My latest Japanese type 90 helmet

[HARRY THE MOLE]

This helmet arrived from stateside a few weeks ago. The seller had described it to me as having two-tone camoflage applied. There is no liner, and the chinstraps were fitted by me. On closer examination the paintwork seems to have been subjected to intense heat in parts - which gives the impression of two-tone camoflage. I feel that the liner may have been burned away, as the paintwork has kept its original colour where the leather band would have been. The scorching seems to have been done many years ago, and may well have happened during combat. What do you think?

[gaz232sqn]

Definetely look's like it's been scorched,especially at the rear of the lid,maybe it was set alight,the Gi's used flamethowers a lot in the pacific war where they would torch the Japanese out of their bunkers!!!!!!!

Very interesting piece....I don't have any of this type in my collection personally,so nice to see one , thanks for sharing.

Gaz

[sitges1990]

That's a great helmet Harry. They did have to use alot of flame throwers to pry the japanese out of their holes, so good odds that's what it is. Does the writing on the lowest picture look like it's written over the burned surface, I can't tell? The circled Y looks like it might have been put on there after it was burned, but it's hard to tell.

Jay

[SteveR]

I do not know why the Japanese would camoflage the inside of a helmet.
It appears that it has been burned at some time in its history, whether during wartime or not we will never know. The chin strap is a replacement.
It is still a nice display peace.

[HARRY THE MOLE]

That's a great helmet Harry. They did have to use alot of flame throwers to pry the japanese out of their holes, so good odds that's what it is. Does the writing on the lowest picture look like it's written over the burned surface, I can't tell? The circled Y looks like it might have been put on there after it was burned, but it's hard to tell.

Jay

Hi Jay,
No, the lettering is definately applied before the scorching to the helmet. I think its probably the flash on the camera that has made the symbol appear clearer and whiter than it actually is. There are more characters to the left-rear of the helmet, but these are totally blackened and can only be made out with the aid of a magnifying glass. There are the remnants of lettering at the front- underside rim as well, but these seem to have suffered more from peeling paint than anything else.

I cannot find any stampings into the metal, but I have no doubt that it is the genuine article. To try and replicate the finish on this helmet would really take some doing. I also recently picked up a nice civil defence helmet from a woman who lives in Hiroshimashi - which is not far away from Hiroshima. I will try and get some pictures up in the next few days.

Harry.

[sitges1990]

That's great Harry, really neat helmet. The only Japanese item I have in my collection is an Arisaka. I would like to collect some more Japanese stuff but unless it's a rifle, I don't know what I'm looking at. Computer translators don't work very well for Japanese. Can't wait to see the civil defense helmet.

Jay

[Kiipu]

Is this an early army or a later civil defense helmet?

[Nick Komiya]

It's an Army Type 90, but what do you see that makes it early?

[Kiipu]

I was looking at the second and third pictures that showed a flared brim at the front. The top picture depicts a Type 90 to compare to the 2nd and 3rd pictures.

[monkeyboy]

I was looking at the second and third pictures that showed a flared brim at the front. The top picture depicts a Type 90 to compare to the 2nd and 3rd pictures.

They're all pics of the same helmet.