How to preserve a helmet?

[smokycity]

My dad is a WW-II vet and he brought this back 60 years ago. He gave it to my uncle and it was returned to me this week by my cousin. I talked to my dad and he doesn't recall how or where he aquired it, but he remembers fighting Fallschirmjager troops in Normandy and outside of Brest. I'm sure that when it was first brought back, the helmet was in much better shape, and the damage is the result of improper storage over the last 60 years. Can anyone tell me about the helmet? What should / can I do to prevent any further deterioration? Any Idea what it may be worth? I have no plans to sell it, it will go in with the other stuff I have that my dad brought back.

[boyouLaGleize.]

Send it to me. You can put a little bit of Balistol on it,for liner I can't explain it because bad english.One of my para helmet has the same liner problem than your,my helmet came from US vet,who live in a high humidity country with air conditionned.

[smokycity]

Should I do anything like using a fine steel wool to remove the rust? I know repainting it would be a big NO-NO. What about a leather conditioner to keep the leather from further decay.

[Willi Z.]

Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing the helmet your dad brought home. It could have been worn by a member of the 2nd FJD; a member of FJR6 at Normandy, or perhaps a member of either FJR2 and FJR7 at Brest. A few other options as well, depending on when he was in Normandy.

I would not do anything to the leather.

As for the rust on the shell, there would be various opinions on this. A super fine (0000) steel wool soaked in something like Breakfree will remove a little rust and darken the rust that is active. It should keep it from getting worse and will not damage the paint. But, it is unlikely you would be able to remove all of the rust. Others may say to leave it alone.

[Katsumasa]

;

[smokycity]

Thanks Willi for the nice welcome. I have some other items I will share once I can get some photos of them taken. Will using the steelwool or "cleaning" the helmet up devalue it? What kinds of thing should I use (household cleaning items or are there other specialty products)? I have Breakfree and I will get an old rag to apply a thin amount to the rusty areas avoiding the decal.

Of the other items I have from my dad, some of those are in need of cleaning or repair also. Growing up on the Gulf Coast of Florida and my uncle in Mississippi didn't do the items any favors as they sat in the garage. One item is a set of binoculars that are getting moldy on the inner lenses. The binoculars came from the U-boat pens in Brest according to my dad. The manufacturer codes indicate that they are made by Zeiss. No other markings like eagles or swastikas on them. I thought about sending them back to Zeiss for repair/cleaning. Like the helmet they sat in a humid environment for a long time. The helmet was found when my uncle and aunt finally decided to move to a smaller home last year.

My father was a combat engineer and the company commander of Co-B 121st Combat Engineers 29th Division, following D-Day. He was the XO on D-day, but was promoted after the commander stepped on a mine on June 7th. He earned a Silver Star outside of Brest at a place called Fort Montbarey when he and his men breeched the walls of the fort. He said they fought paratoops in Normandy and Brest and he has some personal photos of a plane crash outside of a place called Julich. You can clearly see the bodies of paratroops in the wreckage.

[Willi Z.]

Thanks for providing some details of your father's service. I would love to see any photos you have. I have a good book on Brest and will do some research. I even know a local FJ veteran who served on Ramcke's staff at Brest.

Zeiss U-boat binos can be very valuable. Are they "blc" coded? No need to send them back to Zeiss for cleaning, there are several guys who specialize in cleaning German optics (binos and sniper scopes) here in the US. Would have to see photos to know exactly what they are.

On the helmet, yes, any major effort to clean it would reduce its value. Honestly, if you had to I would limit any effort to just applying something like Breakfree to the large rust spot on the top, rubbing it in, then removing any trace of it. I would not apply it to any other part of the helmet, bolts, paint, decal, etc. It has survived this long, it will be fine for the rest of our lives. Only the top could use some attention.

[BobI]

Hi,
I agree with Willi! And the gauge of steel wool he referred to is extremely fine and with minimal pressure should not damage anything. Willi’s main concern is to remove the red rust, which means the metal is still suffering from oxidation. The breakfree will neutralize the reaction and prevent further damage. Other areas that may have small amounts of red rust I would leave alone. If they are small they will inactivate in proper storage conditions over time. And from now on make sure it does not suffer from poor storage conditions.
I would place a full retail value on this helmet of 3000-4000 dollars.
Best Wishes,
Bob

Thanks for providing some details of your father's service. I would love to see any photos you have. I have a good book on Brest and will do some research. I even know a local FJ veteran who served on Ramcke's staff at Brest.

Zeiss U-boat binos can be very valuable. Are they "blc" coded? No need to send them back to Zeiss for cleaning, there are several guys who specialize in cleaning German optics (binos and sniper scopes) here in the US. Would have to see photos to know exactly what they are.

On the helmet, yes, any major effort to clean it would reduce its value. Honestly, if you had to I would limit any effort to just applying something like Breakfree to the large rust spot on the top, rubbing it in, then removing any trace of it. I would not apply it to any other part of the helmet, bolts, paint, decal, etc. It has survived this long, it will be fine for the rest of our lives. Only the top could use some attention.

[smokycity]

Again thank you all for the great info. Willi, yes the binoculars are "blc" coded, 7x50 full size binoculars, with a single eye piece cover on an elastic band. No covers for the optics ends. I'll take some photos of them and post them later tonight.

These are some photos my dad took outside of Julich of a plane crash. He said he and his men watched the crash happen and even "hammed" up one of the photos to make it look like they shot the plane down (center photo). Dad said he thinks the plane was actually shot down by an fighter. If you look closely you can see the bodies in the wreckage.

[BobI]

Smokycity,
Could you please contact me at rfimd2000@yahoo.com
Thanks!
Bob

[smokycity]

Willi, here is the helmet top after I applied some Breakfree with a rag and then "brushed/buffed" it with a no scratch Scotchbright pad for teflon pad. I thin k it looks much better.

[smokycity]

Regarding the binoculars:

[boyouLaGleize.]

Julich is near Aachen,in wich division was your father.Sorry,I find the answer.

[merdock]

Hi,
Nice items,
The photo of the aircraft is interesting ,it's appears to be 2 different aircraft pherhaps they just got micked up one appears to be a Ju 88 and the other a ju 52/3m which at this late stage of the war was not a common sight anybody flying one deserves a medal, a long shoot on a single aicraft depicted is a Ju352 same tail shape capable of carrying paratroopers but no corrigated skin ,sure it's a 52 corrigated skin and the wing with the long flap as can be seen sticking up in the air.
Where were they going ,what was the last para drop of the war.
All the best Merdock

[Matt Starr]

Good job on touching the rust , the next thing to do now is make sure that the helmet is stored properly to prevent any further deterioation. I see nothing wrong with rubbing some dubbin into the leather to help keep it soft, I wouldnt bend or try to straigten anything out on the leather. Dubbin is how I keep all my Leather in perfect condition, but there really is no need to touch the leather on this helmet
Matt