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*”

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*”

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*”

Japanese IJN/SNLF*

General Information: The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and the Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF) used the same Type 90 helmets as the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), but with different frontal emblems. These were either metal badges with a ship’s anchor or yellow stenciled anchors. Because the IJA and IJN/SNLF helmets came from different procurements, thereContinue reading “Japanese IJN/SNLF*”

Yugoslavian M39*

General Information: The Yugoslavian Model 1939 was a locally made copy of the Czechoslovakian vz.32. Very little documentation exists on this very rare helmet type and much of what we know about the M39 has been surmised by collectors. The helmets were produced, or at least assembled, in Yugoslavia, presumably under license from the Czechoslovakians.Continue reading “Yugoslavian M39*”

Norwegian M31*

General Information: The Model 1931 was the helmet worn by Norwegian troops at the time of the Nazi invasion. It was initially manufactured in Sweden, but later was produced in Norway by the Raufoss A.F. company.[1] The M31 closely resembles the Swedish M26 except that it has a small crest on the top of theContinue reading “Norwegian M31*”

Slovakian vz.32*

General Information: The Nazi puppet state of Slovakia was the first ally of Germany in the Second World War. It participated in the invasion of Poland and absorbed Polish territories into Slovakia’s newly formed state. The Slovakian army was equipped with vz.32 helmets from the former Czechoslovakian republic. The Slovakian helmets were the same asContinue reading “Slovakian vz.32*”

Romanian M39*

General Information: In September 1938 the Romanians signed a contract with the Dutch company Verblifa (Vereenigde Blikfabrieken[1]) to produce helmets for their armed forces.[2] The helmet was an exact copy of the Dutch Model 1934 but for the badge which was egg shaped rather than oval shaped like the badge used in the Netherlands. TheContinue reading “Romanian M39*”