German M16 Reissue*

German M16 Reissue

General Information: During the Second World War the Germans reissued helmets from the First World War. These were German made M16/17/18 type helmets as well as Austro-Hungarian, postwar manufactured Austrian helmets, and postwar manufactured Czechoslovakian German model helmets. The helmets were sent to factories where they were refurbished according to the 1940 specifications for helmets. This involved stripping the old paint, repainting with rough textured feldqrau paint and equipping them with M31 type liners and chinstraps. These helmets either had one decal, typically Wehrmacht, or had no decals.

The mid-war reissued helmets are sometimes identified by collectors as “transitional” helmets. This is incorrect. The transitional helmets were World War One helmets that were used by the German armed forces during the Third Reich era before Model 1935 helmets became available (see Transitional). These helmets were generally hand painted with smooth texture paint and had two decals. Most of these were phased out by the start of World War Two.

Displayed Example: I purchased this helmet from Ken Niewiarowicz of German Helmets Inc. This helmet had a usual journey. It was manufactured during World War One by the Eisenhüttenwerk factory in town of Thale in Central Germany. It is a size 64, which is the most common. The helmet was among the consignments of helmets that the Germans provided to their Austro-Hungarian allies during the war. The Austro-Hungarians installed their own style of chinstrap hardware using the holes that were originally drilled for German M91 type chinstrap assemblies. After the Anschluss with Austria and after the German takeover of Czechoslovakia, old stocks of First World War helmets that had been part of the Austro-Hungarian arsenals, including this helmet, became available to German armed forces. Some time between 1940 and the end of 1943 when decals were no longer applied to Wehrmacht helmets, this helmet was refurbished. The original liner and chinstrap were replaced, but the Austro-Hungarian chinstrap hardware was not removed. The helmet was then issued to a Wehrmacht soldier named “Herman” and he etched his name in the liner.

The helmet is entirely original as far as I can detect and it is complete, down to the original drawstring, which is often missing on these helmets. The liner is a size 62. This, therefore, is a size 64 M16/17 helmet shell equipped with a liner for a size 62 M40/42 helmet. This kind of mismatch in transitional and reissued WWI helmet is not unusual. There is a 1cm round dent on the top of the helmet. This may have been caused by a bullet or shrapnel strike.

Collector Notes: As with all Third Reich era relics, the reissued WWI helmets have been faked. The older fakes tend to be obvious, but some of the newer ones can be quite good. Caveat emptor.

* deaquisitioned

* Citation sought