Mk2 BRITISH PARA HELMET

**tinlid** · 06-14-2010, 07:35 PM

Hi, Here's some pictures of my webbing chin strap para helmet.
Made by BMB, as all the Mk2's were, dated 1944, & a size 6 3/4.
Still has the crown pad, & you can see the chalk line, I suppose the glue to fix the pad went inside the chalk line. The paint on the outside is in great shape, as is the liner.
Aaron.

**tinlid** · 08-27-2012, 09:14 AM

Here's the dark brown painted 44 dated MkII HSAT, does anyone one have the harder to find 43 dated khaki green painted ones.

**Grimebox** · 08-27-2012, 10:28 AM

I have the rarer 1943 dated BMB helmet, unfortunately it has been post war painted by P company Para training (I don't have the guts to 'restore' it so I've left it as it is and stuck some scrim and a net on it) I think the original paint can be seen on the inside (you can see where the over paint has gone on to the liner band). I don't know if you ever saw my original thread (which has become useless since I deleted all of my pictures

!) but I got this helmet in a conventional old fashioned auction (Not Ebay!). I was looking around the auction room and whilst squeezing past somebody I accidentially kicked a bag which was under a table. On looking down I saw the unmistakable shape of a British para helmet. Having tried to hide my excitement I had a quick look at the helmet and asked if the bag and contents were in the auction. It was a late entry and had missed the catalogue and was listed seperately as 'Special forces backpack, bayonet, waterbottle, etc', it was also the penultimate lot in the sale. Due to work I left a commission bid for all I could afford. I had not looked at anything else in the bag other than the helmet, but saw the waterbottle and a shirt.
Imagine my suprise when I found out I was the winning bidder for £5 less than my commission bid - I got the whole lot for £100!

Having had a proper search I found the following:
Para helmet
No36M Mk1 grenade (dated 1940)
British Leather holster (dated 1940)
long sleeve shirt
Bayonet (marked 'tgf' and 'F95 (crossed swords) 50' on the handle and 'CSZ' and ???37 on the scabbard)
small pack dyed black
water bottle (dated 1912)
Puttees
Camo stick
Water purifying tablets from the 1960's

I've since sold on the rucksack, shirt, water bottle, camo stick and tablets and made my money back!!! It's not the best condition helmet out there but was effectively free, and given the current prices it's a helmet that I thought I would never own.

**Jerry B** · 08-27-2012, 10:50 AM

by Grimebox

I have the rarer 1943 dated BMB helmet, unfortunately it has been post war painted by P company Para training (I don't have the guts to 'restore' it so I've left it as it is and stuck some scrim and a net on it) I think the original paint can be seen on the inside (you can see where the over paint has gone on to the liner band). I don't know if you ever saw my original thread (which has become useless since I deleted all of my pictures

!) but I got this helmet in a conventional old fashioned auction (Not Ebay!). I was looking around the auction room and whilst squeezing past somebody I accidentially kicked a bag which was under a table. On looking down I saw the unmistakable shape of a British para helmet. Having tried to hide my excitement I had a quick look at the helmet and asked if the bag and contents were in the auction. It was a late entry and had missed the catalogue and was listed seperately as 'Special forces backpack, bayonet, waterbottle, etc', it was also the penultimate lot in the sale. Due to work I left a commission bid for all I could afford. I had not looked at anything else in the bag other than the helmet, but saw the waterbottle and a shirt.
Imagine my suprise when I found out I was the winning bidder for £5 less than my commission bid - I got the whole lot for £100!

Having had a proper search I found the following:
Para helmet
No36M Mk1 grenade (dated 1940)
British Leather holster (dated 1940)
long sleeve shirt
Bayonet (marked 'tgf' and 'F95 (crossed swords) 50' on the handle and 'CSZ' and ???37 on the scabbard)
small pack dyed black
water bottle (dated 1912)
Puttees
Camo stick
Water purifying tablets from the 1960's

I've since sold on the rucksack, shirt, water bottle, camo stick and tablets and made my money back!!! It's not the best condition helmet out there but was effectively free, and given the current prices it's a helmet that I thought I would never own.

Great pick up and I love the story on how you got it.

- - Updated - -

by tinlid

Hi, Here's some pictures of my webbing chin strap para helmet.
Made by BMB, as all the Mk2's were, dated 1944, & a size 6 3/4.
Still has the crown pad, & you can see the chalk line, I suppose the glue to fix the pad went inside the chalk line. The paint on the outside is in great shape, as is the liner.
Aaron.

Great lid and sadly I have never owned one of any type, maybe one day.

**ph3s** · 08-27-2012, 12:27 PM

Bayonet (marked 'tgf' and 'F95 (crossed swords) 50' on the handle and 'CSZ' and ???37 on the scabbard)

Postwar Czechoslovakian vz-24

**tinlid** · 08-27-2012, 03:27 PM

Nice original khaki green paint on the inside & dated 43, white chalk line around the top pad even after all these years & use. The straps are post war as is 1 of the brass buckles that the straps goes through & is fixed to the shell. These helmets only had a short time to be used during the war but up to 40 years post war.
But a snip for what you got it for.

**Grimebox** · 08-27-2012, 05:01 PM

Hello Tinlid, I was aware that the chin strap was post war (It is marked C.C.L and i think dated 1955), however, I hadn't noticed the buckle. Can you refresh my memory as to how to identify wartime helmet straps (I seem to recall that it has something to do with wartime ones having brass ends and not being painted black?). If I see a some cheap enough I will replace them but I'm loath to pay silly money (as I think most of us are!)

**tinlid** · 08-27-2012, 05:32 PM

The thicker buckle out of the two is WW2, the one nearest the painted number on the inside 101. Here's a pic' of post war buckles, not on the straps but bolted to the shell ( thinner than WW2 ones) plus look at the square stitching on the actual strap by the chin cup that's post war too.

**Composite** · 03-13-2019, 08:48 PM

Did I just see a MkII steel Para lid on the news (re Bloody Sunday) with a visor attached?.....I’ve slow-mo’d and paused several times and I’m pretty sure it’s not a MkIV ...or the Thetford NI Compo.....