So I guess I was relying more on the intstuctions than I was using my brain. It occurred to me that fluting between the rivets really doesn't do any good unless you flatten out the riveted areas afterwards so that the skin lies flat. So I used a very small hammer that I have to flatten these areas out. The skin fit much better and I was able to cleco the skin in place without too much trouble.
Lot of work on this today. I'll rivet the assembly tomorrow.