Description
This is a 100% original U.S. WWII M1 helmet liner leather chinstrap, in excellent condition, manufactured and issued between about Fall, 1943 and mid-Summer, 1944. The strap has a green-painted steel buckle with the rounded "roller" edge. The garter hooks at each end of the strap (for attaching to the helmet liner chinstrap lugs) are also green-painted steel. The rivets at the ends of the strap are OD-painted steel. All of these characteristics indicate that this liner chinstrap was made between about the fall of 1943 and the summer of 1944, when chinstrap buckles began to be made of blackened brass (see Mark Reynosa's book, "The M1 Helmet: A History of the U.S. M1 Helmet in World War II," pages 46-55, also Pieter Oosterman's book, "M-1 Helmet of the WW2 US GI," pp. 88-99.) The inside (roughout) side of the leather, near the buckle, is stamped with a block letter "I." I believe this is the stamp for the Ideal Novelty Leather Company, one of the known makers of US WWII leather M1 helmet liner chinstraps. This is a rare mark, I have seen it on only a handful of leather M1 helmet liner chinstraps. ************ This chinstrap is guaranteed original WWII manufacture, made in 1943 or 1944. It is not a reproduction, it is authentic U.S. Army / U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) issue. (The U.S. Army and U.S.M.C. used the same helmets, helmet liners, and liner components during WWII) ********** The chinstrap is in excellent condition, with flexible leather and metal parts in fine shape. The leather has nearly all of its original brown finish, shows some light wear and a few indentations from clamping the buckle down but the leather is in about as good condition as you could find for a 1943-44 chinstrap. The green steel buckle, end (garter-style) clips, and rivets are in very good shape, with the buckle having most of its original green paint. There is some paint loss to the buckle, but it still has about 90% or more of its original OD paint. The leather is a little darkened with age, has some soiling, and has been stretched slightly from being pulled over a helmet brim, but it is still great for display on a WWII helmet. The "I" stamp is clearly visible. See photos. Overall, this chinstrap is in excellent shape. ************ A 100% original WWII helmet liner chinstrap, this is not a reproduction, re-creation, fake, refurbishment, or post-war strap, it is the real deal, made in 1943-44. This would make a nice addition to a mid-WWII helmet liner with green-painted A-washers but appropriate for any US M1 helmet liner from WWII that takes a removable chinstrap. Correct for most of the European Theater campaigns, including the Normandy D-Day invasion. (This is exactly the type of M1 helmet liner chinstrap I have seen on most authenticated D-Day helmets; see for example the helmets shown in Jonathan Gawne's excellent book, "Spearheading D-Day.") Also correct for most any 1943 or later Pacific Theater collection of US Army or USMC gear. The last photo shows exactly this type of chinstrap stretched across the brim of an M1 steel helmet. The photo was taken in England in 1943. It shows Pfc Paul Kaiser of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, loading 40mm shells into an anti-aircraft gun. ********* I can ship worldwide. Free shipping to a US address, non-US buyer pay exact shipping costs only.
