M1 Helmets from El Salvador & Mexico

[danhashman]

hey pals..

I want to show you to show you two M1 helmets.. I got the light green one on a Trip to El Salvador (Central-america) on a flea market.

The second one is from Mexico, my brother found it lying around on a construction site.

They seem identical to me, except the darker colour on the mexican one, but both are sort of fine-textured.

Any comments on those two lids? Are they all US made?

[NickD]

they look to be post WW2 made US M-1 helmets ?

please take a look here for more info that may help Rough guide to the US M-1, M-2 & M-1C shell

[danhashman]

is there something to say about the colour-variation?

[battle gear]

the lighter apple green painted shell looks like a typical late US helmet shell Vietnam and after

the darker painted shell looks like it has a lower profile, it could be a foreign copy made in South America? some countries in South America did produce the M1 , I think Argentina made them

[danhashman]

The darker painted shell looks like it has a lower profile, it could be a foreign copy made in South America? some countries in South America did produce the M1 , I think Argentina made them[/QUOTE]

It´s the picture, the helmets have excatly the same shape/form, only the colour is different... But it is interesting to notice that they seem to have the same colour on the inside, the diference is on the outside paint only, but even the fine texture is the same.. Maybe the mexican one was repainted locally..

[HoovieDude]

They both seem to have the sand/silica coating that was mixed in with the paint to create a rough surface to help in the reduction of light reflecting off them. That was done in the "post war" period on new helmets, and some of the WW2 produced helmets that were refurbished later. The colors as mentioned, especially the lighter apple green, was also a post war change from the darker OD used in WW2. And it was common practice during the service life of steel helmets to repaint them at individual level to maintain a cleaner appearance during inspections, parades, etc.. Take a closer look at many helmets and you will see coats upon coats of paint on many lids.

[battle gear]

also notice the darker green shell has a reddish primer under the green paint? those are the later manufacture shells

WWII - Korea shells dont have a red primer under the OD