That off-set sounds like a win-win idea. Thanks for the complement. The flanges were pretty easy to remove with the belt-sander. It took less than 10 minutes.

I took it today for a test drive. It is just okay. The jury-rig job I did on the FD is good in that it shifts well between the gears. Only problem is that the 3rd ring is a little too far spaced from the middle ring. If I shift it into the 3rd whilst lolly-gagging, the chain falls in between the two gears and I lose drive. I then have to shift back up into middle gear, then downshift into 3rd again.

There were 5 spacers included in the 3rd ring bolt set that I ordered. They have to be installed, otherwise the bolts are too long and the spacing is too short. I am wondering now if I can machine the spacers to be smaller by about 0.4mm. I will also look to see if XXcycle has perhaps an 11 speed bolt kit that would include thinner spacers... :/