IJN Helmet insignia help

[Tony K]

I would like opinions on this Helmet insignia. It is magnetic and has the rounded prongs, It is not bare metal but very faded green paint (brown looking) under loupe and you can see the green in a couple of places.. Thanks

[JCB]

old fake, watch out

Hello.

My main collecting interest is Japanese Inert ordnance but I collected Japanese military headgear for years. This is absolutely a reproduction, artificially aged to look old. It was probably steel brushed and soaked in water to create the aged appearance. DO not buy this helmet. There are experienced Japanese headgear collectors on this board and they will chime in.

They've been reproducing NLF helmet badges for 30+ years now. The repros made back in the 1970's look very convincing now. Every NLF badge I've owned had square split pins. Fake badges have a flat appearance. Originals look slightly domed in appearance.

Jim
JapaneseOrdnance(at)yahoo.com

Link to Japanese Ordnance Page: http://www.castle-thunder.com/wforum...opic.php?t=976

[NLF]

fake, if you need a real one pm me

[JCB]

link to nlf helmet ad

Here is a link to an Estand offered Japanese NLF helmet. This is an original Nlf helmet, original nlf badge with a navy marked leather liner. The chinstraps seem to be late war navy issue mosly seen on stenciled insigina NLF helmets. The paint looks totally original. This is what an original NLF badge looks like. See the dome like appearance of the insigina? The badge is slightly curved, not flat like most repros. The curvature of the badge follows the curature of the helmet dome.

http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=487708

Jim
JapaneseOrdnance(at)yahoo.com

[NLF]

Early repros are also domed and smooth backed like originals

[Helmetz]

Early repros are also domed and smooth backed like originals

If they are also domed and smooth backed, how would you tell an original from an early fake?

[NLF]

You have to study real anchors the fakes just are not are crisp and miss details that originals have.

[Ryukyutunnelrat]

Once you have seen and handled enough naval helmets the fakes are easy spot.

[NLF]

Also, the pins on the reverse on repros are a dead give away!

[34thdivision]

Japanese Helmet Liner

Fellows I wonder if you have seen Japanese helmet liners where the main strap that surrounds the inside of the helmet is a white color. The only color I have see is a red leather strap. Your help will be appreciated!