Spearhead Helmet Review

Discussions on all aspects of WW1, WW2 and Inter-War Era reenactment.
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El Shane
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Location: Lubbock, TX

Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#16

Post by El Shane » 22 Apr 2009, 19:41

dog green 1 wrote:What sizes are available now liner wise. When these first came out I thought they were only available in one size. Do they come with a size 60 liner as I'd love one of hese for a late war impression.
I just emailed Spearhead yesterday about a size 68 shell m42, and he said he only has 68 shells in the M35 and M40 models. I asked if he planned on getting them soon, but he didn't say anything about it. He does have a size 59 liner though.

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Nighted
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#17

Post by Nighted » 01 Aug 2010, 02:47

I have the replica M38 Fallschirmjäger Helmet.

Shall I post some pics somewhere? Currently I'm uploading a video on YouTube.

Had to sign up to the forum to post this, so hi, this is my first post. ;)



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JagerRoll
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#18

Post by JagerRoll » 03 Aug 2010, 14:04

Just some constructive critisism , please do not take this the wrong way.

1st- I do not belive that the plain green helemt cover ever came in drawstring. I believe it only came with clips (The only drawstring helmet covers were splinter B)...If anyone out there can provide other information showing different please post it

2cnd- The p-dot helmet cover never existed. There is some evidence that there was an actual p-dot smock (In reference to research from the Wehrmacht awards board). But as far as the helmet cover, there are no photos , documentation or pieces from the war showing that they ever existed,

3rd - The helmet is too small for your head. I would recommend,keeping the liner and getting a deepka shell that is closer to an actual 71 cm shell. I had purchased one of spearheads new run FJ helmets (The older run ones were much larger). and they were much smaller than a ATF shell that is stamped 71 cm. I compaired the ATF 71 shell to a real 68 cm shell and took photos to show that it is actually a 68 cm shell (good shell but just too small). So if the ATF shell is bigger that the new BL shell, I honestly would say the new BL shell is actually closer to a 66cm shell.

Here are some compairison photos of a 71 ATF shell (right) next to a real 68 cm shell (left)
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This link is a better photo (for some reason the forum cut off part of the photo)
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o176 ... 0_0324.jpg
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This link is a better photo (for some reason the forum cut off part of the photo)
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o176 ... 0_0325.jpg
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This link is a better photo (for some reason the forum cut off part of the photo)
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o176 ... 0_0326.jpg

The deepka shell is larger and would probably fit your head much better. (I would keep the Barry Lyndon liner and put it in the deepka shell becasue the deepka liners are terrible)
Here is a ATF 71 shell (left next to a sturm 71 shell) right. I am sure you can see the difference
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This link is a better photo
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o176 ... 0_2496.jpg

Again, I am baseing my research from the ATF/Real shell compairison. If the Barry Lyndon shell is smaller than a ATF shell, I feel it is actually closer to a 66.......Again just my opinion.

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Nighted
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#19

Post by Nighted » 04 Aug 2010, 01:00

Hmmm...I was using this image as reference and a few soldiers I've seen in WW2 era footage show the helmet sitting slightly over the top of the ear. Looking at that as a reference, they sit identically to mine.

Image

Of course there are others where the helmet sits lower on the head. I do realize there are different size shells and of course people have differently shaped skulls as well. I do believe that you are correct in pointing out that the shell size is likely incorrectly stamped.

I'll probably grab another FJ with the slotted screws. I might also try one from Airsoft-Club, as the flange is a bit wider around the brim. I've seen the same such variances in the originals. I'd be interested to see images of an Air-Soft helmet if anyone has one.

There was a reversible oak camo cover with the drawstring for the FJ's also, so it's possible there was a green as well, although I have not seen a photo of one yet. The Dot44 may be have been fashioned through field modifications, although I'm sure it was never actually produced. Sure looks cool though! :)

Farbschirmjäger
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#20

Post by Farbschirmjäger » 06 Aug 2010, 08:19

Nighted , Jagerroll is talking sence here, he is experienced in his research and its best to listen to someone who has been there and gotten the t-shirt .

The Chinese shells are too shallow - FACT , they are sized wrongly and are not accurate 68/71 shells - FACT.

Anyone who has done an ounce of research on the kit before they spend there £££ , will realise this. I am not interested in discussing if it sits correctly on your head or not as there are many factors to take in, I.E head size, liner adjustment, length between the top of your ear to the tip of your head etc etc etc . But the shell,is wrong and incorrect in so many ways.


Also, when you are re-enacting such a unit as Fallschirmjäger , Possible shouldn’t be in the same sentence as FJ, as speculation can lead to disaster. The green helmet cover with draw string is as pointless as a tan and water M38 smock, it doesn’t make sense and I haven’t certainly seen any evidence suggesting that there was ever a draw string green helmet cover.

There is allot of information and discussions about the Dott 44 FJ kit on WAF forum, its disgusting that companys want to reproduce this stuff willy nilly without any thought in what they are doing to the FJ community. Dott 44 covers, knee pads, oak leaf smocks, are pure fantasy for re-enactment. Dot smocks were made but never made it to the front according to one of the commanders of SS FJ 600.

Can you show me your material for the oak leaf reversible cover, ?

and please, don’t use cartoons for reference, spend money on books to begin with and post pone what you are doing for 6 months while you berry your head in such books. Its what i did before i bought anything and i am grateful to other FJ reenactors for being so blunt with me, i have saved a fortune in buying the wrong kit.

