Early Austrian M58 liners

**austromunga** · 11-04-2014, 11:02 PM

Hi all
Two new acquisitions for my collection arrived yesterday!!! Both were bought as Austrian M1 clones... now one has the first pattern 1959 dated fibre type liner with a nice Vizeleutnant insignia on the front, its made in the exactly the same way as the American M1... with the exception of the insignia grommet not being at the front ....now here's where it gets interesting!!!! as the shell would seem to be one of the 30,000 or so American WW II M1 shells left to the Austrian army in 55' this one has the heat stamp 123C which I think makes it a 1942 front seam McChord made shell!!! I had noticed this in the add.. so went a little higher with the bidding than for a run of the mill Austrian lid!!
your thoughts as ever would be much appreciated !!!

ps sorry for the three shots upside down and one on its side!!! still cant get used to this blasted new phone!!!

**austromunga** · 11-04-2014, 11:05 PM

The second has the 58' style liner that I have been searching for, but I cant find a date on it anywhere!"!!!... its in grey plastic with the grey headband (someone has obviously seen Full metal jacket too much, as it has a scratched a C.N.D. ban the bomb sign on it!!) the shell is a refurbed and liner clip added one which has been painted both inside and out!!! ... covering up any date stamp!!!! so I used fine wet n dry to gently remove the top paint to uncover the hidden date stamp!! ...(felt a bit like rubbing a lottery scratch card hoping to get the jackpot by finding an early 57' shell mark) ...............and Blast !!! a 70's mark instead!!!!..... and now im not sure about the liner as I cant find the date or HBA marks.. also it has no liner chin strap (Austrian would be Black n tan!!) to help i.d.
so might be looking at an Austrian made Dutch C.F. liner maybe!???
your thoughts again please !!!

**Greg Pickersgill** · 11-05-2014, 11:24 AM

Well, if someone sold me that liner as Austrian I would believe them. It certainly looks right according to your photo, and I would not have thought it anything else, certainly not Dutch. remember, of all the Eutroclones of the M1 only the Austrian has the insignia grommet on the lefthand side. A pretty sure indicator.

On the other hand, if someone told me the liner from your first posting above was from a West German M56, I'd be inclined to accept that, barring closer examination. But it does indeed have the Austrian stamp. Funny things, helmets.

**austromunga** · 11-06-2014, 09:56 PM

Thanks Greg
I wasn't aware that only Austrian M1 clone liners have the insignia grommet on the left and not at the front.. good news then!! that would make it the M58 second pattern plastic liner!!! and the one I was originally after!!!! ...would have been nice to find some nice makers marks and or some HBA stamps.. but hey- ho... you can't have everything

**Opex** · 11-09-2014, 07:57 PM

Hi, a very lucky win indeed, the first liner shown is the first model Stahlhelm (M-58) liner, and the fixed bale M1 is an absolute bonus in it'self.

Check out this link for more details on the Stahlhelm variations

.: World War Helmets - Casque Modèle 58 :.

**austromunga** · 11-10-2014, 12:06 PM

Thanks for the link !!!
does this mean that the second pattern thermoplastic liner should have had a rubber bump strip???... if so this is missing.. I had noticed all the edge is roughed up .. like the finish required on plastic to make a surface with which to bond something to!!...like a rubber strip!!!
went to a local militaria fair Sunday .. found some really nice genuine Dot camo helmet covers (the trader had a box full of 30 odd) I picked 4 of the most interesting ones (will post in a separate thread) and one U.S. woodland pattern for my 56 Quisk West German pot!! oh... and also picked up another Austrian lid!!
This one has a second pattern liner (Thermoplastic) no markings again!! but this has been sprayed olive green (some has peeled off).. but it has a yellow wax cross on the top!! (a lot of Austrian Army surplus I have bought over the years has this mark) ... like a kind of damaged/ surplus dispose of mark??? the shell is of a much darker green grey than any of the others I have, its dated 1971 with HBA mark for the same, the chin strap is the riveted type... but has unusual hardware in that its not the usual OLC German type ...this one has MB markings!!??
I have another riveted type and it too has MB markings.. so perhaps this is how all the replacement riveted chinstrap hardware is!!!

**Bernhard** · 11-10-2014, 10:46 PM

Very nice helmets here !
Congrats to the fixed bale M1 helmet.
It took me years to find one of these helmets that could be clearly linked to the
early Bundesheer.
The early liners are not easy finds also. The grey all plastic liners appeared in 1963.
So you did well in obtainig these !

Best regards

Bernhard

**Bernhard** · 11-10-2014, 11:00 PM

**austromunga** · 11-10-2014, 11:29 PM

Thanks Bernhard
Next I'm after an Early 57' shell and first type helmet band (with metal clips).....just as hard if not harder to find I think!!! I do have some interesting M 75 liner varients to post ...but best put them under the other (M75) thread!!

**battle gear** · 11-11-2014, 03:22 AM

by austromunga

Thanks Bernhard
Next I'm after an Early 57' shell and first type helmet band (with metal clips).....just as hard if not harder to find I think!!! I do have some interesting M 75 liner varients to post ...but best put them under the other (M75) thread!!

I was lucky to find this early 57 dated Austrian M58 steel shell in excellent unissued condition