you can do better
nick, I'll try to explain.
It looks like you jumped to conclusion and put too much emphasis on aligning the leading edge and and the row of clecos per plan and are now trying to work backwards from there.
My sheet of aluminum came from Vans with two patterns traced on them. These patterns were plenty big. I cut them out exactly on the lines.
Once the patterns are cut, Shape them by hand by running them across your thigh at an angle, which will form the bend and the twist. Try to get them to follow the shape of the canopy as best as possible, but it doesnt have to be perfect.
Now, slide the sheet metal up, down, all-around over the canopy and fuse until you find a "best fit". start trimming and shaping from there.
To be honest, i trimmed very little from the template, and the majority was from the bottom. The top near the doghouse was barely trimmed at all. The leading and trailing edges werent trimmed at all. My trailing edge overlaps the fuselage by about two inches and is parallel to the fuse skin.
you will need a to fashion a hole finder to drill the holes. the bottom rear corners are the hardest to massage into place. One of mine still needs some stroking. Other than that, my skirts are so tight, the slider from doesnt touch the roll bar anymore. The plans tell you to place a 1/16" spacer between the slider and the rollbar when you are setting the rear skirts to help it close tight when the spacer is removed. I wish I used a 1/32 spacer or none at all.
check out my build log to see how it turned out. Good Luck