Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice all original example Model 1940 German WW2 helmet with a single Luftwaffe Eagle decal. This stamped sheet steel construction helmet retains about 50% of the original paint and is in good condition overall. The decal is retained at around 90%, with some scratches going through the middle.

All three liner retaining pins are intact. The interior of the helmet still has an original steel band M31 leather liner with all 8 of its fingers intact. The leather has unfortunately dried out and deteriorated some over the years, but it is still soft. There is a 59 ink stamped on the liner inside a circle.

On the reverse of the shell's interior, the neck guard apron is lot number stamped, 258 and has a stamped manufacturer's code and size, Q66. Q is the maker code for the Quist in the German city of Esslingen. Size 66 is a nice large size that can accommodate liners from 58cm to 60cm or US 7 1/4 to 7 1/2. Size 66 shells are always hard to find and are therefore more valuable to a collector.

The rear skirt is marked with white paint Flg. Fahrland, which we assume refers to a soldier with the rank of Flieger, or a private, in the Luftwaffe. We unfortunately do not have any further information regarding this.

Overall a honest nice genuine M40 Single Decal Luftwaffe helmet! This is an item that will only continue to appreciate in value over time.

The first "modern" steel helmets were introduced by the French army in early 1915 and were shortly followed by the British army later that year. With plans on the drawing board, experimental helmets in the field, ("Gaede" helmet), and some captured French and British helmets the German army began tests for their own steel helmet at the Kummersdorf Proving Grounds in November, and in the field in December 1915. An acceptable pattern was developed and approved and production began at Eisen-und Hüttenwerke, AG Thale/Harz, (Iron and Foundry Works), in the spring of 1916.

These first modern M16 helmets evolved into the M18 helmets by the end of WWI. The M16 and M18 helmets remained in usage through-out the Weimar Reichswehr, (National Defence Force, Circa 1919-1933), era and on into the early years of the Third Reich until the development of the smaller, lighter M35 style helmet in June 1935.

In 1934 tests began on an improved Stahlhelm, whose design was a development of World War I models. The Eisenhüttenwerke company of Thale carried out prototype design and testing, with Dr. Friedrich Schwerd once again taking a hand.

The new helmet was pressed from sheets of molybdenum steel in several stages. The size of the flared visor and skirt was reduced, and the large projecting lugs for the obsolete armor shield were eliminated. The ventilator holes were retained, but were set in smaller hollow rivets mounted to the helmet's shell. The edges of the shell were rolled over, creating a smooth edge along the helmet. Finally, a completely new leather suspension, or liner, was incorporated that greatly improved the helmet's safety, adjustability, and comfort for each wearer. These improvements made the new M1935 helmet lighter, more compact, and more comfortable to wear than the previous designs.

The Army's Supreme Command officially accepted the new helmet on June 25, 1935 and it was intended to replace all other helmets in service.

More than 1 million M1935 helmets were manufactured in the first two years after its introduction, and millions more were produced until 1940 when the basic design and production methods were changed to save machine time. The main difference is that the vent holes were stamped into the helmet directly, instead of being drilled and having a rivet inserted.