Jump to content

WWI American Body Armor.


patches
 Share

Recommended Posts

post-34986-0-84504600-1440897243.jpg

 

Found this great photo of a QM photo of a Doughboy wearing an experimental helmet and body armor, I guess 1919. Looks very middle ages/renaissance right.

 

Any actual designation on the types, will be appreciated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

River Patrol

I don't know enough about it, but that articulation to the arm is really awesome (I almost said innovative but English knights had something similar, as you indicated).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

pararaftanr2

patches,

Per "Helmets and Body Armor in Modern Warfare", written by Bashford Dean in 1919, the photos illustrate the "American experimental light armor, with arm defense and helmet model No. 5". Produced by the Engineer Division of the Ordnance Department at the request of General Pershing in 1917. It was intended for use by assault troops wearing full equipment, but was not adopted. Construction was of manganese steel .036 to .040 inch in thickness, and was intended to protect the wearer from shrapnel and pistol fire.

Regards, Paul

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There were a couple of different models of both the breast plate and back plate, which fell under the umbella designation of Light Laminated Body Armor. These appear to be the 302U breast plate and 304U back plate. The arm pieces were called the Complete Arm Defense.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

world war I nerd

These turned up for sale on someone's website a while back. They were labeled as "forearm armor", but they to me they look like they are for the lower leg or shin ... AEF 1917, can you identify?

post-5143-0-09512000-1440905739.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

pararaftanr2

ww1nerd,

The chest armor you show, per Dean, is the Ordnance model of the heavy breastplate, known as the "American experimental model of sentinel's heavy armor". A prototype was made in February 1917 by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and sent to Mullins and Company in Ohio, where 50 examples were made. They were tested in France, but rejected due to their weight (the upper breastplate alone weighed 16 lbs.) and the lack of back protection. The armor was .185 inch thick and could stop German machine gun fire at 300 yards. The illustrations in Deans book do show attached thigh armor, but nothing for the lower leg.

 

Dean does however illustrate and describe the "Shin-guards, American experimental model, 1917" which look like the ones you posted. Apparently wound statistics showed a high percentage of lower leg wounds as a result of "going over the top". Under instruction from H.A.E.F., 35,000 of these (it doesn't say whether pairs or individual) were shipped overseas. They were made of helmet steel, padded on the back and held in place with two straps. Weight was only 12 ounces each. After they arrived in France, it was decided their degree of protection did not warrant the extra weight added to the soldiers equipment and they were not even given a practical trial.

Hope this helps, Paul

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The armor was called the B8 Heavy Breast Plate. This example has had the shoulder pieces trimmed off, and it is missing the tassets, which protected the legs down to around the middle of the thighs.

 

The shin defenses were simply referred to as Shin Guards. Pershing ordered 35,000 pairs, but as far as I can tell, only about 15,000 pairs were actually produced.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great and informative replies we've been accustomed to from our Great War pros, thanks all around.

 

This guy would look more at home carrying a pike or poleaxe rather than an 03 :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This guy would look more at home carrying a pike or poleaxe rather than an 03 :lol:

 

There's a reason for that: Bashford Dean was the founding curator of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Arms and Armour collection when we was commissioned into the Ordnance Corps to design all this stuff.

 

http://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-museum/now-at-the-met/2014/bashford-dean-and-helmet-design-during-world-war-i

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

There's a reason for that: Bashford Dean was the founding curator of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Arms and Armour collection when we was commissioned into the Ordnance Corps to design all this stuff.

 

http://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-museum/now-at-the-met/2014/bashford-dean-and-helmet-design-during-world-war-i

Talk about a traditionalist, but he was only going on what was tried and true I suppose. Haven't been to the Met in a long time, It's a fabulous place.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 year later...
  • 9 months later...
Paul Reijnders

Here's one of the two versions of the chest armor ... not sure which one it is though.

 

Realy a great collectors piece.

I try to sent you a PM with no succes

 

I'am looking for such US body armor, who can help ? THANKS

 

Regards, Paul Reijnders

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...