ID Face masks?

[Luftmensch]

 

Can anyone identify these 2 visors or suggest a better category?  I have no idea what country they are from!  Thanks

 

First one...

Second one...

 

Edited May 6, 2020 by Luftmensch

[OvBacon]

First one looks like the inner part of a WWI British Tank Crew splatter Face Mask

[peter monahan]

Sadly, 'WWI tanker masks' are now a regular item on eBay and a very high percentage of them are modern fakes.  While the first one looks a little like those issued to British and French armoured troops, the padding would be completely inadequate in use. 

The one with the 'cross slits' has a screw on the face, which would become an extra piece of shrapnel on the inside of the mask if struck by a bullet or fragment.  It also has what look like elastic straps, which would be very unlikely, IMO, on a military issue piece.  Again, the padding looks too thin to be very useful.

I don't think these are military, but somebody's private experiments in face protection.  Blacksmith?  Welder? 'Inventor' ???

Peter

[Bayern]

Peter, the first are anti splinter googles used by USAAF bomber crews . specifically gunners . gunners wear also M1 helmets and protective vest . regarding the second mask i see that thing on a photo of USA soldiers in WW1 . 

The USAAF googles were called Anti Flak googles

[peter monahan]

I'll shut up now!  I have a book on 'armour' from WWII, somewhere, but these looked so primitive I couldn't believe they were issued.  My bad.

[Brian Wolfe]

Peter, I have been following this thread and was also looking in my WWI material for photos of these "masks" to no avail. On the other hand if I had been a betting man I would have made a small (very small) wager that these were fairly modern remakes or even fantasy items. After reading Bayern's reply I'm happy I didn't waste my money, once again proving, "Wagering bad, collecting good" is the best motto.I also wish this was the first time I was wrong. A few years ago I passed by a really nice supposed British sword at a show thinking there was never such a thing only to find out recently that it was a very rare experimental Pattern. It is so hard knowing everything while I lack so much knowledge. ?

Regards

Brian

  

[OvBacon]

3 hours ago, Brian Wolfe said:

Peter, I have been following this thread and was also looking in my WWI material for photos of these "masks" to no avail. On the other hand if I had been a betting man I would have made a small (very small) wager that these were fairly modern remakes or even fantasy items. After reading Bayern's reply I'm happy I didn't waste my money, once again proving, "Wagering bad, collecting good" is the best motto.I also wish this was the first time I was wrong. A few years ago I passed by a really nice supposed British sword at a show thinking there was never such a thing only to find out recently that it was a very rare experimental Pattern. It is so hard knowing everything while I lack so much knowledge. ?

Regards

Brian

  

I completely agree that when something doesn't look or feel right it's better to pass it on.... unless you believe that the price is so good and/or the item is so good that you can live with finding out it is a copy/reproduction or even a flat out fake. Now granted I do not spend large amounts on collecting as I have two businesses to run and simply can't rationalize large spendings on frivolous" things  and so I spend smaller amounts (few hundred here or there) on items that I feel are real or at least worth the money. 

[Luftmensch]

Thanks for the comments, folks.  Bayern, in that WW1 photo of the second mask being worn by American soldiers, what kind of unit were they?

[Bayern]

Luftmensch . They are a number  of pics in the web .you must enter : Body armour of WW1 or Brewster Body armour , or German Body armour ww1 . I remember a pic under the caption of German body armour of ww1 ,that shows a man with a sort of lamellar armor ,a round capacet or cabacet and the goggles with the cross like eye slots

[OvBacon]

As Brian stated... the first one appears to be a usaaf splinter goggles or WWII USAF AAF AIR FORCE flak goggles

see here: https://stewartsmilitaryantiques.com/us-wwii-usaaf-flak-splinter-goggles.44097.archive.htm

 

The second one appear to be British splinter goggles.

see here: https://www.ww2civildefence.co.uk/goggles.html

On 13/05/2020 at 08:01, Luftmensch said:

Thanks for the comments, folks.  Bayern, in that WW1 photo of the second mask being worn by American soldiers, what kind of unit were they?

WWII USAF bomber crew

Edited May 15, 2020 by OvBacon

[peter monahan]

Oh, well done.  I did, as I say, once own and read the one on the USAAF's body armour for WWII bomber crews, but so long ago I'd forgotten what they looked like.  But , the British  'splinter googles' are completely new.  I wonder how common they were. 

And, from the photo, what I saw as a design flaw - the protruding screw head - was actually a 'feature', allowing the eye shields to be opened and closed.  Very very interesting.  I wonder if there are photos of them in use too?

Peter

[Luftmensch]

VERY nice sleuthing, you guys.  Thanks for the positive IDs!