Item: ONSV21BCD3
Original U.S. WWII Rare Hawley Paper Co M1 Helmet Liner With Rayon Suspension - Excellent Condition
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Original Item: Only One Available. This is an excellent example of a rare Hawley pressed paper M1 Helmet liner, with reproduction chinstrap. They were only issued in very small numbers during the early days of World War Two. Their structural deficiencies were quickly noted, and the replacement "low pressure" and later "high pressure" liners were put into planning and production shortly after. The Hawley liners were however all that was available during the earliest days of M1 Helmet production.
These liners are quite delicate, and often were replaced during the war, making them very hard to find. This liner in particular is one of the best examples of a Hawley liner that we have ever seen. It does show evidence of having been installed in a helmet and worn. It still has the original rayon suspension in great shape, complete with the repro leather chin strap. There are a few dents and a tear or two around the rim with a crack, showing just how delicate these are. Even storage would cause damage. That it has survived in this condition is nothing short of miraculous.
A great example, probably one of the best we will ever see.
The M1 Helmet has become one of the most iconic, easily recognizable, and widely collected military helmets in existence. All World War 2 era M1 Helmet shells were produced either by the McCord Radiator & Manufacturing Company or Schlueter Manufacturing Company while the M1 Helmet liners were produced by eleven manufacturers throughout World War II. Over the course of the war the liner went through a series of changes, with the first design being known as the Fiber Liner. The Fiber Liner, popularly and at times incorrectly referred to as the “Hawley Liner”, was produced between 1941 to 1942 by two companies: Hawley Products Company and General Fibre Products. Hawley Products is the better known of the two as they began producing the liner first, produced the majority of all fiber liners, and are overall a better known company in part due to their past for producing high quality pith helmets prior to their work with the M1 helmet liner. Initial production began in June of 1941 with the Ordnance Department procuring M1 helmets from McCord, who subcontracted production for the liner to Hawley. Hawley produced the fiber liner bodies, which were then delivered to McCord for suspension installation and pairing with the shell. By December of 1941, procurement of the fiber liner changed hands, being taken over by the Quartermaster Corps.
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