The soda industry has done away with the false bottoms on bottles. You are left with trying to find something that will work or build one as the kit suggests. My T-6 has a wooden cowl built as the kit suggests and it is a great match for the plane. I am not sure what happened to the one that you built, however no cowl is going to last long if it is not treated well. Just get some more wood and build another one. Good Luck, Dave