I'd highly recommend any of Tamiya's 1/48 WW-II single engine fighters. The molds are exceptional and they fit like a glove. The decals are a bit on the thick side but there's no other problem with them and aftermarket availability is almost endless.
Who's conversion did you use for the -3 Wildcat? I used the Wildcat kit as a base for a Wildcatfish conversion a few years ago, and had to back-date the -4 kit. It was really easy to do, and wonder if the conversion kit is worth it.
The biggest differances are no wing folds, only two guns in each leading edge, and moving the landing light on the -3. A little putty, some panel rescribing, and a little work to move the light didn't seem so difficult at the time. That hardest part of the Wildcatfish project was locating where the floats attached.
Excellant job on all the aircraft. The 217 looks awesome!!! I have the kit, but haven't started it yet.
I converted mine the same way you did-a little filling and sanding, some rescribing ect...No sweat. I originally had the Koster full 219 kit (as well as an airmodel He 219 full vac kit) Same old thing 1/2 way through and injection kits came out so I used the Koster nose and engines on the Revell/Monogram kit. Never did build the 219-became too popular once the Tamiya shake and bake kit was released.