My modified hinges worked perfectly. They no longer squeak and pop when you close the hood. Glass beaded the crap out of them then packed them with grease. New jesus clips, as my dad called them, from RestoRick and just like new.
Next was a lot of tweaking and aligning to get the old girls panels installed for good. It took a bit but the door work perfectly and the gaps are not bad for not trying to get it perfect with filler.