Restoration of a Pickelhaube

       For a change, I have decided to write about a recent project of mine: a project of  the restoration and preservation of an artifact. Last month, I received a 1916 German Cavalryman's (Jager zu Pferde) helmet. It was in truly terrible shape: rusted, dented, corroded...etc. Here are some pictures of it's initial condition.

          My first action was research, lots of research. I was able, thanks to some very fine websites, to determine which exact model of helmet I had. I also found that it originally had a black finish, with steel-colored fittings.

As you can tell from the pictures, it certainly did not look like that when I received it. Initially, I was too scared to do any real cleaning on it, (I collect ancient coins, so I know exactly how much damage inept cleaning can do) so I restricted myself to using warm water and a soft brush. I see no need to post of picture of what it looked like after that, since it looked exactly the same as before.

       Taking my cues from the inestimably valuable Pickelhaubes.com, I decided to try 0000 (superfine) steel wool, with a bit of oil to help it glide. After treating a small spot on the back of the helm, I rinsed it off, and was shocked at what I saw. Under all the rust was the original black finish, still gleaming in the light. Eager to continue, I removed the Wappen (Imperial eagle crest) as well the other fittings, knowing that they needed a more delicate hand. With German Imperial marches playing in the background, I happily applied myself to my work, and soon the whole helmet shone black, with the exception of a few small areas where corrosion had pitted the metal and removed the finish.

    Now, on to the fittings. Initially, I sought to clean the fittings with the same delicate and ineffectual method as I had tried on the helm. Soon however, I gave up hope of ever making any progress. Stymied, I returned to Pickelhaubes.com for some additional browsing. After reading through page after page, I finally found a discussion of restoration, which touched upon the cleaning of the fittings. The general consensus seemed to be that a product known as Evaporust was the ideal way to do it. I immediately began calling local stores, trying to locate some, but without success. I then went online and I found the new nearest distributors. I went to them both; neither one had it. Finally, on my third try, I found it.

    I followed the instructions on the label, submersing the objects in the solution and leaving them overnight. In the morning, I excitedly removed the objects and rinsed them off. The results were amazing, a century of rust and decay simply flowed off them, yet the delicate patina remained unharmed. Now that the fittings and Wappen were seen to, it was time to return to the shell.

      I had read that gun bluing could be used to touch up the damaged black finish, so I gave it a try. Admittedly, it was a long process, of applying the bluing, waiting, wiping the bluing off, polishing, and repeating. After seven or eight coats of bluing, the damaged parts reasonably approximated the originals.

    After all this was done to my satisfaction, I reattached the Wappen, and the fittings, gave the whole thing a coat of museum wax, and it is now proudly displayed in my home, a relic of the Fatherland.