Not only did the canopy skirt fit poorly, but I later discovered that it extended too far aft, such that it would hit the empennage fairing when it was slid fully open. So, this week I made some measurements to see how far aft of the canopy frame the skirt could extend without hitting the empennage fairing when the canopy was fully open. I also looked at the case of removing the canopy by sliding it aft until the sliding block in the centre rear slipped off the rear track. In this case I assumed that I would remove the empennage fairing to allow more room - the leading edge of the vertical stabilizer then becomes the place the skirt will hit first.

This weekend I redrilled the holes in the aft part of the canopy skirt, where it mounted to the canopy frame. I've still got some trimming to do at the rear where it fits around the canopy track, but the fit along the aft portion is much, much better than it was before. I now think there is some hope to get an acceptable fit. I'll finish the trimming, then figure out how I am going to splice the two halves of the skirt back together - I had to cut it in two at the rear in order to get a decent fit. Van originally shipped the canopy skirt in one piece. But so many builders couldn't get it to fit correctly without having to split it into two pieces that he started shipping them that way.