Titanium helmet with the index STSh-81 “Sphere”.

This helmet was developed in the early 1980s on order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR and was presented in 1985 under the index STSh-81 (special titanium helmet of the 1981 model). It was mainly used by the internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR.

This helmet is also called “diapers” for the special forces, who use it today in the war in Ukraine. Carrying such a helmet is a real “pleasure” because it weighs more than two kilograms (2.4 kg). It is a very rare and archaic model of head protection from the Soviet Union, consisting of three titanium plates. According to legend, this helmet protects the entire surface of the head from any bullets from pistols and any fragments. Well, according to legend.

In 1994, an attempt was made to modernize it because producing titanium helmets was very expensive and Russia had no money or titanium for this. So they did this: they replaced titanium with steel and started producing helmets under the index “SSh-94 Sphere-S” (special steel helmet). But carrying a helmet weighing 3.5 kg turned out to be quite a task.

An art object made from such a helmet will be an exclusive item in your collection. Such a helmet is very rare on the battlefields, and finding it is very difficult.

You can read more about this helmet at the following links: In English: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sfera_(helmet)

In Russian (about the STSh-81 titanium helmet): https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A1%D0%A2%D0%A8-81

There is a video about ballistic tests of this helmet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48r3Ag8SG8g

You can learn more about the history of helmet development here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3obgVF8ckQ