Are these helmets a good buy?

[MAP]

I'm a bit baffled by their description. Maybe I'm missing the boat. There are 5 known makers of period "original" German helmets used by the Germans.

Q - F.W. Quist
ET - Eisenhutten - Thale
SE - Sachsische Emailler
EF - Emaillerwerke -Fulda
NS - Vereinigte Deutsche Nickelwerk

So who is the Hans Römer Fabrik from Neu-Ulm (Donau-Freiberg) they refer to? I think the key word in IMA's (and other websites - there are a number who sell these) is the use of "type". Hans Romer made these under contract for the Finns during WW2 and post war it appears, but they never made German issued M40's.

A bit of digging found this tidbit on Hans Romer. They are a "WEST" German firm.

"In 1955 the Finnish Army bought 50,000 helmets from the West-German firm HANS RÖMER GMBH, the model name was "Infanteriestahlhelme Deutsches Model." It was basically an M40 Helmet, identical to wartime produced shells and are often sold as such. We imported these helmets directly from Finland where they were used up until the late 1970's and then put away in reserve" Credit Hessians Antiques

Did they also make some helmets during WW2? I don't know. They certainly were around during WW2. They made holsters and probably other leather equiptment as well has Police Shakos...They were called Hans Römer, Fabrik für Heeresausrüstung, Neu-Ulm, Donau with the code of "bml" we see every now and then. Heeresausrustung stands "factory for army equipment"

[Anderson]

Interesting bit of information MAP. As you say the company Hans Romer is mostly known as a wartime leather goods producer with significant Police contract work. Did they diversify into steel helmet production post war? Not impossible, as those were lean times with business diversification for survival perhaps necessary.

[Greg Pickersgill]

Yes, Romer did make the helmet shells. Using using Stig Roudasmaa's excellent little book on Finnish helmets (TERASKYPARA - Suomen Poulustusvoimissa) as a source we find that there was a substantial purchase of helmet shells from Germany (West Germany then, obviously!) in 1955, fulfilled by the Hans Romer company. For what are referred to as 'tax reasons' these were shells only, with the liner to be supplied and fitted in Finland. These had a variety of different liners during their service life, beginning with a three-lobe type which is referred to as being replaced 'pretty soon' by the full-crown leather type which is usually seen in these helmets.

According to Roudasmaa there were appoximately 50,000 ordered from Romer, with another 20,000 seven years later in 1962 from the Swedish firm Eskilstuna Stalpressnings. I haven't seen any of these helmets in the metal, as it were, but I infer that the Romer ones are manufacturer-marked. What of the Swedish bloc? Anyone know?

Anyway, there's a whole little collecting field open here - Romer shell, Eskilstuna shell, original liner, various replacement liners...a good metre or so of interesting helmets on a shelf. Troulbe is they've all been grabbed by IMA who don't appear to have the slightest interest in any of these detail differences and trade on them as being vaguely 'warry' and sorta kinda like TR helmets. It's a bit depressing if you start thinking about it.

[Composite]

Great work Greg.

As you say, a whole new helmet genre to dive into for someone....certainly if you're a broad minded "world helmet collector" there's now some new ones to add to that Bucket (helmet?) list. It's bad enough when they keep bringing new ones out...but when new OLD ones hit us from our rear it just gets too hard!

[battle gear]

I wouldnt buy one unless I could hand select the exact helmet I wanted to by

buying from IMA , they will send you any helmet those choose, and most likely it will be the smallest most unwanted helmet they have, it's happened to me, they sent me a messed up helmet, one that was rusted, and was so small only a small child or infant could wear it.

when buying helmets online only buy if it's the exact same helmet shown in the photos.

[Composite]

I'm not sure that trait is restricted to a particular dealer (although I can't speak for IMA) ....one should always work on the basis that dealers have a pile of stuff....personal visitors won't choose the rough stuff so dealers will often see mail order as an outlet for the poorer examples. One should always specify their requirements....or their not-wanted spec. when ordering....but it's always a risk

[ogpsycho]

I think Römer do not produced steel helmets. They sell helmet since the second world war like the Gladiator helmets. The gladiator shell was produced by ET or Quist. Römer produced the liner system and sell the helmets.
The most finnish shells looks like quist shells. It could be, that Quist produced the shells and Römer was the helmet dealer.

Kind regards
Basti