anyone familiar with 1930's leather helmets?

duner

I was hoping someone is familiar with vintage football helmets. I was contemplating one that's almost pristine, barely looks like it was ever used, it dates circa 1930, and i believe made by wilson....but it's expensive. My question is what's fair market value...as they don't seem to pop up that much? would $1200 be an insane amount?

helionaut

If it's a generic, off-the-shelf, store-bought helmet, I think that price is really high, even if it is in great condition. If it's associated with a college or pro team (colors, tags, stamps, etc.), it could be significantly more. Plain old equipment usually doesn't go for much. However, I should say my experience comes more from baseball than football and I was more into it about 7-8 years ago. On the plus side, football gear seems to be more popular now than it was then, and leather items in particular are rare to find in great shape due to handling, storage problems, etc. If it's just a helmet, and not including any packaging or tags or anything, a few hundred would be my top guess. I'm sure you've checked ebay, but if you haven't there have been a few recent auctions for similar items and none of them went for anywhere near $1200, though none of them were pristine. Also, beware replicas, reproductions, and fakes (read tags closely, and do some active research).

Still, leather helmets are some of the most interesting and attractive display pieces for collectors. If you are into this sort of thing, there's plenty out there,

duner

helionaut thanks for the info. I don't think the helmet is unique in any particular manner, it was described to me as a helmet several pro teams used in the 1930's/40's. the only reason i contemplated the price was because it's from an extremely reputable dealer from that genre (helmethut.com). however, to spend that kind of money needs a second opinion, especially since the price is double any other leather i've been able to find. i've attached a jpeg to see if anyone thinks it may be "unique." v/r