This helmet has become quite a mystery.  I originally bought this helmet due to the extreme wear, the rare blue facemask, and the super-rare 1st generation side mount shockblockers.  I rarely see any helmet - anywhere with those shockblockers and had never owned a helmet with a pair.  Not being a Bills follower - after receiving the helmet I started the research.  Who the heck was #51.  Ahh, Jim Ritcher, long time Bills starter at left guard - no wonder the wear on both the inside and outside of the helmet.  Jim played for the Bills from 1980 through the 1993 season and made the Pro Bowl a couple of times.  Nice.  While trying to photo match the helmet, I discovered a couple things.  One, there were not many photos of Ritcher available from 1984 through 1986 - the years the Bills wore the blue mask on the red helmet; and two, I could not find one photo of Ritcher wearing a Rawlings helmet.  Ritcher clearly was a BIKE/Schutt guy.  Over the years, while this helmet has been safely on display in a cabinet, I have sent photos to a couple of avid Bills helmet collectors.  Although very interested and agreeing that it was a Bills gamer, they too could not find photos of Ritcher wearing Rawlings. 

The helmet is a Rawling RTS helmet - sometimes referred to as a "Noodle" model - based off of the surgical tubing that Rawlings used and thought was a good idea at the time to protect the head in football's trenches.  Over the years, the surgical tubing (noodles) would become brittle, would break, and come loose from the helmet.  Today, most that you find, you hold the helmet in one hand and the padding in the other - or the padding is gone altogether.  Some helmet "geeks" have rebuild noodle padding with modern surgical tubing to refurbish helmets like this one. 

The exterior of the helmet has a tremendous amount of wear.  The center stripe is full of green transfer marks - either from the two games against the rival Jets, or the Eagles whom the Bills played in 1984.  As noted above, the mask and side 1st gen shockblockers are very rare.  The padding has become loose.  The front is holding firm while the back has become loose from the helmet.  It is apparent that the rear vinyl/leather sweatband was tucked up into the rear of the helmet rather than wrapping around the helmet edge - given the pure white color of the bumper and also the positioning of the #51 on the rear of the helmet.  The helmet is original as the day I bought it with no alterations of any kind.  The logos, striping, and player identifier on the rear are all original to the helmet and are adhered well with no lifting.  Interesting to note - there are two holes drilled in the rear of the helmet.  These holes were drilled by the Bills equipment manager to install adjustable straps to the rear of the helmet that would buckle to the players shoulder pads.  I have owned two other Bills game used helmets from this same period and both helmets have those holes.  Photos of Ritcher show that he had those straps attached to the helmets that he would wear.  

So, there you have it.  Do the research.  If you find something and you are interested in the helmet - don't tell me or I may increase the price.  If you find something and you are not interested in the helmet, please tell me so that I can increase the price or pull the helmet and continue to love it behind the glass of the cabinet.  

A classic Bills helmet.  Is it a Ritcher?  Don't know - however he is the only Bill that wore #51 for 14 seasons and the only #51 during the three (3) seasons that the Bills wore the red helmet with the blue mask.  Was it a practice helmet?  Was it issued to someone else and then repurposed for Ritcher to try after receiving concussions and headaches wearing his BIKE helmet?  Who knows.  However, regardless the story - it is a very cool helmet and the only one that I have ever seen.  Thanks for the interest.

Needless to say, you are purchasing this as a Bills game used helmet from the '84-'86 era.  Please don't purchase the helmet as a Ritcher and when you can't find a photo want to return it.  The title and the buy button call it a Bills game used helmet - that's what it is.  Thanks.