Item:
ONSV7119

Original U.S. WWII Captain M1 McCord Fixed Bale Front Seam Helmet with Westinghouse Liner

Item Description

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a fantastic example of a genuine WWII U.S. Captain's Front-Seam Fixed Bale M1 Helmet made by McCord Radiator, with a Westinghouse pressed fiber liner.

The U.S. WWII M-1 helmet was only produced from 1941 to 1945. The first production batch resulted with over 323,510 M-1 helmets before the start of the American involvement in the war. This helmet is heat-lot stamped (not totally legible). The front of the helmet bears metal Captain's bars which appear to be soldered in place. 

The Ordnance Department selected McCord Radiator and Manufacturing Company of Detroit Michigan to produce the steel M1 helmet bodies. These bodies were made from a single piece of Hadfield Manganese steel that was produced by the Carnegie-Illinois & Sharon Steel Corporations. Each completed raw M-1 helmet shell weighed 2.25 lbs each.

The early M-1 helmet shells had a set of fixed chinstrap loops called "bales" and a stainless steel rim. These rims were both rust resistant and had "non-magnetic qualities" that reduced the chance of error readings when placed around certain sensitive equipment (such as a compass).

This helmet is a fine example and still retains all of its original WWII parts and the shell has all original "corked" grain paint with front seam and fixed bails. The chin strap is the correct OD Green #3 with cast blacked brass hardware. The front of the shell has a white hand painted Captain's bars and the rear has a "follow me" officer stripe which was painted over with OD green.

Condition of the shell is quite nice, with just a few rim dents/ripples, and the paint retained very well. There is also still a lot of paint on the Stainless Steel rim, which was prone to wear. The shell does have a few stress cracks, common due to the "high dome" design of the M1.

The liner is correct "high pressure" WWII issue and stamped with a W for the Westinghouse Electric Co Manufactured in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania this "high pressure" manufactured M-1 helmet liner is identified by an embossed "W" in the crown (which is still Westinghouse's logo to this day). Westinghouse was the largest M-1 helmet liner producer and had two production divisions; Micarta and Bryant Electric. The Micarta Division produced about 13,000,000 M-1 helmet liners and the Bryant Electric Division about 10,000,000. Westinghouse Electric Company started M-1 helmet liner delivery in May 1942. Westinghouse did have a contract to producce airborne liners and converted an unknown amount to airborne configuration. Westinghouse discontinued production around August 17, 1945 when the war ended.

This is definitely a helmet that saw use during the war, but was not abused, giving it that great worn in look. This would make a worthy addition to any WWII or Helmet collection as officer's helmets are extremely hard to find on the collector's market today. Ready to display!

  • This product is available for international shipping.
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