Suspect Japanese flight helmet...

[dr greg]

I bought this today, being told it was taken from a crashed Zero in the New Guinea campaign, but closer inspection reveals an English maker LEDUX, now I'm assuming the IJAAF might have been up to providing their own flight gear so i'm thinking it might be Pre-WW2 or even maybe WW1, any experts agree?

 

[dr greg]

OK a bit of googling, which for some reason has different results on mobile phones, reveals it may be WW1...still, any input welcome...

 

[Story]

Apparently, Ledux was a clothing company that made motorcycling wear.
http://www.artfact.com/auction-lot/a-ledux-motor-clothing-catalogue-with-illustratio-1-c-2119vmknwf

They were owned at some point up until 1958 by Hope Manufacturing Company
http://books.google.com/books?id=9R...E4Q6AEwBA#v=onepage&q="ledux garments&f=false

https://www.duedil.com/company/00128217/hope-manufacturing-company-limited

The point is that it may be WWI, or a simple post-war motorcycle helmet, or some early WWII RAF personal purchase item appropriated by a Japanese pilot - but the 'REG' is different than the "Registered" postscript on other Ledux labels (which you probably discovered in your googling). That "REG" will probably tell an expert what time period the label dates.