Bring back NVA helmet

[willysproject]

Hi, 

please check out this new addition to my humble collection. I hope you like it as much as I do :) 

 

https://www.bodoimilitaria.be/blog/717274_type-ii-d-pavn-tropenhelm-midden-jaren-60-tot-1975-3

 

 

[USCapturephotos]

Oh man I love it! 
Thanks for sharing. Any idea who the GI was or what unit he was with that brought it back?

Paul

[willysproject]

11 hours ago, USCapturephotos said:

Oh man I love it! 
Thanks for sharing. Any idea who the GI was or what unit he was with that brought it back?

Paul

No, unfortunately no history.

Kind regards,

Gerd V

[Cap Camouflage Pattern I]

When I initially saw the markings on the outside I was worried it was a modern tourist item but when I saw the inside I was relieved. Nice helmet!

[dmar836]

Could someone explain the insides of these? I was once told the one-rivet liners were more recent - used by civilian or marketed to tourists. I bought one once but it was destroyed by UPS and I was refunded. Can't remember but I think it might have been newer based on what I once learned. What are the distinguishing features of the period helmets?

Dave

[Connor1941]

Awesome helmet! I like the writing on the front, it really adds to its history!

 

Best regards,

 

Connor

[Cap Camouflage Pattern I]

On 9/11/2021 at 9:17 AM, dmar836 said:

Could someone explain the insides of these? I was once told the one-rivet liners were more recent - used by civilian or marketed to tourists. I bought one once but it was destroyed by UPS and I was refunded. Can't remember but I think it might have been newer based on what I once learned. What are the distinguishing features of the period helmets?

Dave

Sorry I missed this but better late than never.

Not sure what you mean by one-rivet?

 

It might sound counter-intuitive but wartime ones are higher quality than postwar ones. This is because the wartime ones (of this style) were all made as aid in China, while after the war they were made in Vietnam which had very weak economy, and the ones currently made use a lot of plastics.

 

All metal parts on wartime ones are aluminum except for the rivets that hold the chinstrap to the brackets, which are brass, and the top vent bolt. Post war ones may use aluminum but many use steel or a mix of aluminum and steel parts. 

 

On wartime examples the brackets that are attached to the body by the side vent eyelets and in turn the suspension and chinstrap attach to are made of cardboard with a light red primer coat under a layer of green paint. If they helmet has any degree of wear the green paint will flake off revealing the red primer and the carboard underneath. Post war ones are either unprimed cardboard or more commonly green plastic. 

 

The suspension and headband are some kind of plastic coated cloth? I'm honestly not exactly sure what it is. The back is an off-white cotton, the front is plasticky with a very distinctive diamond checkered texture, similar to M1911 grip if you are familiar with them. I have never seen any post war ones with the same texture, some are fairly close, most are much different.

 

The string used to adjust the sizing of the suspension and headband are usually, but not always, either off white or a light maroon. Post war ones generally have a white string or some other color. I wouldn't call the color of the string a deal breaker regardless of what color it is, but it is a handy thing to look for at a glance. 

 

Wartime ones are made of a resin-impregnated cardboard, if the exterior fabric or interior paint is damaged it looks pretty similar to a US high-pressure cotton duck M1 helmet liner. Many post war ones are the same, but some of the current production ones are plastic.

 

The exterior fabric covering is a natural cotton, many post war ones are synthetic and so are much brighter and shinier. But there are a lot of post war ones that look good on the outside, which is why looking at the inside is a must.

 

The interior paint is generally a quite dark green on wartime examples, while post war ones are generally brighter and have a range of variations. I also wouldn't call this a make or break thing, but it is a decently effective way to tell at a glance if one is worth examining closer when sifting through a bunch. 

 

Often the glue used to attach the cloth covering has squeezed out, typically around the rim and the band between the brim and crown, on wartime ones it will be purple. If you ever used a purple gluestick as a kid and put too much on the paper, it looks exactly like that. Again not a deal breaker, but another cause to look closer. 

 

The chinstrap will be either leather or plastic. Post war with typically be a cheap faux-leather. 

 

Hope this helps and sorry for the late reply, George.