Finland m.35-38 combat helmet

 This is the second Hungarian 35-38 I've collected and you can see

the earlier installment  here. This Hungarian lid is one of the 75,000 which

saw service with the Finnish army.

 Finnish soldiers with imported Hungarian helmets.

This is a fine example of a Hungarian M35-38 which was refurbished into Finnish army service; it is an obvious copy of the German m.40 helmet.

Differences from the German m.40 include the rivet placement...

and the small bracket on the rear skirt.

This bracket was used to fasten the helmet on to the soldier's backpack while on the march.

The bracket is attached with two rivets.

Unlike the German m.40 the three exterior rivets are bolstered by washers.

As with the German m.35 the ventilator is a separate piece, passing through the shell and peened over beneath. (Thanks to Bill Magowan for pointing this out to me)



The liner is distinctly Finnish.

Brass split pins affix the shell to the liner band and the liner fingers are sewn to the heavy leather band, very similar to the German M.16.

The liner size is ink-stamped on the liner band.  The high-quality of the leather

is evident in this photo.

Of similar quality is the chinstrap connected by rivets to the shell by stout D rings.

The high-quality leather fingers of the liner are gathered by a cord passing

through metal grommets.

A very simple iron buckle graces the chinstrap.

Only one mark is stamped into shell under the rear skirt.

Now for some pictures of the m.35-38 in action:

A video of the Hungarian helmet in action here (with a nice view at 1:25)

In both photos above Finnish soldiers are wearing both the m.35-38 as well as the m.40.

The M35-38 served from 1936 well in to the Cold War, seeing two decades of service both with Hungarian forces and later in the livery of Finland.   German design, Hungarian manufacture, Finnish service; this is a well-travelled helmet.

An altogether handsome and well made helmet.

See you next time with another cool helmet from the collection.

Mannie