The difference in VHT and Duplicolor is very minor. The VHT is just slightly less transparent but not really all that noticeable unless they are side by side.
I've had another look and the star does look too small. The curved shield is just over 10 inches in diameter yet the star only measures just over 9 inches point to point
I thought the same about the star, collected my new shield on Saturday from Arnie and after talking to him at length it seems they may consider an etched star at a later date. I'm going to construct a new star for my shield as the metal is also a little thick for my liking but hey it was free so wasn't going to turn it down.