Rare WW2 M38 Fallschirmjager cut-down helmet : This is an M38 shell, ET 66, made from an original M35, M40, or M42 shell. This is NOT A REPRO as I know of no repros in size 66 – they’re mostly 71s with a few 68s made. I’ve owned this shell for about 20 years and this was likely modified in the 70s-80s to fake an original cut-down which did exist during the war in small numbers – see attached wartime photos and compare the front rims with the standard M38. There were four extra holes not associated with the standard or FJ shells that were drilled or punched and then welded in and buffed smooth. I can’t explain those four holes (too far from the rim for hanging planter use) but the two original vent holes were changed to M38 liner holes and the original liner rivet holes were welded in and buffed smooth. Has three digit lot # so if this had been an M35 it would have been made in spring or summer of 1935. If made from an M40 then either very late 1940 or early 1941 as I understand from my online reading. I think it’s unlikely it was made from an M42 as there would have been almost no need for more M38 late in the war. No paint or primer on shell now but it’s ready for restoration. Again, this re-work was likely done after the war but a rare collectible and representative piece in the history of the WW2 German helmet. They knew enough to get the right factory code and one of the correct sizes but nobody in their right mind would go to the trouble to convert an original M35/40/42 to an M38 since the repros started being made many years ago 1990s? No cracks and just a few very shallow dents you can feel with your fingers. What’s strange : If this was a post-war fake made in the 70s/80s there were plenty of photos in books they could have used for reference on correct hole placement. If it were a super-rare early prototype used to determine best placement for M38 liner holes, I think they would have just taken the next pristine M35 shell from a small batch donated for the project and tossed the reject on the scrap pile. It was still peacetime but labor to repair the reject would not have been worth it nor should it have passed quality control to be issued. Here are the undebatable facts on this helmet. 1 started as an M35, M40 or M42. 2 wartime photos exist proving these modified helmets were issued – see second and third photos, one from the Schiffer book on panzerfausts, p. The front rim has more of an outward roll to it than the standard M38. 3 has a three digit lot number but this may not mean early production apparently since they didn’t start with 1 on the M40s OPSEC reasons? 4 was modified by someone with the right equipment to punch the M38 liner holes (not drilled) and roll that heavy rim in correctly. At The Front website recently provided a link to a wartime video that includes this procedure and it’s a beast of a machine but perhaps common in fabrication shops – I’ve never been a machinist. 5 Original three liner rivet holes welded in and buffed smooth both inside and out. 6 Four additional holes were made along the original liner rivet hole line – two on the sides which correspond vertically to the M38 liner bolt positions and two on the back which do not correspond with M38 liner holes but are more widely spaced. Not clear why these four holes were made and then repaired. 7 Factory was Eisenhuttenwerk or literally “Iron Hat Works” in Thale (hence “ET” like all real M38s) and Size is 66, the smallest size used for the M38. 8 There are no symbols on this helmet anyone might find offensive… Unless “66” or “874” have demonic associations unknown to me.