Hełm wz . 31 The hełm wz . 31 ( " helmet , 1931 pattern " ) was the basic combat helmet of the Polish Army before the outbreak of World War II and during the Invasion of Poland . The helmet became the basic type of combat headgear for Polish military formations in 1930s and during the early stages of World War II . It was also exported to Persia , Albania and Republican Spain . By September 1939 approximately 320 , 000 copies were delivered to the Polish Army . While it was not the most common helmet in Polish service during World War II ( in 1939 most of the mobilised soldiers were issued old French Adrian helmet s ) , it became somewhat iconic and widely regarded in Poland as one of the symbols of Polish resistance . Because of this , the hełm wz . 60 designed in the late 1950s was based on the wz . 31 ' s silhouette . Design . The wz . 31 was an all - metal one - piece helmet with a distinctive peaked visor and a slight " skirt . " It was covered with either plain or Salamandra matte paint . Most helmets were covered with a thick layer of lead tetroxide and then painted with standard all - military khaki , with some of them painted grey , greyish green or navy blue ( the latter worn the police ) . The weight of the complete set with inner lining was approximately 1 . 3 kg . Interestingly , the helmet could be worn with the visor backwards , which was used by artillery officers for increased visibility and better peripheral vision . History and usage . After the end of World War I Poland seized large quantities of helmets from other countries formerly occupying its territory . Among the most widely used was the German M1918 helmet , better known as the " Stahlhelm " . Large numbers of French Adrian helmet s were also being used . However , as the shape of the helmet was one of the most distinctive marks on the battlefield , already in 1919 the Polish Army started working on a genuine Polish helmet , distinct from those used by the armies of surrounding countries and offering better protection than the German helmet . The initial work on a new helmet was directed by the IBMU institute in Warsaw , with the chief engineer being Leonard Krauze . The design team created an outer shell , but the design process came to a halt in mid - 1920s due to problems with the inner lining and production process preparation . It was decided to purchase a ready - made design or use a technological process developed in another country . Swedish " Eskilstuna Stal Pressing AB " steel mill was chosen as the contractor and a Polish commission spent several weeks observing the Swedish technology . In the end the Polish ministry of military affairs decided to buy a license for Swedish helmet suspension and liners , and to design a custom outer shell . The shell was based on an earlier Polish design , the " hełm wz . 30 " which never entered serial production . The most notable modification included liquidation of the horn - like ventilator lugs , similar to the ones found on early German helmets . 300 copies of the modernised design were ordered for testing and were then extensively modified by the " Pokój " steel mill , the Warsaw - based Arms Factory No . 2 and the Wolbrom - based " Ideal " works . Simultaneously , the Warsaw - based " W . Karpiński and M . Leppert " factory designed a new type of grainy non - glossy paint to eliminate light reflection . The new paint was patented under the name of " Salamandra " and accepted by the ministry . The tests of the modernised 1930 design were successful and by September 1932 the first 120 copies were made by the Bismarck and Silesia steel mills , the latter equipped with a complete production line of German World War I Stahlhelm helmets . Further tests at the Infantry Training Centre in Rembertów near Warsaw led to further minor modifications . Finally the Ministry chose two steel mills as contractors for serial production . The Kielce - based " Huta Ludwików " factory started serial production of helmet shells from a nickel - chrome - molybdenum steel alloy provided by the Baildon Steel Mill . At the same time some of the helmets were being produced from less durable manganese steel . Due to project ' s secrecy it was officially referred to in military purchase orders as " kettle production " . Initially costing 21 , 70 złoty apiece , with time the price dropped to 16 , 50 złoty . The first batches of serially - produced helmets entered field service in January 1933 . Initially issued to infantry and artillery , in time it was also provided to the Polish Navy and Border Protection Corps . The Border Guards and State Police were provided with a variant of the wz . 31 helmet with a large ( 10 centimetres in diameter ) White Eagle adorning the forehead . However , at the end of the 1930s it was determined that the standard Polish wz . 31 helmet was unsuitable for tank troops and motorized units ; while offering decent protection , it was too large and heavy . Because of that most of motorised units continued to use German Stahlhelm , while cavalry used French Adrian Helmet . The latter was also issued to many of the units mobilised in 1939 . Variants . Export version . The export variants were identical to the original wz . 31 helmet except for the paint : instead of standard khaki used in Poland the Spanish Republic used black mat . hełm wz . 31 / 50 . While the production of the wz . 31 ended with the German and Soviet occupation of Poland in 1939 , the Kielce - based Huta Ludwików retained large numbers of original helmet shells in its warehouses . After the war production did not resume and instead the Polish Army was equipped with Soviet Ssh - 39 helmets . However , the remaining wz . 31 shells were fitted with lining from German M1935 helmet and issued to various military colleges .