PH Helmet/Gas Hood, second opinions and help needed!

[GasMasksUK]

Hi guys,

The opportunity for me to finally get a PH Hood to add to my collection has presented itself. As I'm sure many of you are aware, these early pieces do tend to command quite high prices due to their rarity and desirability. This one is rather fairly priced (which suits my rather tight budget) based on its condition, which is less than perfect but is still far from being a relic. However, it's still not what you would call cheap.

I've researched these hoods extensively myself, and as far as I can tell this one is looking very promising. However, reproduction/fakes are getting more and more sophisticated, and due to the amount of money at stake it's not something in my opinion worth taking any risks with. The example in question is coming from a private individual, not a dealer so there's unfortunately no real reputation associated with their name, which is something that is quite important in these cloak and dagger days.

Hence, I come before you all today seeking some second opinions on this piece, as at the end of the day it never hurts to be on the side of caution.

I look forward to all comments and opinions.

Thanks in advance,

Danny

[HARRY THE MOLE]

At first I thought that the eye-pieces looked a bit too close together compared to pictures of other examples I have seen - I've never actually seen the real thing. But then I checked on the IWM website, and they have one which matches this extremely well. Is the material in two layers?

[GasMasksUK]

Thanks for your comment Harry,

From what I've found by looking at genuine examples, the distance between the eyepieces tends to vary considerably. The mask at IWM London definitely has it's eyepieces very close together. I've actually seen that particular mask in the flesh myself, it's without a doubt one of the most pristine examples out there. Here's some photo's I took on my last visit to the museum:





Regards,

Danny

[GasMasksUK]

Just to show the other side of the spectrum with regards to the positioning of the eyepieces, here's another example. This one is only a matter of minutes away in the London Science Museum. It's also worth noting that this example doesn't have rolled edges on the eyepieces, unlike the hood in question, and the hood displayed at the Imperial War Museum.



Regards,

Danny

[HARRY THE MOLE]

What about the example that you are thinking of purchasing though? Is the material in double layers?

The IWM example.

[GasMasksUK]

Forgot to answer you in my last reply, sorry! I'm currently waiting on an answer from the seller about the hoods construction. Hopefully he'll provide some photographs too.

Regards,

Danny

[HARRY THE MOLE]

If it turns out to be OK, it will definitely be a good investment.

[GasMasksUK]

Definitely a good investment, and more importantly the piece which fills one of the few gaps I have in my collection now. I'm trying to get in touch with Gustaf B, who I know has an example of a PH Hood which he has shown on the forum in the past.

In the mean time, here are some more photo's from the seller. There's a bit of a language barrier so trying to let him know exactly what I mean is proving a little tricky, however I think you can make out the two layers of fabric. It would have been easier had the internal layer been made out of the pyjama fabric which is usually associated with theses hoods!

Regards,

Danny

[HARRY THE MOLE]

It is hard to tell from the pictures, but sometimes you have to take the plunge and hope it turns out OK. Does he accept returns if its wrong?

[GasMasksUK]

That's the next question I am going to put to him. Fortunately though, I have managed to speak to Gus (Gustaf B) who has an example of a PH Hood in his collection, and he gives this one a thumbs up which I regard as an absolute positive on this masks authenticity.

Taking the plunge is something I try to avoid doing these days, I've grown rather cautious recently as more and more fakes are creeping around and unfortunately conning unsuspecting buyers out of a lot of money. Take the Hypo Hood (discussed on another thread) which Eli (Moulage) unfortunately bought under the impression it was real.

Hopefully this PH Hood will be on its way sooner rather than later!

Regards,

Danny