Japan: model 30-32 (type 90) combat helmet (part two)

(For a video about me finding my first Japanese helmet go here)

 The Japanese model 30-32 first came in to general use during the Imperial Japanese army's bloody rampage through Manchuria (google it) Photographs and newsreel footage of that brutal occupation cemented the image of the iconic acorn shape of this helmet into the public consciousness.  For a fuller understanding of Bushido culture go here.

Weighing in at two pounds three ounces, this chrome-molybdenum steel helmet is lighter  than many other combat helmets of the era. The model 30-32 served throughout the war and beyond, often found among the materiel of insurgent nationalist groups in Indonesia, Vietnam, and other European colonies occupied by the Japanese during the war.

Now for the walk around:

Two pairs of small holes in the dome provide some ventilation.

Viewed from above, the slightly ovoid shape of the shell is evident.

The three-leaved liner is similar to many European helmets of the era.

The insignia of the Imperial Japanese Army is made manifest by an iron, five-pointed star affixed to the front of the helmet.

Long fabric tapes comprise the chinstraps.

Some methods of fastening the chintstraps were bizarrely elaborate.  The private was so busy fastening his helmet that he didn't notice the Marine with the satchel-charge sealing the mouth of the tunnel.  Sometimes, attention to detail will bite you.

A nice design detail is the sewn point at the ends of the tapes.

The liner leaves are similar to the German m.16 of the Great War.

Also similar to many European helmets of the era, the liner leaves are backed by fabric envelopes into which batting or other material can be stuffed to provide padding as well as to adjust the fit.

A sturdy cord  gathers the leaves of the liner together.

Two vertical peened rivets secure...

A staple and split ring which in turn...

secure the chinstrap keeper loop.

Two similar horizontal rivets...

affix a staple which secures...

split rings that the chinstrap passes through on the sides of the helmet, these are in the same position, and serve the same function, as the chinstrap bails on Western helmets.

Two robust split pins...

secure the leather liner band to the shell.  A third point of securement are the prongs that affix the star insignia which pass through the liner band.

The liner band is joined at the front and rear with heavy stitching.

To ease production time as well as reduce cost the model 30-32 has a raw-edged rim.

And here are images of the model 30-32 in action:

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

Mannie

Nazi Germany m.42 combat helmet (part two)

 

The M.42, save for two modifications, is the same as the earlier M.35 and M.40 models that went before it. This is the helmet that greeted the nadir of the Third Reich.

The Nazi industrial base was becoming overtaxed by a multi-front war and impoverished by dwindling resources. As Hitler was sending boys and old men to the front lines steps were taken to manufacture a simpler, cheaper, helmet that was still as ballistically as sound as the M.35 and M.40 helmets that went before it.  The M42 answered the production demands and available resources of the Reich as the war entered the home stretch.

"Right this way to the meat-grinder fellows."

 

 

 

 

 

 

The unrolled rim give a distinct flared aspect.

 

The rear split rivet, one of three, that secure the liner band to the shell.

Unlike both the M.35 and the M.40, the edge of the M.42 was not rolled or folded but left raw thus saving a step in production and saving time and money in a Reich which was running out of both.(m.42 top, m.40 bottom)

Unlike the ventilator of the M.35 which was a separate bushing, the M.42, like the M.40 before it, the ventilator was embossed into the shell.

The liner and chinstrap are complete and in very good condition. 

The leather is spaced from the shell with steel leaf springs.

Despite late-war shortages, the ventilated pigskin leather remains nearly as high

 a quality as earlier models.The original drawstring is in very fine condition. The ink stamp in the dome indicates that the helmet was inspected and accepted for army and navy use.  The dome stamp appeared in one of every one hundred helmets in a production run.

The liner is abundantly marked with maker's mark and size.

Manufacturer's mark and date of manufacture are stamped into the liner band.

The liner band indicates the size of the shell as well as that of the liner.

 

 

 

 

The production number is stamped on the underside of the rear skirt.

 

 

Although illegible, the end of the chinstrap has a manufacturer's mark.

Coarse fabric buffers the leather from the steel liner band and a series of delicate split-pins affix the leather to the metal liner band.

The fingers of the liner are reinforced with leather grommets.  Note the repair, I'm inclined that this was done in the factory.

Steel buckle on the chinstrap.

The chinstrap is fastened to the bail with a double-headed rivet...

 and secured to a rectangular bail.

This late entry in the war came home with some GI, was acquired many years ago by a small, privately-owned, regional museum, and then through the generosity of the proprietor of that museum, came to my collection.  Everybody should have such friends.

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

Mannie