Before you start drafting that e-mail telling me how stupid this sounds, and that smooth-finish Swiss M71 helmets never existed, let's go on a quick journey so you can get a taste of what the heck I had to try to figure out when I opened my first sealed box of 8 of these unissued anomalies....
These are apparently how Swiss M71 helmets left the factory before going elsewhere to receive textured paint after they were taken out of storage, or that's one educated guess. Another is that this smooth paint was tested for helmets that were absolutely going to have the camouflage covers being worn on them, making them easier to apply. In any case, these M71 helmets started their lives in the late 1970s and early 1980s at the Bronzewarenfabrik Turgi (BT) before being packed in boxes of 8, and placed in an underground storage facility for a rainy day. Well, that rainy day never came for these, and in 2012, as Switzerland was inspecting a lot of old gear leftover from the Cold War, and packed these back in a box after inspection for condition, and there they have remained, until now. Straight from the original storage facility to me, this is about as excellent as surplus gets.
What you can expect: An absolute time capsule of Cold War History. These are literally in mint condition, and are in the same condition they were in when they rolled off the assembly line and were placed in boxes. The leather doesn't have any stains, stamps, writing, or that famous "Swiss Bunker Mildew" smell we've all come to know and love. Absolutely brand new leather liner, which I've personally never seen, but whole-heartedly welcome, AND a mint condition "Alpenflage" helmet cover that fits amazingly. Maker stamps and year stamps on some of these are obscured by the paint due to them appearing to have been dipped in paint, rather than sprayed, causing build up on some of the helmets. That being said, dates I have seen range from 1977 to 1983.
These are all the size 57-58cm Liners, but with the option to remove individual felt pads behind the leather tabs, these fit up to a size 60cm melon, making these VERY versatile size-wise. Being unissued is one thing, but having an original factory dipped smooth paint with rivets in the white takes these to the next level of rarity. Once this source dries up, that's it, done, finished. M71s are already almost already gone and in collections, and the only ones available are clapped out small sized ones.
Even at this source, there's no way to tell how many of these are this smooth finish, and how many are textured, since they're all still sealed in original boxes, so every helmet may be the last one like this I'll ever have.
