I am new to collecting German helmets. I picked up a helmet at a gunshow today. I got it on a 1 for 1 trade for a gun that I paid $350 for a while ago and never shot. I have some questions about the helmet itself. I am pretty sure that it is an M40. It is an ET66 and the lot number is 4964 which is consistent with each other, I believe. I am positive that the decals are fake and applied later on in its life. The rivets that hold the line in place are missing. The head band on the inside is consistent with an M40 and is stamped 1943. What I am troubled about is that after I took the liner out I realized that it might have been repainted. Where one of the rivets came out on the outside there is a lighter shade of green paint. On the inside there appears to be paint drips/smears that have run down on the inside. The supposed name of the soldier that owned this is on top of the darker paint so that would mean that it is fake too if the darker paint is fake. Also, if the writing were real, what would "II/FJR3" mean anyways?

Click to enlarge the picture