Shields make a big difference to me and I think you are dead on.

"I Think" the knife pictured above has a wire cut shield put in with a mill. The other way is to cut the shield out from flat stock and filed it out from a pattern. Then with chisels hand cut the shield in the Stag or Bone …. I prefer the hand made…hand cut shields.

The above double bomb shield (if you can call it that?) to me seems to have more of those rounded curves (or little less sharp points that you spoke of) than a hand made double bomb shield with sharp points…. Looks less custom and more like a highly produces manufactured knife.

This is just my opinion as a collector, but I would not be surprised if in the future it has a negative factor in re-sale values.