Monday, July 8, 2024

Germany (Nazi), Luftwaffe m.40 combat helmet,

Several years ago I took some photos of the helmets at our local (privately owned) museum.   The late owner had about twenty really nice helmets, five of which ended up in my collection.  This one he was hanging on to, but he generously let me photograph it in detail.  

Here is a link to the German m.42, raw-edge luft model,  that I posted back in 2015.

This is an m.40 German helmet, issued to the Luftwaffe.  The m.40 is characterized by a rolled-rim, a stamped ventilator, and corner-less steel chinstrap loops.  This is a particularly nice specimen, and a fine example to guide your collecting efforts.





It is an m.40 in superb condition.  And from this point on, it'll just be a walk-around comprised of photos.





The finish of this helmet is close to 100%.



The decal is in wonderful shape as it the entire helmet.  And the m.m40 stamped ventilator is shown to good effect.


The liner is in pretty good condition, with some flaking along the edge.


One of the few discrepencies is that the tip is missing from the chinstrap, which is unfortunate as that is where the manufacture's mark is...manufacturer of the chinstrap, that is.


A close-up of the leather flaking.  Despite the claims of many, there is no way to reverse this.





The chinstrap loops of the earlier m.35, were cast aluminum with square corners, in subsequent models, including this m.40, the loops are steel wire with rounded corners.


I think it speaks well of my collecting discipline that I didn't buy it myself;  I have a nice army m.40 as well as a Luftwaffe m.42...not to mention, there is only so much wallspace.


A very handsome helmet, indeed!

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

Mannie

 

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