M40/55 Finnish/German contract Stahlhelm (fitment questions)

[knave1939]

Hi there!

I just received an "Original Finnish M40/55 WWII Type Steel Helmet Made by Germany, 58cm, US 7 1/4" from International Military Antiques (their ebay store, specifically). I got it for its affordable price and somewhat historical value; I'm basically new to collecting pieces, figured this would be an ok start.

As far as I know it seems legitimate, and this guy did a fairly informative video on it: (rockymountainralph - YouTube). It also has old Finnish newspaper clippings stuck to it, so at least that adds to it, haha.

However, I'm a bit confused about the fit - it's extremely tight and doesn't go that far down on my noggin. I measured 58 cm around on my skull - maybe 58.5 at the greatest, yet this thing doesn't get even get that far down.

I believe the liner and chinstrap is Finnish. The liner seem to be white leather around what I think is an aluminum band with white foam, held in place by split pins with cork spacers between the liner and the helmet.

There is a "58" stamped on the liner, but I'm just really having a tough time believing this is actually 58 cm. At the rear, there is a pretty large gap featuring two cork spacers. Is this normal or do you think it was added later, that this was modified to fit a smaller-than 58 cm head?

I was curious what you would do... would you modify it somehow or just return it and order a 59/60 cm one? Below are pics. Thanks for your help!!