I found the hardest part of the N-1 was getting the transition from the body to the tail section smooth. For years I've more or less accepted that these parts are the only way to achieve the look. But with this re-design I really wanted to see what else could work. And, after a lot of trial and error, I ultimately wound-up with this solution, I definitely wouldn't say its perfect (especially not with that gap) but it doesn't break up the ships lines as much as my last tail design did and that's good enough for me! :D The new tail did mean I had to sacrifice having the full astromech inside the ship. However, as far as I'm aware, the real life props of the N-1 couldn't fit the full droid in ether so I don't feel so bad about omitting that particular detail.