General Information: The vz.32 was the main helmet used by Czechoslovakian armed forces up to the period just before the beginning of the Second World War. After the German occupation of the Czech portion of Czechoslovakia in March of 1939 and the dissolution of its army, the weapons and materiel of the Czechoslovakian army, includingContinue reading “Czechoslovakian vz.32”
Tag Archives: World War II
Japanese IJN Type 90*
General Information: The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) had procurement lines that were different from those used by the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). Both armed service branches used the Type 90 steel helmets, but there are differences in how their respective helmets were configured. The most prominent difference is that the IJN helmets had metal badgesContinue reading “Japanese IJN Type 90*”
British MKI Paratrooper*
General Information: The British officially designated this helmet as the “Helmet Steel Airborne Troops Mark I” or “HSAT MKI” for short. Collectors generally refer to this as the “MKI Paratrooper” helmet. It was mainly produced in 1943 and most surviving examples bear that date on the liner. The helmet was issued from October 1942[1], soContinue reading “British MKI Paratrooper*”
Australian MKII
General Information: The Australian Mark II was a domestically produced version of the British Mark II. The two helmets were very similar, but unlike its British cousin, the Australian MKII had a raw edge. The reason for this is that the company that produced the helmets, Commonwealth Steel Company, lacked the machinery necessary to bendContinue reading “Australian MKII”
Italian M42 Paratrooper
General Information: The Italian Model 1942 helmet replaced the limited-production Model 1941 and was the main helmet used by Italian paratroopers during the Second World War. Displayed Example: I acquired this helmet in a trade with a Canadian collector friend. He in turn, found this in a flea market in Ottawa. It is named toContinue reading “Italian M42 Paratrooper”
Bulgarian M36
General Information: The Bulgarian Model 1936 was the helmet used by Bulgarian armed forces during the Second World War. Initially it was manufactured in two factories in Czechoslovakia and also in the Eisenhuttenwerk Thale facility in Thale, Germany. Subsequently, the M36 helmets were made in a factory in the Bulgarian town of Kazanlak.[1] There wereContinue reading “Bulgarian M36”
Hungarian M38
General Information: Two factories manufactured the Hungarian Model 1938 helmet: MÁVAG (Magyar Királyi Vas, Acél és Gépgyárak) in Budapest and Magyar Waggon és Gépgyár in Győr.[1] The latter is sometimes referred to as simply “Győr.” There has been confusion in collector circles as to the number and names of factories that produced the M38. ThisContinue reading “Hungarian M38”
US M-1C
General Information: The M-1C, officially designated “Helmet, Steel, M-1C Parachutists,” was an improved version of the earlier M-2 paratrooper helmet. It addressed the main deficiency of the M-2, which was the tendency for the “D” shaped chinstrap loops to break. The M-1C had had the same flexible chinstrap attachment device as used on the midContinue reading “US M-1C”
Model 1917A1
General Information: The Model 1917A1 was a modified version of the World War One Model 1917. It was the helmet worn by all branches of the US Armed Services in the opening months of the Second World War before the M-1 became widely available. The US Army issued a Field Service Modification Order in JanuaryContinue reading “Model 1917A1”
Finnish M40
General Information: The Finns used a surprising array of helmet types and Finnish helmets of the Second World War are almost a subcategory of collecting unto themselves. One of the helmets that they used was the Swedish Model 1937. The Swedes sent 20,000 of these to their Nordic neighbor. In 1940 the Finns purchased aContinue reading “Finnish M40”
Steel Helmets of the World Wars 