(page 12-02) Fitting fairings............           

Had I trimmed the v-stab and rudder fairings to the indentations from the molds, it would have been essentially perfect.  Not knowing this beforehand, of course, I used the fit-remove-trim-repeat method as given in the plans and ended up there after a couple of hours and lots of fiberglass dust.

Sticking with my plan to paint parts before assembly, I'm looking into the Stewart paint system, which is supposedly less toxic.  I'd like to never use Alodine again, if possible.  In the interest of time I considered having the painting done by someone else, but after hearing horror stories about wings being dropped by painters, I'm pretty much resigned to doing it myself.  This, of course, will require purchasing an HVLP spray system and accessories.  $$$.

Notice the cord attached to the top of the v-stab tethering it to the rafters. It would be a disaster if this thing fell over, denting the skin.  I have nightmares about the tail cone falling off the saw horses.