The Steel Pot : Going for the look...

If you have just acquired your very first US steel pot, chances are that it came without the liner. Most M1 helmets, if ever you find one ( I think they're becoming scarcer to find in Manila), comes without the liner. what you have would be just the bare steel shell. Just make sure that the bales ( swivel type for the VN era) are intact. If they are not, then how are you going to attach your chinstrap, right?

The US M1 helmet and accessories

What you will need to assemble your steel pot:
1. US made M1 steel helmet
2. Post war M1 liner
3. OD chinstrap ( Very hard to find, unless you order online, like ebay for instance)
4. Mitchell Pattern helmet cover

The elastic helmet band were used by soldiers on the field for keeping small items like cigarettes, lighter, bug juice, toiletries etc. and other items you don't want to get wet.

The chinstrap tucked at the rear

It is very easy to assemble the helmet and its accessories. First, install the helmet cover before attaching the M1 Liner. Once the cover and liner has been inatalled, put on the elastic helmet band over the dome. It is best to tuck the chinstrap at the back of the helmet by clipping both ends together. Or another way is to just tuck the chinstrap under the elastic band. Both of these methods are correct for that period look. 

Of course, the helmet can be worn without the band, and it would still be period correct. Same goes for the helmet cover.

Of Grunts and Steel Pots...

The reason why I chose to make the regular Infantry grunt as the model for my impression is because the Army Infantry formed the bulk of the fighting men at the front in Vietnam. It was not the “Special Forces” or any other elite groups that bore the brunt of the war from early to the wanings years of the war. “Elite “ forces were formed only for specific missions, most of the time reconnaissance patrols . Some groups were for “assassination” or “ rescue” missions, hence not really representative of the Vietnam war…

Grunts in Vietnam  ( Source: Public Domain Photos)

So, whenever we hear of Vietnam, what instantly comes to mind is the old US Steel Pot ( M1 helmet) , Flak Jacket ( especially for Marines), the OD fatigues and of course, the much very well known of which we are all familiar with : the M16 rifle. These gears had become icons of the Vietnam war era.

In an impression or re-enactment, these gears are a must. These are the basic gears one must have for a truly correct impression of the era. Also, wear that helmet! I can’t fully stress this enough. I see a lot of Pinoys doing Vietnam impressions without paying much attention to the iconic M1 steel pot.

Vietnam era photos of the war will show that majority of the US troops fought with their helmets on. Lots of pictures will show Army or Marines in just their regulation T-shirts but with flak jackets ( some don’t even have them) but they will always be wearing their steel pots or “ brain buckets” !

My initial foray...

okay... so my intial foray into the world of Vietnam reenactment/ impression is that of the regular GI Joe , or " grunt" as they were called at that particular period in time. My very first acquisition then was the iconic M1 helmet. Actually, this was my "first" Vietnam equipment way back in the early 70s. I got the helmet from a classmate in high school for a bargain. I was at the time already interested on the American soldier... they were everywhere, on newspapers, LIFE magazines, books... that during that time, I was already too familiar with the US soldier's look and gears and all. So when the chance to own an M1 helmet, I didn't let it pass.

Fastforward: Present time:

With the availability of Vietnam materials, I finally started on actually collecting materials for my own satisfaction and enjoyment. Fortunately, I still have the M1 helmet I acquired in high school. But I found out that this was a WW2 but rear seamed helmet . This would do for a Vietnam impression , as WW2 helmets were worn during the very early stages of the war. But I wanted the more compact M1 helmet, the one with the lower profile .

My Steel Pot with period Mitchell Pattern cover

 I scrounged around Quiapo and after a very tedious search, finally found the Vietnam M1 I was looking for, minus the chinstrap. It was a worn and beat up helmet, but with the swivel bale still intact. I got it for 900 pesos, which for me was a real bargain. The vendor even seemed eager to dispose of the item. I just grabbed it before he changed his mind.

I was able to buy a used Mitchelle Pattern cover for it. The cover was full of graffiti from the previous owner. But the cover was original so I bought it .

Next was the correct period chinstrap. i got one. A very nice NOS OD chinstrap. Got it from a VN collector/ seller who was unloading some of his stuff. 

Next was the M1 helmet liner. Again, got one from Quiapo. It is the original liner stamped " Ground Troop " or something with some production serial numbers on it... the cover was full of graffiti from the previous owner. Anyway, the cover was authentic period material, but the graffiti was not.  

Oh, by way...on a sidenote, the correct way of wearing a VN era helmet is to wear it high. Most American VN reenactors have it right. But  I've seen how most Pinoy Vietnam war impressionists wear their helmets too low. During the time period, the soldiers would wear the helmets high on their heads. It was the "style". Wearing your helmet low means WW2 era. Again, look at photos of WW2. WW2 soldiers wear their helmets low because perhaps of the way the liner's suspensions were designed. Just some thoughts.