viking73 Posted January 16, 2015 #1 Posted January 16, 2015 Hi Guys, Well I found another SPH-3B that is in need of some TLC so I bought it and took it home yesterday. As you can see, there are many broken and missing parts. The good news is that I bought a parts helmet on ebay last week that I think as most of the missing parts I need. Plus ones to replace the broken stuff. I do love the tape job on the visor. Any ideas on the squadron? I don't see the spec tag anywhere, so I'm guessing this is late 70s/early 80s? Here are some pics. -Derek
viking73 Posted January 16, 2015 Author #4 Posted January 16, 2015 And the last one. This is the worst damage to the helmet, a good sized crack on the right ear. I hope to glue it back in place so secure it somehow... I have already removed the old masking tape from the rear of the helmet. It was old and brittle and came off pretty easily... Thanks for looking at my latest rebuild project -Derek
northcoastaero Posted January 17, 2015 #5 Posted January 17, 2015 Nice original helmet. You are probably correct with the late 1970s-early 1980s time frame. Possibly mid 1980s also? Not much later than that because of the earlier leather ear cup suspension and head suspension. Later ones used a Nomex? ear cup suspension and a leather covered form fit liner replaced the head suspension. Possibly from a USN or USMC H-53 helicopter squadron? Also, notice the snaps on either side of the shell near the visor housing-For NVG gear? Parts needed: -2-Visor lock knobs, white. -1-All black round microphone mount. -1 or 2 black ear seals. -1-M-95B/UR or gray (or possibly black) M-87/AIC microphone element with boom and rubber covered cable. -1-Possibly need rectangular amplifier, AM-3597C/A. -1pr-H-87B/U earphone elements with silver colored face. -1pr foam for ear cups.
viking73 Posted January 18, 2015 Author #6 Posted January 18, 2015 Thanks northcoastaero. I think I have just about all the parts I need to fix this one up. The only thing I don't have is the earphone elements and wiring for them. I have taken the helmet all apart this weekend. Here are some photos. -Derek
viking73 Posted January 18, 2015 Author #7 Posted January 18, 2015 When I removed the suspension from inside, I found a name carved into the styrofoam liner.
viking73 Posted January 18, 2015 Author #9 Posted January 18, 2015 The helmet was very dirty. I'm sure a lot of it is the old foam from the ear cups. There was black stuff all over the place. I need to clean out the rest from the ear cups and also the suspension. Plus I need to try and remove the verdigris from the snaps at the front.
viking73 Posted January 18, 2015 Author #10 Posted January 18, 2015 One last photo for now. When I removed the masking tape from the rear of the helmet and really looked at the lines, it got me to thinking. Could this be a Coast Guard helmet? Those lines are blue and orange so I of course thought Coast Guard right away. Any ideas on how to remove the comm element from the back side? There are two small philips screws holding it to the shell (you can see them in the interior shot above). When I turn them with a screwdriver, they just seem to spin... I guess I don't have to take it off since I'm just cleaning the helmet up but I was curious to see what I looked like on the inside. -Derek
northcoastaero Posted January 18, 2015 #11 Posted January 18, 2015 Most likely a USN or USMC helmet because of the communications cable that is used. The USCG SPH-3B and Army SPH-4 used the same cable.
viking73 Posted January 20, 2015 Author #12 Posted January 20, 2015 Thanks once again for the good info northcoastaero. Good to know it's a USN or USMC helmet due to the comm setup. I've been slow and steady at this one. I washed all the interior components in soap and water to get all the debris and small black pieces of disintegrated foam out of everything as that was everywhere. I didn't want to make it 100% clean like new (since this helmet will never been clean and new!), I just wanted to tidy things up a bit and not get black foam particles on my hands every time I touched it. While that's drying, I have been re-gluing the loose edgeroll back in place along the ears of the helmet. It's not perfect but it's much better than it hanging loose in the wind. Once that is all done and dried, I can re-install the interior suspension. I found a couple of good ear seals to use as well. Still nothing on the earphone elements or wiring but I'm keeping my eyes peeled. More later, thanks for looking. -Derek
viking73 Posted January 25, 2015 Author #13 Posted January 25, 2015 Good Morning Guys, I'm happy to report this helmet is all done. I spent a few hours putting it back together yesterday. After I took it apart last week, cleaned everything, and re-glued the edge roll back on the ears, all that was left was reassembly. It all went back together without a hitch. I simply replaced the missing or broken parts with parts from a donor helmet I bought on eBay last month. Here is the result:
viking73 Posted January 25, 2015 Author #15 Posted January 25, 2015 One last one, a shot of the back. Thanks for looking. Another fun project completed. -Derek
littlegto Posted February 1, 2015 #17 Posted February 1, 2015 That is really cool. What kind of glue did you use on the edgeroll?
viking73 Posted February 4, 2015 Author #18 Posted February 4, 2015 That is really cool. What kind of glue did you use on the edgeroll? Thanks for the kind words! I am pleased with the way it turned out and it's a great addition to the collection. I used this glue for the edge roll. I found it at Hobby Lobby and the label said it worked well with rubber which is of course what I was after. -Derek
viking73 Posted March 11, 2021 Author #19 Posted March 11, 2021 Thanks for the likes Vark! Always fun to re-visit old helmets of mine here. Can't believe this is from back in 2015! I still have this one in my collection by the way. I am pretty sure of the squadron now as well - USMC helo squadron HMH-777. They were based as NAS Dallas (the surplus store I bought it from is in Ft. Worth so makes sense) flying the CH-53. The squadron was apparently deactivated in 1980. I gleaned this bit of information from a shell that was on Ebay some years ago. Here are photos I saved from that auction. I was tempted to buy it to try and add the MHM-777 bits to mine but I didn't... -Derek
Vark_07 Posted March 11, 2021 #20 Posted March 11, 2021 You're welcome Derek, this is a truly gorgeous helmet you've put together. The auction pictures of the other shell were a perfect match, and indeed gave you valuable info about yours. Not to hide anything from you, I also have an SPH-3 refurbishment project myself, so I was searching the web and forum for inspiration 😉.
Mikeym_us Posted October 24, 2021 #21 Posted October 24, 2021 Does anyone know what size recessed washers was used on the CX-4832 comm cable to get it flush with the helmet? I just got in a SPH-3B and it was missing the screws and washers and is just hanging loose. I could always go the route of a stack of ring washers to do the same job.
Mikeym_us Posted October 24, 2021 #22 Posted October 24, 2021 On 2/4/2015 at 3:59 PM, viking73 said: Thanks for the kind words! I am pleased with the way it turned out and it's a great addition to the collection. I used this glue for the edge roll. I found it at Hobby Lobby and the label said it worked well with rubber which is of course what I was after. -Derek Will this attach fitting pads to the foam liner in a HGU helmet?
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