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M38 German Paratrooper Helmet

Article about: I have collected with my father my whole life and have a great passion for it. He has made a career out of it and has collected since he was 13 years old. I attempted to go another path and

  1. #1

    Default M38 German Paratrooper Helmet

    I have collected with my father my whole life and have a great passion for it. He has made a career out of it and has collected since he was 13 years old. I attempted to go another path and build houses for a living, but I have found myself enjoying collecting and researching history a much more satisfactory way to pay the bills. Now having children myself and seeing how history seems to be under attack, I take it as a personal responsibility to preserve and share history with anyone who will listen. I'm a young father and young collector and don't see many guys my age at the military shows and want to change that, so I look for every resource I can find to gather accurate knowledge. That is the reason I have joined this forum and appreciate all the information offered here, thank you guys. Recently my father and I picked up a M38 paratrooper helmet from a gentleman who bought it as a young boy 40+ years ago in California. He is also a collector of German items and is very picky he likes to have the most factory fresh items. So he worked hard at getting the most mint badges and items he could. And the brings us to the helmet, he had it for so long and didn't really ever want to sell it, but the helmet had some little rusty scratches and the paint wasn't perfect.... So he paid a professional painter to repaint the helmet in the 80s. This helmet must have been the most stunning original battlefield bring back based on the overall condition of all the other parts, it's a shame he messed with it. Anyway I am going to post some photos here for you guys, could you give me your opinion on it? I did have it offered for sale but I needed to get a better idea on current market of M38s right now and would it be better to part it out. Any info will be helpful thank you for your time. M38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper Helmet

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  3. #2

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    Here's more pics M38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper HelmetM38 German Paratrooper Helmet Please let me know what you think and what you would realistically get from putting this on the market and should I keep it together? Thanks for taking the time to look it over. I'm waiting to be approved on the main forum Idk why it is taking so long I registered over a week and a half ago and still can't post.

  4. #3

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    Damn, that’s really a shame, at least the paint in the dome is still preserved..
    I don’t know what the prices for parts are but given these are in good shape, they won’t go for cheap. From my somewhat limited knowledge of FJ helmets the parts to look original.
    Given that its history has already been destroyed there probably isn’t much harm done if its soöd as parts.
    Let’s see what the others think though.
    Luis

  5. #4
    M38
    M38 is offline
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    That is a real shame. The parts are all original. The liner is very nice, it is an early war liner - not pre war but early, with the tan colored foam. The straps look nice too and everything matches up to being around 1940 manufacture date. I am trying to figure out what happened to the outside of the shell? You said it was repainted but it looks like it has now been stripped down to almost bare metal on the outside? Is there any trace of an eagle present on the left side of the shell?

    Value wise is certainly only opinion based but in this case the sum of the parts is probably worth more than the whole. As it sits, probably $3000 would be a top dollar price. But as parts, the liner and straps are worth at least $3000 maybe more, the shell is worth up to a $1000 and the bolts are worth at least $100.

    It is worth owning but it almost hurts to look at it the way it is now. There are people out there - myself included - who buy parts whenever we find them. But it is always a shame to destroy an original item, even one assaulted like this.

    Cheers,
    Terry

  6. #5
    MAP
    MAP is offline
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    Holiday,

    As an aside, Terry's opinions on M38's is second to none. I was hoping he would see this thread.

    (I'm glad he confirmed what I said in the New Member forum L0L )
    "Please", Thank You" and proper manners appreciated

    My greatest fear is that one day I will die and my wife will sell my guns for what I told her I paid for them

    "Don't tell me these are investments if you never intend to sell anything" (Quote: Wife)

  7. #6

    Default

    Thanks so much for taking a look, yes he had it repainted but it nagged at him so he stripped it to start over and I was lucky to buy it from him before he took it further.

  8. #7

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    There is no trace of the eagle unfortunately the previous owner didn't like the paint job he had done so took it back down to metal to begin again on "restoring" . I was able to purchase it before he took things further. This is the first one that I have owned my father has had four or five over his career and mostly refer to his knowledge on most things but even he has a hard time with M38s the copies can be so good and we try our best to get the back story on how these types of items are acquired so we can confidently sell to highly valued customers and friends. I unfortunately could not post the pictures of this helmet in time for you guys to see before the auction closed on this helmet. With the COVID-19 deal shutting things down and work being unpredictable I needed to liquidate some items and build up a cushion for the hit coming. So I posted some things in my collection I really did not want to part with I sold my Confederate documented Cavalry sword to a soldier who was one of only 30 men in his regiment to survive Gettysburg, and my M38. I got heartbreaking prices for both items and will be kicking myself for many years to come. I got $1,625 for the sword and $1,975 foe the helmet. Most definitely the wrong time to sell high value items. Thanks so much Terry I really appreciate you helping me out I will have many more questions, and I have a somewhat large inventory of German memorabilia how do I offer it for sale here on this site? Thanks again Terry.

  9. #8

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    I sold mine with all original paint but a later issue model for 3K. Given the liner has the earlier components it would be much better to keep it intact. We are not an appraisal service and I can tell you a number of folks here will shudder at the thought of "parting" it out. I get annoyed when I see what appears to be a complete item on a dealer site listed as separate pieces. That is done to maximize the dollar return but it devalues the piece overall in my opinion. Ultimately, you will have to decide what to do since it is your property. That is my two cents for what it is worth. Neil

  10. #9

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    The moral of the story; home improvements added to any militaria antique results in a bad outcome. Certainly from a value point of view.

  11. #10

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    Hi, great pics of para helmet bits that we never get to see in Australia. Does anyone know - does every para helmet have size & manufacturer stamps inside or were there some without stamps???

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