SS snow camo - Any chance in he** this is legit?

[bullettoothtony]

So....I know I've been a bit exasperating with my helmet/questions post but....this has just come across my attention - and while I've tried to be a quick learner about helmets the whole camo/snow camo is another deal. Normally I would discount it out of hand as being too questionable but it is owned by a guy with a fairly prominent collection of German WW2 stuff and predominately SS stuff. He is a longtime collector and seems trustworthy - said this item has been in his possession since the early 80's and obtained thru a family member overseas. He mentioned some issues - that the rivet is incorrect, understands without marks the difficulty, etc. - and he's offering a money back guarantee if I'm not satisfied (no PO Box, etc - his home address and he is not in the militaria selling business). Unfortunately the stampings/coding is unreadable due to the severe rusting.

Of course one of the concerns that occurred to me was why the decals would be exposed (seemingly with the rest of the helmet being all white at one point) - He said he did not expose the decals via paint removal, etc. and that was the way he received it....although that could have been done prior to him getting it.

I realize just because he's owned it for 35+ years doesn't make it legit but anyway, please take a look:

[HARRY THE MOLE]

I saw one just like this being offered for sale at the Preston arms fair, not once, but about three different times. I didn't spot it last time I was there, and I wondered if someone had been daft enough to buy it. A money back guarantee is no proof that the item is genuine. It just means that when you find out its fake you can get a refund.

[bullettoothtony]

I saw one just like this being offered for sale at the Preston arms fair, not once, but about three different times. I didn't spot it last time I was there, and I wondered if someone had been daft enough to buy it. A money back guarantee is no proof that the item is genuine. It just means that when you find out its fake you can get a refund.

Thank you for your quick reply....as said, normally I'd reject it out of hand but this guy I kind of have a relationship with and the fact that he said he's had it for 35 years, etc. (and the fact that I have no clue re: these camo helmets), wishful thinking and a decent price had me under a spell.

[HARRY THE MOLE]

The burning question is... did you get it from the Preston arms fair? (at Charnock Richard) And what do you call a decent price? The one I saw was £260. Genuine SS helmets do not come cheap.

Another tactic of dealers is to sell fakes to you by telling you that they cannot absolutely guarantee the authenticity of an item, so they are letting it go a bit cheaper than it should be. The temptation is to get suckered in to thinking that the item might be genuine, and you are getting a bargain.

Cheers,
Steve

[bullettoothtony]

The burning question is... did you get it from the Preston arms fair? (at Charnock Richard) And what do you call a decent price? The one I saw was £260. Genuine SS helmets do not come cheap.

Another tactic of dealers is to sell fakes to you by telling you that they cannot absolutely guarantee the authenticity of an item, so they are letting it go a bit cheaper than it should be. The temptation is to get suckered in to thinking that the item might be genuine, and you are getting a bargain.

Cheers,
Steve

Steve,

No ...I don't have it - I was putting it up here for opinions (although I already knew it was probably too good to be true) on it being possibly in any way authentic. Like I said, if this was an Ebay, Gunbroker, auction site, etc. type deal I wouldn't have given it a second thought and laughed it off. He is a private collector in the US (Florida) It seems apparent this guy got scammed but doesn't know it - I'm just going to let him down gently and say I'm not interested at this time.

[BlackCat1982]

Bright flash rust and bad decals, to me it is a one look fake.

[HARRY THE MOLE]

Steve,

No ...I don't have it - I was putting it up here for opinions (although I already knew it was probably too good to be true) on it being possibly in any way authentic. Like I said, if this was an Ebay, Gunbroker, auction site, etc. type deal I wouldn't have given it a second thought and laughed it off. He is a private collector in the US (Florida) It seems apparent this guy got scammed but doesn't know it - I'm just going to let him down gently and say I'm not interested at this time.

Oh my god... that means that the one I saw has a TWIN! Now how rare is that?

Just tell your friend that at the moment it is more than you can afford to pay, and due to the current situation you have to watch your money.

Cheers,
Steve

[bullettoothtony]

Oh my god... that means that the one I saw has a TWIN! Now how rare is that?

Just tell your friend that at the moment it is more than you can afford to pay, and due to the current situation you have to watch your money.

Cheers,
Steve

That was exactly what I was going to inform him - that and that I'm in the process of trying to secure another helmet (which I am...a real one, lol) and need the funds for that.

[Anderson]

They just couldn't resist adding the wire. Like what foliage would you attach in winter conditions? There are clear signs of a horizontal scrubbing of the paint in the area of the decals. I would think painted then chemically treated to induce paint bubbling, scrapping to expose steel then leaving for a time for rust to form.

[bullettoothtony]

They just couldn't resist adding the wire. Like what foliage would you attach in winter conditions? There are clear signs of a horizontal scrubbing of the paint in the area of the decals. I would think painted then chemically treated to induce paint bubbling, scrapping to expose steel then leaving for a time for rust to form.

Haha...good point....maybe to let icicles form from the wire and shroud their heads.