SMGM-4132 Austrian M-16 Double decal Transitional Helmet

An interesting example here. At first i thought this was a modern refurbished helmet. A closer look revealed a proper ET Heer eagle decal. So i but it up on the WAF for review and people confirmed the good eagle. So now we have a good eagle and a now period painted tri color shield on the other side. Nice. So let’s talk about the paint, which is what threw me off. It’s brighter on the outside then it is on the inside and there are hints of a teal color, especially around the lugs and edges. Ive used a magnifying glass on this for a long time and came up with this: The teal color was the last or “final” color that was put on this helmet. Someone, decided that the teal had to go and removed it mechanically with a fine grit sand paper, giving the shell it’s smooth appearance and feal and also a lighter color due to the lack of patina compared to the inside. To complicate matters, it looks like the original transition repaint was more of an apple green. At some point in it’s use by the Heer, it was repainted to field grey. When this was done, i think is when the tri color was hand painted. And i think the whole helmet was brush painted during that coat as well because we can see brush marks extend through the tri color into the paint. It’ also looks like the outline of the original tri color is under that middle coat of paint. The liner is fantastic, being in great shape for it’s age and type. the pads are made of some type of civilian fabric which was common to find on these. The most amazing part is the solider name and information are sewn into the pads although tough to read. The whole liner system was 100% removed during the attempt to ride the shell of the teal green color that was most likely added post war by whoever brought it back.

So, a lot of work went into this helmet and i personally don’t think it’s anything malicious. It just doesn’t add up to a modern refurbished helmet. It’s just a helmet that has a ton of history and a bit of bad luck with the teal paint job. A rare helmet with a bit of a mystery.