M35 Maker Stamp - Genuine ????

[MAP]

Thanks for the advice everyone it's much appreciated

To be honest my 13 year old son is the one who is more interested in the helmets (although the more I am learning the more interested I am becoming) and I didn't even think there would be so many fakes around - what's wrong with the world that everyone's out to take the p*** !!!!

But I have quickly learnt quite a bit from this site from you experienced lot and I won't be parting with any more cash until I have a helmet verified as original or have been advised on here its good (hopefully I will have also gained more knowledge by then to know generally what to look out for)

I am just thankful my fake didn't cost a fortune,though nearly £100 isn't exactly pennies - but I guess my son can now paint it whatever colour he wants !!!

It will make a good "filler" until such time you and your son find an original.

At this point, while reference books are a must for serious collectors, good helmet books will cost you a pretty penny, more than what you paid for this helmet, so for now, the collective advice of the members here will be more than enough. There are some seriously good experts here who will help you and your son. In the meantime, you should both spend time (enjoyable for most of us), browsing through old and new helmet threads. Little by little you will learn the basics.

Further, a great primer on german helmets is this website run by member Schwerpunkt. Check it out and browse through all the topics.

German Helmet Vault – Collecting German WW2 helmets

[AndyM35]

Just to add to what MAP and other forums members have already said and the link provided to Schwerpunkt’s excellent site, is another link to the website of advanced collector and author Jan Medland: http://www.german-ww2-helmet.com/

Soon you will find yourself falling into the fascinating rabbits hole world of German helmet collecting with its different decals, shell sizes and shapes, liners, chinstraps, manufacturers etc. You may even end uprelishing the challenge of detecting the real from the fake.

It really is a very interesting and absorbing hobby once you scratch the surface.

Enjoy your collecting,
Andy