tests began on an improved Stahlhelm, whose design was a development of World War I models. The company "Eisenhüttenwerke Thale" (today Thaletec) carried out prototype design and testing, with Dr Friedrich Schwerd once again taking a hand. The new helmet was pressed from sheets of molybdenum steel in several stages. The size of the flared visor and skirt was reduced, and the large projecting lugs for the obsolete armour shield were eliminated. The ventilator holes were retained but were set in smaller hollow rivets mounted to the helmet's shell. The edges of the shell were rolled over, creating a smooth edge along the helmet. Finally, a completely new leather suspension, or liner, was incorporated that greatly improved the helmet's safety, adjustability, and comfort for each wearer. These improvements made the new M1935 helmet lighter, more compact, and more comfortable to wear than the previous designs. The Army's Supreme Command within the Third Reich's Wehrmacht or combined armed forces officially accepted the new helmet on June 25, 1935 and it was intended to replace all other helmets in service. More than 1 million M1935 helmets were manufactured in the first two years after its introduction, and millions more were produced until 1940 when the basic design and production methods were changed. Gladiator civil defense helmet In 1938, the Germans developed a variant of the Stahlhelm with a wider, flared peak and ventilation holes originally intended for civil defense and Luftschutz personnel. Known as the gladiator pattern, the privately purchased Luftschutz helmet was originally made from three pieces of steel and typically painted black or dark blue. Later in the war these were issued to Volkssturm personnel, and sometimes repainted in Feldgrun. By 1944, the helmets were stamped from a single steel sheet, and the original leather lining replaced with vinyl or cloth to reduce costs. A modified postwar version in fluorescent green, white or yellow continued to be issued to rescue workers in the Bundesrepublik until the early 1990s. M1940 The M1935 design was slightly modified in 1940 to simplify its construction, the manufacturing process now incorporating more automated stamping methods. The principal change was to stamp the ventilator hole mounts directly onto the shell, rather than utilizing separate fittings. In other respects, the M1940 helmet was identical to the M1935. The Germans still referred to the M1940 as the M1935, while the M1940 designation were given by collectors. Fallschirmjäger version