wow...that is very clever thank you, I didnt know you could offset a texture lookup position!

I half implemented the first solution, until I saw you cant have different UV layouts for each skin. In skin1, which is the color/diffuse, the UV map is spread out all over it. In skin2, which has the "double texture" dimension(rim light and SSS, 128 x 256), I cannot move the UV to the left without effecting every other skin. I would need to move the UV to the left on every skin correct? All skins must have the same ratio in this case...which means the Color map in skin1, would need a blank spot to the right.

Does having a dedicated effect map in an entity skin overcome this? I dont see how it can, since model skins still need UV layouts in the skins.