Italian Para M42/60

[OldSteel]

Morning everyone,
here are some examples of Italian paratrooper helmet M42/60, are all examples used in years 70 and 80 and have passed various reconditioning, I add also the details of a net for M33/47 and M42/60 helmets.
The original color was kakhi-green visible inside of all three examples, two of them however were covered with dark green, less visible.
As it happens for M33, also these helmets have been painted with anti-rust yellow paint (that reminds me of zinc chromate primer used to protect aircraft's internal parts) and then covered with the final paint, the anti-rust is visible in the scratched parts.
This is the post war version of this helmet derived from the M33, it remains an icon for the Italian military history enthusiasts, especially because it is very similar to its predecessor M42 used by the "Folgore Division" in the Battle of El Alamein.
I add also another symbol of these elite Units, it's a beret used by a parachutist of the 2nd Battalion "Tarquinia" in the 70s, it is a private purchase of Canadian style, much appreciated by Italian Para.
In my opinion the untouched third example, very personal is very attractive, the central foam rubber has been removed by its owner to fit better.

Thanks for looking.
Roberto



Example dark green color


Example in original khaki-green color+net


Example in dark green color+net


Beret 2nd Battalion "Tarquinia"

[James C]

Great examples Roberto ,can i ask why the brow pad is more prominent on the 3rd example you show compared to the others in your collection and something i notice on my example too

[OldSteel]

Hi James, thank you for sharing this lovely example, of what is probably one of the most iconic helmets in the history of the Italian Army.
As for your question, I believe that the leather pad for the front protection tends to protrude in the examples that use a larger size than the same shell, I will explain:
This model was originally born with three shell sizes, generally:
Small shell, for liner 54-55-56
Medium shell, for liner 57-58
Large shell, for liner from 59-60
In truth never seen liners above 58, which was already a size difficult to find, in fact often the paratroopers were forced to adapt a smaller size by removing part of the padding (see my third example).
Below you can see an example revised in recent times when this model was in use, in fact regular rivets were no longer available and have been replaced by "replacement" aluminum type.
In this case a liner declared 54 (but in reality it should be a 56) was used for a small shell, and the pad protrudes as you say.

Regards
Roberto

[OldSteel]

Another example

[OldSteel]

The cover used on your example, was obtained from the hood of an M58 camouflage dress given to normal army troops, below the cover designed for this helmet, which was part of the jump and fighting uniform, specific for paratroopers ; actually almost never used.

Regards
Roberto

[James C]

Many thanks for explaining Roberto i appreciate the information and who better to ask than your good self ,I had been after an example for a long time so was really pleased to add this one but am unsure on the actual helmet size , the crown pad size is hard to read but have a feeling it's a small size as overall it looks quite diminutive and wouldn't attempt trying to wear the helmet myself ,i added the netting and cover for display purposes as i am really fond of the Italian camo pattern. Not certain of the camo pattern designation but believe it to be a modernised version of the M1929 telo mimetic ,My example has what looks like the flush fitting aluminium liner rivits also which confused me as most seem more doughnut shaped

[OldSteel]

The aluminum rivets are those "ersatz" of the examples revised at the unit level, and used in the last periods before the arrival of the kevlar:
Sometimes they were riveted over the camouflage cover to hold it in place.
The cover you used is fine, it was one of the solutions used, while the net was generally positioned above the cover, and it was the only Italian version in brown color and with the wooden olives at the ends to be folded under the liner structure.

Regards

[Watchdog]

Great helmets Roberto but the idea of removing padding to make a large liner fit a smaller shell and using non-standard rivets Soft aluminium ones at that puts the helmet totally "out of specification"! Obviously the health and safety regulations were not so strong then

One might get a prison term these days for messing about and "bodging" safety gear in such away

That's probably something you won't find in a text book so thanks for the explanation!

Regards

Mark

[James C]

Many thanks Roberto for the advice and in time i will try and source the correct netting of which i know the type you refer too ,unsure where i found this picture off the web but this was the look i was trying to emulate for display purposes

[OldSteel]

Great helmets Roberto but the idea of removing padding to make a large liner fit a smaller shell and using non-standard rivets Soft aluminium ones at that puts the helmet totally "out of specification"! Obviously the health and safety regulations were not so strong then

One might get a prison term these days for messing about and "bodging" safety gear in such away

That's probably something you won't find in a text book so thanks for the explanation!

Regards

Mark

Thanks to you Mark for appreciating this explanation, certainly they are strange facts that I hope were limited to the last periods of the life of this helmet, probably relegated to the sole training activity and in any case the result of local and unauthorized initiative by the individual units.
It is however difficult to say more because what is known comes from the experiences of the protagonists or collectors.
The official documentation is really scarce, there are no manuals or labels inside them, even today it is not possible to say for sure who produced the M33 or M42 / 60 helmets.
Having lived through the cold war years as a son and brother of military personnel, I believe that this behavior was the result of a rigid interpretation of military secrecy even towards the simplest military equipment.
Probably the fact that Italy was one of NATO's border countries, but with the most important Communist party in Western Europe within it, could have contributed to developing this type of attitude.
I still remember well the attention with which we looked at the Yugoslav border.
As a further example, confirming the "free" management of the revisions, below is an M33 used by the Air Force during the 1950s, where out-of-rule aluminum rivets were used, obviously this helmet was used by armed surveillance and not in actions of combat.

Regards
Roberto