I just bought a couple of helmets from ebay. One is a m40 quist and the other is a hkp m42. How can I tell if the actual shells are fakes? The m42 is marked in the rear with hkp64 and under that is the number 3428 with the 28 very stamped very lightly. The m40 has a Q66 on the left side the Q is poorly stamped and almost looks like a C. The back has the number 11388 with the 88 stamped lighter than the rest. Now I paid $135 for the m42 and $96 for the m40. I know they don't have original paint or are authentic but I did want an original shell to restore. Can anyone help?

Thanks

Luke

Welcome to the forum Big Luke.

It would be a great help if you could post some photos of the helmets to help determine if they are genuine or not.

However, from your description of the markings, it would appear that they are genuine but photos would still be a help in confirming this.

For your information:

The markings on the M40 indicate that it was produced by Quist (as you have stated) in Esslingen and is a size 66 shell and part of batch No:11388.

The M42 was made by Sachsische Emaillier und Stanzwerke A.G. in Lauter and is a size 64 shell and was part of batch No:3428.

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Regards
John

"It is always wise to look ahead, but difficult to look further than you can see" - Winston Churchill

i was grown up in Esslingen where Quist was located - still remembering their factory and as far as i know there are still some old buildings or their properties existing