Thanks, Everybody! This one is coming along and fitting well. First...the cockpit covering.
I used Erik's idea of reaming out the cut circle with, in this case, the end of my paint brush...it makes the light openings for the interior look very clean indeed.
I found it best to add this part first and then the rest of the fuselage sections. I could get a good "click" fit with very little seam showing this way. Then I added the cockpit edging.
Then I needed to detail the engine before putting the sides on and the front fuselage. I added the kit stacks, but used my own wire for the manifold, made some valve springs and suggestions of rocker arms. I also added two spark plugs per cylinder and the plug wiring that fished to the front of the engine. I didn't add the magnitos since nothing is seen up there and I'd really need to modify things to have this work out. These are not terribly accurate, but they dress the engine up. If I made this guy again, I'd just make my own engine from scratch...I think this machine should have an Austro-Daimler 150 hp engine which is really different from the similar German ones. My engine is sort of a hybrid from what I could see on the internet. Most every shot of the D-I shows a 200hp monster!
Finally, I got the first part of the skins one. It looks super cool, it not a little flappy at the tail!
Everything fit really well...few seams! I'm pleased. I'll start on the forward underside next and work my way to the tail.
Thanks for looking,
Dan