Original German WWII M42 Textured Sand Camouflage Helmet with 58cm Liner & Chinstrap – stamped ckl66 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice all original example of a late war German Model 42 Steel helmet, with a fantastic Textured “Sand Camouflage” paint job. This utilizes German dunkelgelb (dark yellow) tan paint, and uses sand or other materials to give it a great textured look. Used extensively by the Deutsches Afrikakorps in North Africa, the color was also perfect for the Mediterranean climate in Italy, and was used extensively there as well.

This stamped sheet steel construction helmet retains over more than 90% of its original textured paint, with only light wear and oxidation from service. The tan paint looks to have been applied over the entire shell and on the underside while the liner was still installed, typical of a field repaint. The texture in the paint looks to be from the original blue gray panzergrau (armor gray) paint, which can still be seen on the interior under the liner. There are areas on the top where the textured paint chipped away before the repaint. Definitely some interesting history to this great example of a Sand Camouflage German helmet.

The rear interior of the apron has a stamped manufacturer’s code and size: ckl66, which is hard to read due to the repaint. This indicates it was manufactured by Eisenhuttenwerk AG, Thale Harz. Towards the end of the war, the ET marking was discontinued in favor of three letter code ckl, and moved the marking under the rear skirt. It is also marked with lot number 4160 on the underside of the rear skirt. Size 66 is a nice large size that can accommodate liners from 58cm to 59cm or US 7 1/4 to 7 3/8. Size 66 shells are much harder to find and are therefore more valuable to a collector.

All three original liner retaining pins are intact and retain the tan paint well, with the original texture still present as well. The interior of the helmet still has an original good M31 leather liner with all eight fingers intact and supple, and a lovely lightly worn look. The top tie string has torn, and is still present under the liner. The side of the galvanized steel liner band is marked 64 n.A. / 56, indicating that this is a size 56 liner for a size 64 shell. The right side has a date of 1943 over a German RBNr. marking.

The attached chinstrap is in good condition, with part of the end broken off. The leather is somewhat dried out and delicate, with some oxidation on the fittings, so it was exposed to moisture at some point.

Overall a very nice mid-war M42 Sand Camouflage helmet, completely correct! M42 helmets of this quality are always the hardest to find on the market. This is an item that will only continue to appreciate in value over time.

The first “modern” steel helmets were introduced by the French army in early 1915 and were shortly followed by the British army later that year. With plans on the drawing board, experimental helmets in the field, (“Gaede” helmet), and some captured French and British helmets the German army began tests for their own steel helmet at the Kummersdorf Proving Grounds in November, and in the field in December 1915. An acceptable pattern was developed and approved and production began at Eisen-und Hüttenwerke, AG Thale/Harz, (Iron and Foundry Works), in the spring of 1916.

These first modern M16 helmets evolved into the M18 helmets by the end of WWI. The M16 and M18 helmets remained in usage through-out the Weimar Reichswehr, (National Defence Force, Circa 1919-1933), era and on into the early years of the Third Reich until the development of the smaller, lighter M35 style helmet in June 1935.

In 1934 tests began on an improved Stahlhelm, whose design was a development of World War I models. The Eisenhüttenwerke company of Thale carried out prototype design and testing, with Dr. Friedrich Schwerd once again taking a hand.

The new helmet was pressed from sheets of molybdenum steel in several stages. The size of the flared visor and skirt was reduced, and the large projecting lugs for the obsolete armor shield were eliminated. The ventilator holes were retained, but were set in smaller hollow rivets mounted to the helmet’s shell. The edges of the shell were rolled over, creating a smooth edge along the helmet. Finally, a completely new leather suspension, or liner, was incorporated that greatly improved the helmet’s safety, adjustability, and comfort for each wearer. These improvements made the new M1935 helmet lighter, more compact, and more comfortable to wear than the previous designs.

The Army’s Supreme Command officially accepted the new helmet on June 25, 1935 and it was intended to replace all other helmets in service.

The M1935 design was slightly modified in 1940 to simplify its construction, the manufacturing process now incorporating more automated stamping methods. The principal change was to stamp the ventilator hole mounts directly onto the shell, rather than utilizing separate fittings. In other respects, the M1940 helmet was identical to the M1935. The Germans still referred to the M1940 as the M1935, while the M1940 designation were given by collectors.

The last wartime upgrade to the standard helmet took place on 6 July 1942 at the request of the Army High Command. The rolled edge found on M1935 and M1940 helmets was discontinued as a measure of economy. On 1 August 1942 the first M1942 helmets were placed into production, and this was the model produced until late in the war, when most factories were captured or stood idle due to material shortages.