I increasingly became interested in a getting a faithful replica of the Dargen helm and decided to give Royal Oak Armoury a try. The vendor contacted me within the same day of the order and was very willing to tweak the design of the helm slightly for me. He made the helm with a period liner from scratch. From time of order it was at my door in 12 days! This man wants your business!As for quality, this is a well made helm. No sharp edges. Overlapping plates are beveled with no undo gaps. In regards to shape and symmetry there really is no difference from my Valentine helm, save for the excellent detail in the period liner attachment. He uses cut-off nails for rivets, which seems to be a practical solution. The only "short-cut" I can discern is in the ocular reinforcement. Instead of the slot being cut out of a solid 4-pronged piece he cuts the plate with 6 prongs and overlaps the plates behind the rear of the ocular when he bends it at the center. No doubt this makes the shaping easier and I cannot fault it as not being a period technique although it does not appear to be done on the original helm. In short: a great vendor who is working hard to get business. Responsive, fast, and producing quality work. Both of my thumbs up.
