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British & Commonwealth WW1 & WW2 Brodie Helmet Maker Stamps


leon21

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Here's another WW1 British made helmet again by Hadfields Ltd of Sheffield both Manufacturer and

Steel Supplier. This helmet was issued to the American 36th Infantry Division, has no chinstrap and

the liner is in very poor condition.

Photos from other sources.

HS 508 (1).jpg

HS 508 (2).jpg

HS 508 (3).jpg

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Here's a WW2  Brodie helmet used by the Police, shell stamped G24 BMB 1939 liner also made

by Briggs Motor Bodies Ltd of Birmingham and dated 1939. I have one of these helmets but

mine is stamped G31 BMB 1939.

Photos from other sources.

BMB 1939 (1).jpg

BMB 1939 (2).jpg

BMB 1939 (3).jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

Welcome to the forum Tommy1418, it looks like Hadfield  changed to the HS stamp mark round about

1916 when the new improvements were added.

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Here's a MKII South African helmet shell made by TSP=Transvaal Steel Pressing Syndicate Ltd

of Johnnesburg, I found on a Saturday Market last weekend, cost me all of £8.

I'm in two minds, do I strip it back to its original colour which you can still see inside, or just leave

it black as a home front civil defence helmet and add a new reproduction liner?

I doubt I could find a used original Jager Rand liner for it now?

Helmet 1.jpg

Helmet 2.jpg

Helmet 3.jpg

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Up to you Leon, I would personally restore to its original look, but that is my opinion. 

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I might try some paint stripper on a small area of the inside rim to see how easy the black

paint will come off first.

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Good thinking, dependent on the paint used, it could be easy or hard, I once cleaned one off that I thought would be difficult, but it was a water based paint and came off very easily. Good luck!

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Update

Well I stripped the black off the inside first, it came off quite easy so I then did the outside again

it came off easy. The inside retains most of its original sand paint but the outside of the shell

has very little sand paint left, I think this is why it was painted black to make it more presentable.

What I have noticed is there are traces of three different paint colours ie- Green, Brown, and sand.

After some research on the history of these helmets they were first painted in the standard UDF

Green in about 1938, and later in a darker UDF Green and later in a Desert Sand.

Helmets destined for troops in the Italian Campaign were painted in a Brown colour, so this helmet

has seen some service in its time.

So it looks like I will have to do a full restoration paint job on the outside shell, but I will leave the

inside with its original look.

 

 

100_6132.jpg

100_6134.jpg

100_6136.jpg

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Great job cleaning it up! What color are you going to paint the exterior?

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I will try and find a sand colour as close as I can to the original paint.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hello,

I recently found this helmet in a charity shop and i'm trying to find out some more about it. It has the stamps G44 and 1/1939 on the helmet and 6 3/4, TTC and 1/1939 marks on the liner, which I have tried to identify and this led me to this forum.

Can anyone help me narrow down what the marks mean and a little more about the helmet?

Many thanks in advance

_1320467.JPG

_1320471.JPG

_1320472.JPG

_1320476.JPG

_1320508.JPG

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Welcome to the forum Boatenki, that's a nice looking helmet you have, the stamp mark G44

is a makers Batch lot code. Possibly made by Briggs Motor Bodies Ltd, the liner is made by the

Teddy Toy Co Ltd size 6 3/4, dated 1/1939.

Hope this helps.

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Thanks Leon, that's great.

Do you think this was an army issue helmet or for another purpose, and is it a Mk 1 or Mk 2?

Also, do you think it is the original liner, even though it is made by another company?

Many thanks

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I would say the helmet is a MKI* the helmet looks like it was used by a home front civil defence 

member. the liner is period and dated the same as the helmet so it's not uncommon  to find a

different makers liner in their helmets, both these manufacturers were based in Dagenham.

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Well I finished painting the helmet, first with a primer then with a very light sand colour, it looked 

to light when dried so I rubbed damp sand over the outside to darken it  and bring out the texture

of the original paint.

I managed to find an original used liner from the 1940s made by Fisher Foil Ltd size 6 1/2 and in

good condition.

100_6149.jpg

100_6151.jpg

100_6150.jpg

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Nice work Leon, looks good. Did this helmet have any unit markings on the exterior?

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  • 4 weeks later...

20230312_184153.thumb.jpg.e3a5b7add9a0af220fd92f42f7dc3e41.jpg20230312_161616.thumb.jpg.689b5491fb018d79c7c1fb54acebffa8.jpg20230312_161402.thumb.jpg.a815454c308984a93bed10e398bdfd39.jpg20230312_161237.thumb.jpg.e2516179f911abaeb0c810659721668d.jpg20230312_161249.thumb.jpg.8779b7a16161cc6541f22f25069a7510.jpg20230312_161301.thumb.jpg.2150a1da56816079ad3ad30c72b8fd3b.jpg20230312_161249.thumb.jpg.8779b7a16161cc6541f22f25069a7510.jpg20230312_161237.thumb.jpg.e2516179f911abaeb0c810659721668d.jpgLooking for some help regarding a helmet that my 11yr son decided to bid and win at an auction we attended, would the 2 red bands suggest National Fire Service ? Ive managed to find the date and manufacture stamp 1939 EC&Co 

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Welcome to the forum Paulw1834, yes the helmet was used by a member of the NFS, 2 narrow red bands =

a Section Officer/Leader.

A Section comprised of 5 fire pumps with one Section Officer/Leader, their is a post in the Section British

Medals and Badges ( and other Items ) including helmets listed as AFS/NFS Badges you might take a look

at for more information.

The maker mark EC&Co = E.Camelinat & Co Ltd Birmingham who made them from 1939-1944.

Can I ask what you intend to do with the helmet? the original colour is still showing on

the helmet rim which was a dark green colour.

Hope this helps.

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Thks for the reply  We intend leaving it as is, my son has a small collection of service helmets/cap this now being part of that growing collection, ive given it a spray of wd40 to hopefully reduce the rusting condition, would you have any idea as to the numbers on the strap ? There is what seems to be a faded name the left but the camera cant view it, any idea on value, regards Paul 

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The numbers on the chin strap is a Webbing Pattern Equipment Stores Reference Number.

If the helmet has loose rust try cleaning it with fine wire wool and warm water it works a treat

removing rust. Can I ask what your son paid for it?

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I did remove the light rust to the internal using fine wire wool and acid which lifted the rust leaving the paint, £21.3020230312_184153.thumb.jpg.e3a5b7add9a0af220fd92f42f7dc3e41.jpg20230312_161616.thumb.jpg.689b5491fb018d79c7c1fb54acebffa8.jpg20230312_161402.thumb.jpg.a815454c308984a93bed10e398bdfd39.jpg20230312_161237.thumb.jpg.e2516179f911abaeb0c810659721668d.jpg20230312_161249.thumb.jpg.8779b7a16161cc6541f22f25069a7510.jpg20230312_161301.thumb.jpg.2150a1da56816079ad3ad30c72b8fd3b.jpg20230312_161249.thumb.jpg.8779b7a16161cc6541f22f25069a7510.jpg20230312_161237.thumb.jpg.e2516179f911abaeb0c810659721668d.jpgLooking for some help regarding a helmet that my 11yr son decided to bid and win at an auction we attended, would the 2 red bands suggest National Fire Service ? Ive managed to find the date and manufacture stamp 1939 EC&Co 

Edited by paulw1834
Incorrectly detailed
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That was a fair price for what the helmet is, these N.F.S helmets complete in reasonable 

condition command a high price today, you can expect to pay £200 +  for them.

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