M35 DD Luft - ET64 - Lot# 4192 - A "Blackie"!

[helmet2id]

This is one of my favorite Luft helmets despite the worn paint and the damaged decals. I have had it for a really long time. It is an M35, an ET64 with a lot number of 4192. The liner is dry and sweat stained, there is no chinstrap, and the decals are chipped and heavily crazed, but the things I like about this one include the clearly War time brushed applied BLACK paint and the initials scraped into the paint on the front of the shell. Many believe the Luft helmets that were painted black were worn by flak gun crew personnel. I don't know but that is as good an explanation as any. The initials are "BK + DD", I suspect for the soldier and his girlfriend, who, I fear, never saw her soldier boy beau again - one of the grim realities and cruelties of War. I should be at work today, but decided to goof off and look at some helmets recently taken out of storage. Anyway, here it is, hope you like it. Jim G.

[real steel]

Yes...Flak gun crew helmet is best explanation. Nice they kept the decals. Jim...you are "on a roll today". Must be nice to stick your arm in a box of helmets & pull a few out. What a fun way of spending your day off
Thanks, D.

[sysyphus]

Nice pot ! have one dark blue overpainted and i always thought it has had to do with Flak units as well

[MAP]

Yes...Flak gun crew helmet is best explanation. Nice they kept the decals. Jim...you are "on a roll today". Must be nice to stick your arm in a box of helmets & pull a few out. What a fun way of spending your day off
Thanks, D.

I just want to know how MANY boxes he has

Great helmet Jim!

[real steel]

We will never know. 50 years worth.
D.

[MAP]

We will never know. 50 years worth.
D.

Any time you have to pull boxes OUT off storage...you know you have a lot of helmets

[helmet2id]

We will never know. 50 years worth.
D.

Thank you all Gentlemen. Closer to 60 years worth Dave, my Uncle gave me my first helmet in 1960! Jim G.

[FALLSCHIRMJAGER]

A great helmet Jim, I to love the look of the black over paint flak helmets, not often seen. Leon.

[Schwerpunkt]

Nice and interesting helmet Jim , I'm quite into wartime overpaints these days.
A friend bought a DD LW with light gray overpaint (around the decals) a couple of weeks ago.
You may have seen it on GHW.
Maybe when enough examples are found it may give us a clue , just like with what happened with the black decalled Heer transitionals that we can attribute to Bahnschutz.

[chbingle]

Very nice helmet, I just bought a similar one myself