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Both the short and long end of a German
helmet chinstrap was attached to the liner band "D" rings by means of a
metal stud that held the leather together. One end of the leather
was placed through the "D" ring and bent forward so that two slots in
the leather chinstrap met evenly. A solid metal stud was then
placed through the two slots to retain the chinstrap to the liner band.
These chinstrap retaining rivets were initially produced out of
aluminum. Later they were also produced from steel. In some
cases the steel was painted gray or field-gray depending on the color of
the chinstrap buckle. In almost every case an original chinstrap
will have a matching buckle and retaining studs made of the same
material. It is certainly possible that some chinstraps were
issued with a combination of mismatched parts, however most collectors
tend to prefer chinstraps that are entirely matching. This is
generally good indication that someone has not tampered with the
original components by using postwar or original replacement parts to
repair elements missing from the original. Former West German
border guard helmets often used chinstraps that were manufactured
similar to wartime examples. These too utilized aluminum retaining
studs. In addition, post war replica's of German World War II
chinstraps have been manufactured for years. These too attach in
the same way as originals using reproduction retaining studs. In
most cases, it can be very difficult to distinguish an original
retaining stud from an aged reproduction. Retaining studs were not
manufactured with any type of manufacturing marks or numbers. As a
result, it is important for collectors to inspect overall age and wear
of a chinstrap to include the fine patina that lies in and around the
retaining stud.
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