spring metal identification help please

[Vintage Veloce]

View media item 85217So I have this little spring clip, about 1.25" x 1" from my dad's old flight helmet. It is 0.013" thick. I need to fabricate another one of these as they aren't available anywhere.
In the picture above, it is on top of a copper and a brass sheet for color reference. This original was made in the late 1950's, so I suspect it is a metal that was commonly available then. It is not magnetic.
Can anyone identify what this is likely made from? It must be some kind of spring metal, so that it can function properly.

 

[fasteddie]

Is it magnetic?

 

[Lelandwelds]

Lots of alloys date to Vietnam, WWII, and earlier. Is it steel? Is it magnetic? Plated? Some of the pre EPA zinc chromates looked a bit like brass.

Have you posted a question on the forums for military history buffs? There is a forum for everything. There are endless discussions about medal citation order and how to get the perfect green tint to parkerizing, etc. Somebody knows. Hell, somebody may make reproductions.

 

[The Cobbler]

I know it's not maybe a perfect solution, but banding iron has a bit of a spring to it, and can be worked fairly easily

 

[Vintage Veloce]

It's not magnetic.
Could it be Phosphor Bronze Spring Temper 510? I found that is some of my googling...

 

[Lwel9226]

? ? Stainless Steel ?????

LynnW

 

[fasteddie]

Possibly spring copper.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beryllium_copper

 

[4 FN 27]

It could be Spring Copper, or Blue Clock Spring with a Copper Flash or Full Hard Stainless Steal with Copper Flash.

Not sure if you want to do this but can you scratch the Copper and see if it is a Copper Flash over another type of material?

Blue Clock Spring would be Magnetic. The Stainless might have a little magnetic pull.

 

[fasteddie]

I don't know how historically accurate you want to get on this but here's an idea. Pick up a stainless steel blank outlet cover and work your piece out of that. You can probably get that copper plated look by rigging up a simple electroplating setup in a glass jar.

 

[gorilla]

Years ago I made lots of springs from Beryllium copper kinda looks like the same stuff

 

[MBfreak]

My guess is that it is this: Could it be Phosphor Bronze Spring Temper 510?

If anybody seriously thinks about using metal with Beryllium as part of the mix, please read up on the properties of Beryllium Oxide , especially the dust particles that may be present. Really poison!
BeO was once used as excellent isolation heat transfer washers in electronics,but more or less gone now.
People machining or filing themto fit suffered a lot of problems.

Ola