What a terrific story! Sounds like at LEAST a dozen things I've done similarly -
Doing 5 hours of work for a 1 hour result. Stuff like that.
Why not put thin door weatherstrip (home variety) under where the Dzus fasteners go to avoid the scratching? That's the only place mine scratches/touches the car. I don't use the fasteners at all, so it probably shifts a bit while riding.
If that's a secondary 'scratch' problem, the adhesive magnetic strips could reduce that, sans fasteners. Just a thought.
Have fun, write it up, take lots of pictures. Selfishly, I'm delighted your wife is going since that'll make the stories that much better.
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