front seam mild steel rim!

[plumbob]

Hi guys this one has got me stumped, it belongs to a mate of mine.
It has had all its paint removed and has been repainted on the outside.
So a front seam mild (manganese) steel rim (not stainless) with a 12B heat stamp and swivel bales, a bit weird me thinks.(another clone perhaps) or messed with, but why!
Sorry forgot to take pictures of the profile; I might go and do that later this week.
Please let me hear your thoughts.
Regards
Rod

[MySonsDad]

I think is a Canadian made helmet. Another was posted a couple weeks back and someone identified it by the heat stamp font. Canadians seem to be the only others that used heat stamps like US M1s

Russ

[NickD]

that is an odd one such a low heat stamp with a Manganese steel rim & swivel bails

[MySonsDad]

that is an odd one such a low heat stamp with a Manganese steel rim & swivel bails

That's why I'm thinking it is one of those Canadian lids. The low heat stamp and swivel bails is OK, many Fixed Bail helmets were re-fitted with swivel bails, as we all know, but it can not be an early US lid because of the Mag steel rim. Can't see the heat stamp real well in the photos but it does look to be a wider font than the US heat stamps, as someone discoverd (wasn't it you Nick) just a couple weeks ago. To the very best of my knowledge the Canadian M-1s were the only others to have heat stamps, like the US, probably because they were actually licensed to produced these helmets.

Russ

[NickD]

yeah but the Canadian M-1's didn't have any letters just numbers & i don't think they made them front seamed either ?

[MySonsDad]

yeah but the Canadian M-1's didn't have any letters just numbers & i don't think they made them front seamed either ?

Another helmet story that looks like it is going to have to be pieced together one bit at a time....

I think we can all agree that is is not a US helmet because of the MAG rim. That being said, the heat stamp is a good sign that who ever mfr this lid likely did so under US Licensing. I don't think Canada was the only country to be licensed to mfr US M-1s but I don't know that for sure and Canada is the only country I have in my notes that did so.

I also have in my notes that although the US supplied a small number of M-1s to Canada in 1942, they were not used as the Canadians adopted the Brit MKII instead. What became of this small supply is anyones guess. However, I also have in my notes that Canada officially adopted the M-1 during the Korean war and this could explain were the small batch of 1942 M-1s went and possibly this is the time the Canada produced it's first M-1 under US Licensing? If this were the case, it would explain the MAG rim and swivel bail configuration. Just speculating here.... Russ

[NickD]

another possibility is that it is US made but the heat stamp wasn't stamped properly & there's numbers missing & the front seamed MAG rim was done right at the time they changed from stainless steel to Manganese steel & a small batch were still made with the seam at the front ?

[MySonsDad]

another possibility is that it is US made but the heat stamp wasn't stamped properly & there's numbers missing & the front seamed MAG rim was done right at the time they changed from stainless steel to Manganese steel & a small batch were still made with the seam at the front ?

Certainly could be Nick as there are plenty of these front seem MAG rims floating around to back that up.

I looked around and didn't find anything that supports my "Canadian Korea War Era" theory, it does not look like Canada was licensed to produce US M-1s until post Korean war, unless someone has something that states otherwise. So, if this is the case they'd all be rear seam Low Dome's I'm assuming. Russ

[ObKrieger]

My theory is that the heat stamp just wasn't stamped properly.

Whoops, just saw that Nick has the same theory! haha

[NickD]

My theory is that the heat stamp just wasn't stamped properly.

Whoops, just saw that Nick has the same theory! haha

as they say great minds think alike