OK Kids...Here are the results. Thinking I could move the lower ball in to aviod the Battery cover rub was a FAIL. This is because the cause of the hood bulge is the Body of the strut hitting the Front-back molded rib in the hood...The one that drops into the foam cradles. I tried several locations for the ball and could not avoid interference here with the consequent bulge. I finally moved things in enough that the strut tube parallels the hood form and no longer interferes anywhere with the closure. Need to finish up the other side but this will give you an idea:
Fail:
Success:
You need to drill a 1/2 hole in the battery cover:
Works great even with only one strut in...