British WW1 Helmet Shell . HU1169

WW1 British MK.I helmet shell. Chinstrap guiding loops held on by split rivets. Very worn condition with no liner.

Additional Notes: The United States Army purchased the 400,000 available British Mk. I helmets from England and issued them to the American Expeditionary Forces already in Europe until the production of the U.S. M-1917 (P17) could start. Production began on the M-1917 helmets in the fall of 1917. By the end of November 1917, large quantities of U.S. M-1917 helmets became available for the U.S. Army. The U.S. M-1917 helmet was very similar to the British Mk. I helmet. One difference was riveted to the steel bowl were two flexible guiding loops for the chin strap. For this, the U.S. M-1917 helmet differed from the British Mk. I helmet in that on U.S. helmets the loops were secured by solid machined rivets, where the British Mk. I helmet used split rivets. Also, both the helmets may have markings on the underside of the helmet skirt. On British Brodie helmets this is typically a series of Letters (for the steel manufacturer) follow by followed by a series of numbers (for the lot number). On U.S. WW1 M1917 (P17) helmets typically there are heating lot numbers, usually, starting with a Z followed by another letter and ending with a series of numbers. The known heat-stamps for WW1 American helmet include, but not limited to: ZA, ZB, ZC, ZD, ZF, ZH, ZJ, YJ, UC, and XH. Also, the American helmets are made of a thicker gauge steel and therefore heavier than their British counterparts as well.

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