Japanese Civil Helmet w/ Battle Damage

[Josh Beckett]

Many last ditches saw combat. If you look at the new type 99 book there are many last ditch rifles that are shown to have been picked up on the battlefield. I dont consider these thrown together rifles but more like simplified rifles, in that they operate the same as any other type 99 and shoot the same, but have alot of unnescessaries taken off, like the monopod and the metal buttplate.

I had a helmet just like this one but it had a star on it, and it was a vet capture in the phillipines.

[Milton]

Thanks for dropping in Josh. Yes, I'm sure that many of these were doubtless pressed into service in the late campaigns of the war, as well as probably were the rifles in some instances. After such a protracted war, between the Japanese involvement in China throughout war w/ the US, I'd suspect that by early '45 their ability to always supply their troops w/ the highest quality of weaponry was becoming a bit stretched. It's just unfortunate that the vet from whom this helmet was acquired couldn't remember the exact cirucumstances of how he came across it...too many years in between no doubt. Still, I really like it and am glad to have been able to acquire it. Thx!

[Josh Beckett]

Thanks for dropping in Josh. Yes, I'm sure that many of these were doubtless pressed into service in the late campaigns of the war, as well as probably were the rifles in some instances. After such a protracted war, between the Japanese involvement in China throughout war w/ the US, I'd suspect that by early '45 their ability to always supply their troops w/ the highest quality of weaponry was becoming a bit stretched. It's just unfortunate that the vet from whom this helmet was acquired couldn't remember the exact cirucumstances of how he came across it...too many years in between no doubt. Still, I really like it and am glad to have been able to acquire it. Thx!

I have seen a 11th series rifle captured on okinawa and a 25th series captured on Peleliu. So the substitute rifles were issued out and saw combat. The recievers are just as strong as the early ones and are still nearly impossible to blow up unless someone did something to it. I dont buy into the dangerous last ditch guns theory because I have fired so many with no problem.

As to the helmet, the guy I got it off of took it from a japanese prisoner in the phillipines, he had a few but only kept the civil defense style helmet because he hadnt seen any and thought it might have been something special.

[Milton]

Hi again Josh. That story brings to mind one that was shared w/ me by a buddy of mine, now 90 years old who served w/ the US 36th F.A. in N. Africa, Sicily, Italy and Germany. As they were going up through Italy, at one point they came across a large pile of cast-off German equipment and gear. Out of a small pile of gear, which included quite a few gas masks & belt / bayonet rigs, he "souvenired" a re-issued 98/05 "Butcher" bayonet & leather frog (Bayonet was nicely plum-blued prior to re-issue as was often the case). He took it, as he later told me, "because it was different from all the rest". He sold it to me a few years ago w/ some other stuff, and is a personal favorite of mine. Cheers, Milto.

[Josh Beckett]

Sounds interesting. I have quite a few other things that are vet aquired that are anomalys. Like a Kuwaiti/imported beret that was captured in desert storm being used by the Iraqis.

[Jean-Loup]

It looks like this helmet was shot with a pistol type bullet, you can see the left over lead from the bullet around the hole.
I would vote for this helmet being one that was shot just to make it look more interesting.

[Striking 9th]

The following link http://70.87.163.50/forums/showthrea...ighlight=ditch was posted by Mike some time ago. It shows one in use but in what capacity we will never know. The man pictured is not wearing a standard infantryman uniform. It does show that some were in use on islands where the fighting was taking place. Probably Okinawa imo where civic personnel would have been present and the fighting overran them.
Scott

[cbuehler]

As Scott mentioned, Okinawa was Japan and there were a large number of paramilitary and civilian personel attached to the Armed Forces there.
This was also the case in the Philippines to lesser extent, as the Japanese Military Administration also had substantial numbers of civilians that retreated in to the mountains and probably pressed into service in some cases alongside the Army.
It is extremely unlikely that any of the various "civilian" helmets were ever used by the regular military forces.

CB

[Josh Beckett]

Did anybody watch WWII in HD on the history channel? I believe I saw a POW wearing one of these kinds of helmets.

[Jareth]

I completely agree with Conrad.

[Alan Smith]

Following up on Jean-Loup's comments, I have spoken to several U.S. vets of the PTO who told stories about, post-battle, inflicting damage to abandoned Japanese equipment in order to make the equipment look "battle damaged". Most common was simply shooting at the items with a pistol or rifle, but one guy did tell me of piling up Japanese equipment and then tossing a hand grenade into the pile to inflict schrapnel damage. Another guy told of standing Japanese MG magazines (Type 96 and 99 LMG mags) up in the ground like dominoes and then shooting them to see how many a bullet would pass through. I've also spoken with a guy who would stand Japanese rifles up and shoot holes in the stocks to inflict damage.

My sense is that while some of this activity was clearly intended to create more interesting war souvenirs for the troops to take home, a lot of it was also just the activity of troops with too much free time on their hands . . . . . literally, just "boys being boys". Thus, bottom line is that we have to be VERY careful when evaluating alledged "battle damage".