bought this one in Helsinki for 50 E, thinking what it is

my supposition - german fireman's helmet, but thinking also on finnish conversion of a normal pickelhaube into fireman's

also think about refurbishing into a line haube, your thoughts?

have got some spare parts - spike, FR eagle plate, correct chinstrap. Need cocardes, think on how to attach the chinstrap - keep the rosettes or to get chinstrap posts for replacement...

need advice

and inside

Yuppers...that's a fireman's helmet. I wonder though if it's worth trying to "convert" it into a combat helm. The leather on the inside of the comb will look different than that on the outside as it was more "protected" from the elements. Might be quite evident that it's been redone.
The chinstrap posts are also obviously not the combat type. Is it easy to get replacements?
It's up to you - but these helmets also deserve their place in helmet collections.
This one certainly has character. If I owned it - I think I'd leave it alone.

Best of luck. Cheers!

Rob

Rob,

at www.kaisersbunker.com the author depicts also so called "private purchase" chinstrap attachments, they are ROSETTES - as it's written there, and look 100% as these two. Also there is info that these rosettes are with prongs - just as mine.

So I think rosettes will be ok, to keep them. They go over the cocardes.

So, I still do not understand whose fireman's it is - german or finnish?

:)

anyway thanks, Rob

I would think German given the helmet and axes on the plate. I have German weimar firemen's buckles that have the same type of helmet and axe arrangement on them.

Good luck!

Rob

Rob, what do you think on a time period of use of this helmet?
1895-1918? Or earlier? or later?

a wizard came and made something to my helm
now it looks so

Wow what a difference! I take it then that you are going to leave it as a firemans helmet and not convert it to a combat model?

Jim

yes Jim
I decided to keep it as fireman's just because if I converted it, I would get a junk. Now I have a piece of history.
I did even left its chinstrap, coz after inspecting it I found out that it is a regular, not handmade or erzatz chinstrap.
the difference is really big, having in mind that I almost did nothing - form correction (water), brass cleaning (hand drill with cleaning brush nozzle), shell surface improvement (shoe polish).