M1917 with "OC CO." Makerstamp; Has Anyone Seen This Before?

[Edoguy1305]

Hey there, just got this 340th FA Regiment M1917 today. Upon close inspection, there are a couple of things that I have never seen before on an M1917. The most puzzling being the maker stamp, which appears to read "OC CO." (O in OC as in zero). This marking does not seem to follow the marking system of any other manufacturers. There are no numbers, no letter prefix, and there is what is most likely the abbreviation for the word "Company" inside of the C. The only idea I have behind this is that I remember seeing a post on a forum saying that the company that would be known as ZA first used its own stamping system but was changed to meet the standard that the US government provided. Whether or not this is true is beyond me. The center rivet also appears to be different from any other M1917 I have/seen; it's smaller like a British Mk1 but it's a different shape than either one. It also doesn't seem to have ever had the little directions slip for fitting the helmet under the rivet. All of my helmets that don't have them at least have a little deteriorated piece remaining, or at least a shadow of one.

 

I hope someone has seen this or a similar stamp before, as I like to collect the various maker stamps and I would love to know what this could mean. Thanks!

 

Here is the helmet:

 

Here is the stamp:

 

Here is a closeup of the rivet:

 

The liner's standard inspection stamp, and what is probably an R.H. Long stamp, but it is much too faint to read.

(Posting this on a couple forums to reach more people)

[aef1917]

More info here:

 

https://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/341829-m1917-helmet-marked-wa/

 

The liner in yours appears to have been replaced.

[Edoguy1305]

6 minutes ago, aef1917 said:

More info here:

 

https://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/341829-m1917-helmet-marked-wa/

 

The liner in yours appears to have been replaced.

Wow, thanks for linking that post, all of that information is both amazing and fascinating. I had a hunch that it was an earlier helmet, so thank you very much for confirming that and for providing all that info!