Hey Pontiac, I'm new here as well but I just wanted to say that I have pretty much the same anode setup as you. I'm using a jumper made out of solid copper wire with two aligator clips to tie the two anodes together. The fact that the anodes are slightly askew as they hang on the tank should make no noticable difference. Just get them aligned as closely as possible to get the best coverage. My setup is working great like this despite the challenges with my current rectifier.
Based on the testing I have been doing with my new setup over the last few days, I get the same sandpaper finish whenever I push too much current through the part(s). As seanc stated, 1.5 amps is way too much much current for the two parts as described. Once I started doing the calculations and ignored the visual indicators(fizzing), my plating results have improved.
Good luck with your testing..
