M34 fire police helmet- help please

[1 RNZIR]

Hi All. I have just joined this site though I have poped in here from time to time and noticed the opinions of some knowlegeable people so just wondering what the thoughts are on this helmet I just purchased. Though I dont know much about these ( its a first for my collection) it looked good and authentic overall so I went for it and the price was good . My questions concern A. The decals...are they good? and B. The liner and especially the chinstraps...I have not been able to find pictures of another helmet with chinstraps the same. Many thanks.

[1 RNZIR]

P.S Sorry about the photos... they are not mine. I will post some close ups when the helmet arrives.

[1 RNZIR]

Well the helmet arrived yesterday and its everything I hoped it would be . On close inspection the Police decal has a very nice silver speckle to it and shows all the signs of being original to the helmet.
Likewise with the Party decal. It has some heavy fading but on close inspection has a crazy cracking effect going on.
Both are exactly the same size at 40mm top to bottom.
As for the double chinstrap set up they are intergral to the liner and are all complete.
There is a stamp on the rear flare DR? over HAL and what looks like a large 1 or 4.
On the liner is a very faded size number 64?, the name Leghan and H.Neeb or Neeh? double underlined.
I am intresed what others think of the lid and if anyone has seen the double chinstrap configuration before?
Thanks guys. Jason

[Danmark]

I like the helmet but the decals look like they have been scrubbed to death??
Almost an attempt to denazify it that was stopped halfway through.

Dan

[1 RNZIR]

Hi Dan.
Yes the decals sure appear to have had a good working over perhaps like you say in attempt to de-nazify. I cant think of any other reason the decals would end up so worn looking apart from cleaning with some kind of solvent maybe? On the party decal whoever did this succedded in getting down to the metal in a couple of spots. I sure am glad they just left it at that...
Cheers for your comments
Jason

[Schwerpunkt]

the exterior was probably black overpainted for post ware fire brigade use.
And somebody took it off.

I hope you didn't pay much , good unmessed with ones with nice decals are not expensive. That would have been the better option.

[1 RNZIR]

Hi Schwerpunkt.
Yes I guess that is possible but if that were so you would expect to see at least a little overpaint residue in the hard to reach areas...such as around the liner splitpins etc but there is no evidence of this at all. Anyhow I like my militaria to have that authentic, aged look and the outlay was what I would consider better than average compared to prices I have seen for similar for sale overseas. As far looking for a better one well we are not spoiled for choice down here in New Zealand and good original items like these are pretty thin on the ground. indeed this is the first M34 in this complete condition I have ever seen for sale in quite a few years of collecting and I get to the 2 or 3 big (here that means maybe 2 dozen sellers total ha ha!) annual shows most years too.
Perhaps i should consider starting to buy in from overseas...unfortunatly the exchange rate is not wonderfull ATM and shipping can be a real killer hence playing the waiting game to find local at good prices.
Cheers
Jason

[Danmark]

I don't know what the average wage is for collectors in the northern counties but what my kiwi colleague says is true. The cost with shipping, paypal or other transfer options almost doubles the price you guys pay for an item.
I have a favorite dealer in Germany that I used to buy a lot from but these days I just look at the prices, do the math and sigh...

Dan

[KEVIN23]

Hi, IMO, the decals look like they are paper backed. As far as the rest of the helmet goes, I like it. Liner is correct, and as a whole, has that "used but not abused" look.