Dealing with a floppy 1/4" by 16' piece of wood seemed like an easy way to make a mess, so I partially screwed it on at one end and left the other end free.
Then I spread some goop on the boat for the 6 feet or so near the free end. The Vulkem116 is fairly low viscosity and spreads easily. It's much softer and less sticky than silicon and masonry caulks that I've used before (not on a boat)/
This allowed me to then screw the free end down for the first couple of feet, unscrew the the other and to free it up, and then continue down the length. It also allowed me to ensure that the goop was spreading across the entire surface due to the pressure from the screws.
I got good squeeze out along most of the length, but had to use a craft stick to push in a little in some places along the top. This was due to hand rounding over the plywood edge in advance of making the rubrails, which I shouldn't have done. It left a bit of a wide gap at places and this is where I needed to add a little more of the goop.
Cleanup was easy. I just wiped it off with a paper towel. It smears a little, so I used a two towel approach, one to pick up the worst of it, and then a clean one to get the smeared part wiped off. It may have left a thin film on the surface as some places feel slightly different, but it can't be seen. If it discolors or something I'll give it a buffing with a scotch-brite pad and retouch the varnish if needed.
The color match was great, so despite my poor planning resulting in less than ideal fit, the bead isn't noticeable until up close, so I don't think I'll bother to sand and paint, at least for now.
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