Newly obtained helmet with questions

**JoeFriday** · 05-05-2015, 01:53 AM

Hello Sirs,

I'm very novice in the TR world although I am interested and have picked up several items over the years. I try to read as time permits but there are so many variations and fake/reproductions that it's very difficult unless a great deal of time is committed to figuring these items out.

I picked this helmet up today. It came out of a shed and is said to have been in there since the early 1950's when the vet who obtained it moved into the house.

It appears to me to be a M40..? Is the chin strap original? Should I do anything to clean the surface rust?

The numbers appear to be 990 and 4730

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards,
Rob

**Espenlaub Militaria** · 05-05-2015 01:53 AM

We also buy and trade your items and full collections!

**Walkwolf** · 05-05-2015, 02:14 AM

Very rough, but looks original and I'd say the leather
must be rather stiff, dry and brittle.

That's a Canadian/British chin strap, but who knows
when it was put there.........

**JoeFriday** · 05-05-2015, 02:16 AM

Thank you Steve.. I was leaning toward the strap being Canadian/British. After closer inspection I can see the original loop for the leather strap tucked in between the leather and metal band.

Best,
Rob

**Walkwolf** · 05-05-2015, 02:25 AM

I just noticed it is a 'Q66', which is maker Quist of
Esslingen near Stuttgart Germany - and a nice
size. I'd be inclined to leave it just the
way it is..........!

**JoeFriday** · 05-05-2015, 02:29 AM

Thank you again Steve.. I was apparently reading it upside down.. I thought it was 990.

**Nathan362** · 05-05-2015, 02:43 AM

I like it! I would leave it as is, the strap is part of the character now IMO...

**JoeFriday** · 05-05-2015, 02:47 AM

Thank you Nathan. Of course I'll never know but I can imagine the German soldier needing a new strap and replacing it with the strap off a British style helmet that he obtained in the field.. Who knows.. It is what it is and I think it's a bit unique this way.

Best,
Rob

**Danmark** · 05-05-2015, 03:11 AM

I like it! I can just picture a pragmatic german replacing his broken chinstrap with one from the enemies helmet.
Like the ones who preferred the ppsh41 over the mp40, he may have felt that the risk was worth the added comfort!

**TrondK** · 05-05-2015, 04:17 AM

Dont forget that the Georgian volunteers on the western front used alot of allied equipment. This can easily have been one of these helmets. Who knows....