I decided rather than a shim for spacing the hinge / cowl, it only needed a small countersink on the 1/8" hinge. This should locate everything and some pro-seal will provide a bit of vibration support, I think the VANs instructions pre-date the new cowls which are significantly thinner than the original.
Then with the weather playing the game and no wind we went to a mini-spraying session. Included were a number of parts for topcoat.
Next up for me was the canopy frame again. Cleco'd everything back together and ready for brace drilling.
