I'm also in the process of building a Byron C.E. I have one that is covered in Econokote - it is an excellent flier, but it dents all the time.

I put my new one aside, I think I am going to put one layer of fiberglass and epoxy, fill the weave with spackle and cover it with econokote. I really don't want the extra weight of a nice paint finish.

I'm going to be using a Zenoah G-45. My other one has a G-38 and is a little under powered (total weight 15 lbs)