Oh, these stupid rings. They will need to be painted first and and then attached after the rest of the rocket is painted. I hate that. They will also need to be cut into three pieces, with each piece surface-mounted between two fins. I hate that too. But I can't figure out any way around it, so just need to cope.
First I needed to mark exactly where the fins will intersect each ring. I laid each ring on its fins, centered it as best I could, and marked the locations on the ring, like so:
[note: this was done before I attached the helixes]
Getting the ring centered into place and then making the marks without moving it was incredibly frustrating and difficult. Also of interest: to assist centering the ring on the fins, I made marks on the fins where I though the ring should intersect. The ring ended up landing about 1/16" higher up on each fin than my measured mark. I have no explanation for how this could be so, and it's quite bothersome.
Anyway, I made complete marks across the rings, and also made marks on the inside where the engine hook is:
Those lines on the outside will eventually be cut lines. Then I glued some square 1/8" basswood dowel to each strip, like so:
Now I will have (a) a way to hold the rings while painting them, or I could just stand them up, and (b) a way to put them down to dry. This whole cockamamie scheme comes from having learned when I primed them.
I will still need to mask a bit more to clear some gluing area, and I will likely also need to mask off a bit of the fins where the rings will join, then hand-touch up after gluing them. I hate all that too.
But I gotta have the rings.