Potential first stahlhelm purchase
Hello
I want to purchase my first German helmet and I'm a little concerned about being caught out being a novice and all.
I would be really grateful for an expert eye on this particular helmet and in particular whether the decal looks correct and whether you think it's Heer or Kriegsmarine or something else I'm not aware of.
Thank you very much in advance.
It has a fake decal , an SE helmet has different decal. Liner is a horrible fake too.
Frank just got in before me, when compared to the decals for SE on GHV, almost nothing matches, it's a doo-doo decal
Thank you for the advice. You have helped me dodge one there. Can you recommend anyone I should contact in trying to obtain a decent first purchase? I'm in the UK but happy to buy from anywhere.
It is best no matter where you buy you post it here first. Where is this one for sale and what are they asking ?
A place called Antiques Storehouse in Portsmouth UK. £850. They also have another helmet with a decal for £1125 and an M35 with "desert camo" for £725. That's not to mention a couple of M45 helmets for £4500+.
If you go to gunstar.co.uk and type in "German helmet" you will see them all! Interested in what someone thinks of the M35 desert camo helmet.
Well, all I would say is that I don't live far away from where they are based inside the Portmouth Historic Dockyard (that is worth a vistby Arniebarnie
) and I have visited the shop itself several times. It carries antiques of all descriptions not just militaria, of which there is a large amout and houses several individual dealers.
The place is a part of old Georgian dock warehouses which is dingy and cramped.
To qualify that I believe they are moving (to a grade II listed former inn so similar architecture I expect) or maybe already have so that might improve.
I looked a lot, marvelled at the prices being asked for"mega rare" items and kept my wallet firmly in my pocket. Nuff said!
Their internet presence seems to have a triple identity including Ebay.
I'm sure they do have some good stuff but as I say, I never bought anything.
Caveat emptor.
Regards
Mark
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing he cares more about than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature with no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."
Hi Mark
Yes, I did visit there once myself and was put off buying something Zulu War related due to an inflated valuation and he wasn’t budging! He occasionally turns up in that Antiques Roadtrip programme on BBC.
Do you mind me asking where you source your collection items from?
Regards
Michael
Hi Michael,
Not at all. I got to as many fairs as I can (before lockdown of course) where you can get a good look at the items and deal with like minded people not a hard nosed antique dealer (some antique dealers are absolutely fine of course but you have to know which!). Nobody gets humpy about haggling at fairs I find.
Most of my stuff that I don't find on fairs (any general collectors fair can yield treasure, not just militaria specific ones) comes from Europe both dealers and things like small ads as well as the dreaded Ebay where I will contact and communicate with sellers rather than just "Buy it now". At the moment for instance I am finding good things coming out of house clearances in the former DDR / E.Germany and I have a couple of sellers who "don't ship to UK" whose trust I have gained so they will ship to me.
If Portsmouth is in range for you then the fairs at Farnham, Aldershot and Yate to name three are probably within your range template too? Aldershot and Yate are nominally medal specific but there is always lots of general militaria to keep me interested. Farnham is much more general militaria. All are quite good small fairs. Google them and you will find more fairs. Malvern Militaria at the Three Counties Showground (4 times a year) is a really good larger fair and is within range for me from South Wiltshire it has quite a few european sellers and is very diverse. Then of course there is the War & Peace (this year will be my first time of missing it in 21 years!) The thing to do is find out which dealers are reliable and as we always say here make sure you know your subject before parting with the folding stuff!
I buy virtually nothing from UK mainstream dealers as it can be a bit of a minefield and they all seem to have at least one pair of "Eva Brauns foundations". Some UK dealers I'm sorry to say are utter conmen which seems to be much less of an issue in Europe.
I only buy anything online if the pictures are good enough to judge an item, I know exactly what to look for and I have confidence in the seller.
Anything you are unsure of post it on the forum. If you can't for whatever reason perhaps because there is not enough time (worst possible reason) then leave it alone, there will be another one in most cases.
In the end you need to know your subject then get out and find it.
I hope this helps
Regards
Mark
PS Where are you based?
Last edited by Watchdog; 06-01-2020 at 07:39 PM. Reason: Typo
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing he cares more about than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature with no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."
All junk there and some serious conmen. You will come across such junk on many similar platforms like ebay and the like. They are just bait waiting for the right uninformed person to come along. It is criminal really.
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