Re-Webbing M1 Helmet Liners
Author: Chris Guska
Date: July, 2009
Step 4: Hardware Prep
This may be a step that you can skip depending on what route you went with this project.
Since I was a cheapskate and decided to make the whole webbing kit myself, I also decided to re-use the A washers removed from the helmets. Many of the washers were corroded and needed paint removal. I figured I'd kill two birds with one stone and just go the Naval Jelly route.
Lazy, Simple and Effective:
1.) Open Naval Jelly bottle
2.) Pour in glass jar
3.) Dump in A washers, a few at a time
4.) Put lid on jar and shake to coat the A washers
5.) Put in more A washers, repeat 4 or 5 times as needed
6.) Let sit for a couple of days, backing the lid off the jar so its not 100% sealed, for air movement.
7.) Rinse the naval jelly out of the jar in the sink, wash off the A washers
8.) Use a wire brush to remove any stuck on paint or stubborn corrosion
9.) Rinse off, allow to dry
At this point I'd lay out all the A-washers for paint. If you want, youc an prime them, but its not really necessary. Go ahead and spray paint them with the Rapco OD 23070 Light Lustreless Khaki Olive drab. Why not black? Why not dayglow international orange? Frankly, I dont care what color you paint this stuff - I chose the OD per the M1 Helmet Liner Parts Charts that I put together to represent a midwar production helmet liner that could have seen service in Normandy. Black A washers werent produced until the Summer of 44, so chances of them being there for Normandy would be slim to nil.
This would also be a good time to clean up the leather helmet liner chinstrap stud in the liner itself with the wire brush just to get any dirt or corrosion off of it. The chinstraps can be a pain to install if the post is corroded or excessively dirty - which many seem to be.
If you're smart and saved yourself a heaping steaming mound of fiddly work and just bought a ready made liner kit - proceed to Step 5
Quicklinks:
X.) Introduction
0.) Tools & Equipment Needed / Sources
1.) Liner Preparation
2.) Paint Removal
3.) Making the liner kit (optional)
4.) Hardware Prep (You are here)
5.) Webbing Installation
6.) Paint & Finishing
