and an SA dagger. A short while later he knocked on my door and handed them to me

[MrMiler]

A great M35 helmet, I particularly love the none reflective green field applied over paint, that if my memory serves me correctly was of a "style" used heavily just before the invasion of France (although it could be slightly later). If the other two were like this your friend literally threw away a great deal of money! Leon.

The helmet is from a place not far from Stavanger, Norway. Similar helmets in this paint have been found in that area as well and are displayed on other forums.
Based on the info from what bunkers his fathers stole the helmets I can pinpoint exactely where the soldier was based. The feldpostnumber is a total match. There actually are remains of the Fluwa (flight observation post) today.