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This helmet has sat on my coffee table for the last year and I'm not exactly sure what it is. I think it's some kind of M1, but I really don't have any idea. I'm not sure where it came from; I got it from my mum after we found it in the basement during a move. Even if it's just a worthless replica, it certainly makes for a great conversation piece!
Thanks in advance for any help! (:
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It's real but it's a later M1. Maybe 60's vintage. We used those in the Canadian army for years so that's not too rare around where you are. Currie Barracks and the PPCLI were there for years and the Queens Own Rifles of Canada before then. Sarcee had the LDSH Armoured regiment. This was standard equipment. You also had Crown assets in Calgary and they sold thousands of those over the years.
Oooh, it's Calgarian then? (: That's neat, thanks!
Possibly. It's the kind we wore.
Yes, as Jim (BAR) said, it's an M1 TYPE I Ground Troop vintage 1964-1969.
To complete it, you would need a Mitchell, or commonly called by collectors, 'Leaf Pattern' cover and a nape strap inside the back. (Many troops removed the napes, so not having it wouldn't be a big deal)
The helmet body (shell) looks to have been repainted by the Army, but that's common too. With a cover on as by far the most had, it would cover the paint anyway. They painted them when they were chipped and scratched for preservation so they didn't rust.
ALL 'Steel Pot' type helmets were designated 'M1' from the time they were first introduced in 1942 through when they were last produced in 1985. The Canadian Army used them for years, and they used them for a while after the United States stopped producing them and began to issue the PASGT Kevlar helmet that first came out in 1985.
Don't think of the M1 as only being sent to Canada because they couldn't get their own helmet -
(Canada actually produced most M1 helmet bodies in the 1070's and sold them back to the US!) :lol:
Below left is a standard ground troop helmet in my collection. The next two are standard M1-C's
(The helmet on the far right is Jim's. Best provenance of anything I have and it's never going anywhere!)
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo.../2helmet-1.jpg
As far as modern helmets, here are three that proceeded the Iconic American M1.
The first two are called PASGT and the helmet on the right is the latest called the ACH. For the new 'Advanced Combat Helmet' they shorted the front brim and raised the sides a bit for better visibility, introduced a better suspension inside, and introduced a better 'four point' harness. The inside is completely lined with a soft foam rubber much like a motorcycle helmet and it's by far the most comfortable helmet ever produced.
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo.../1Helmet-1.jpg