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Nighted
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#21

Post by Nighted » 07 Aug 2010, 06:20

Farbschirmjäger wrote:Can you show me your material for the oak leaf reversible cover, ?

and please, don’t use cartoons for reference, spend money on books to begin with and post pone what you are doing for 6 months while you berry your head in such books.
Oooook....you guys take this a bit too seriously for me. While I respect your opinion, I certainly don't seek it. I was just looking for a decent reproduction. I spent a few days looking around trying to get comparisons. I looked at several websites, many original photos, WW2 film footage, and read through 4 different books. I certainly will NOT take the word of one or two people as fact, no matter what experience is claimed.

I don't plan on reenacting anything. There is enough war in this world that I feel reenacting another one to be quite futile until we put an end to all wars, at least those involving our European brothers and sisters.

This is just a novelty for me and frankly, anything beyond that diminishes my enjoyment of this replica at the moment. When searching for info about Spearhead helmets, I found this thread, so I took the time to post here as a courtesy to others looking for the same kind of info. Whether the product is crap or not, I provide enough information, I hope, for those stumbling upon this post to make their own decision. I will not make up someone's mind for them nor shall I suggest that they should think otherwise. No repro is perfect, nor was any REAL helmet perfect or identical to other REAL helmets.

The oak camo cover is shown in "German Helmets 1933-1945 Volume II" on page 138.

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BTW, if you want to get REALLY blunt, using your rationale as a guide, I'd kick out every overweight member I see in all these reenactment groups. There would have certainly been no overweight soldiers like this in the German military. If you can show me proof that there were such corpulent members of the Fallshirmjäger, I'd love to see your references as well. However, if you can not provide such evidence, I will not assume that they did not exist either.

Now for some photos of Germans wearing, what according to you, must be obviously Chinese made because the shells are too shallow. Fact is, they were all over the place and manufactured in different locations; some higher, some more shallow, some longer flare, others shorter and tighter. You can see the same variances occurring in the M35 designs and revisions. Considering the differences in manufacturing tolerances at the time, it would be extremely inaccurate to do a reenactment where every helmet is identical.

Nighted...out.

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Nighted
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#22

Post by Nighted » 25 Aug 2010, 14:58

I ordered the black M35 along with two covers, a drawstring style splinter A and a reversible oak (spring/fall) that fastens with the 3 clips.
I'll do a video of that as well. So until next weekend, I'll post some pics of the Spearhead FJ (yes, even the dot44 cover from Chinesemoonday15! lol). If anyone has any questions about the Spearhead M35, ask now and I'll attempt to cover them in the video if necessary.

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Y Ddraig Goch
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#23

Post by Y Ddraig Goch » 19 Sep 2010, 17:41

<<post edited for violation of forum rules>> by moderator

Gents, ladies, this kind of post is unacceptable on the forum.

~D
/ Mike

"That which does not kill us makes us stronger"
Friedrich Nietzsche

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m1steelpot
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#24

Post by m1steelpot » 19 Sep 2010, 23:16

Y Ddraig Goch wrote:You're an idiot
Super cool post bro.
Take it easy~, ゆっくりしていってね!!!

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Drew Maynard
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#25

Post by Drew Maynard » 20 Sep 2010, 01:24

Thought you might appreciate a 'Spearhead m42'. Work in progress. From flat 'grey' and non-textured, as bought, to this. Decal is one of the french metallic decals. Aged, scratched, some damage to the decal. Painted with 1944militaria.com paint, 'feldgraudunkel', some dirt, mud, oil, tiny bit of sawdust, and passes of textured paint....and.. Almost done...a little more work on the decal edging. it is a size 58/66 but fits like a 57.
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Member of Kampfgruppe Haase, reenacting WW2 History for over 30 years: http://www.soldaten.ca

dog green 1
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#26

Post by dog green 1 » 20 Sep 2010, 06:20

My latest. Lyndon FJ lid with textured sand overspray, single decal and slight weathering.

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aeros66
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Location: reno, NV usa

Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#27

Post by aeros66 » 21 Sep 2010, 07:58

Very nice, dog green.
Always a pleasure to see your work. I forget how rad these helmets look when painted/ aged. I need one!

regards,

kevin

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Reggu
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Location: Sweden

Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#28

Post by Reggu » 22 Sep 2010, 18:38

I have seen quite a few new repro M42 helmets in our unit lately, and i can say that they look really good at first sight!

1. problem is with the colour that it seems to be painted in 3 layers, black, white and finally green, and when u drop it in the ground it looses colour in an awful way, nothing like the real deal :(

2. problem is that the metal is very sensetiv, one of the guys in my unit got a big buckle in his helmet, it takes some real effort to doo this with an original!

But the first problem can maybee be solved in just stripping it of paint at the start and then painting just one layer of good paint!

A very good solution if you have a problem with finding a 66 shell or if ure wallet is a little bit smaller!

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Schnert
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#29

Post by Schnert » 22 Sep 2010, 19:07

Here's a link to a blacksmith website that contains some helpful hints for heat treating metal. If you have access to a forge and want to harden your replica Stahlhelm before refinishing, here's how to do it:

http://tidewaterblacksmiths.net/2.html

P.S. This information was once very valuable to the venerable FJ jump helmet fakers of old who would use Eastern European reproduction FJ shells as the basis of their creation. Those shells were perfect in every way (geometry, weight, sizing etc.) save for the fact that they would flex. So, enterprising old guys (a.k.a. the big "old time" collectors who wouldn't even entertain the thought of cheating you out of your hard earned cash) would have those shells heat treated before refinishing them and selling them at auction as originals.

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Reggu
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Re: Spearhead Helmet Review

#30

Post by Reggu » 12 Oct 2010, 10:30

Are the Spearhead "Barry lyndon" FJ helmets the smallest ones on the market at this point? Like size 68 or 66? (If you disregard the über expensive fj werke)

I have a 57 size head and the ET71 shells look like a real baloon on me...

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