Hello Chris,

No Guru here, but since no one else has commented ...

Many people regard rubrails as somewhat sacrificial, and if you wrap the deck glass around the rubrails it will be a bigger (but not impossible) job to replace them in the future.

My personal preference is to radius the edges of decks just enough to allow the deck glass to be carried down onto the hull sides so that it overlaps the hull glass by a couple of inches. I like to think that strengthens the hull-deck joint and also does a good job of sealing it against moisture.

If I wanted to add rubrails I would mount them so that their top edges are just enough below the level of the deck (maybe 3/16") so that their inboard surfaces are in complete contact with the flat vertical sides of the hull.

If you want them very easy to remove and replace you can mount them using bedding compound and brads, but my approach would probably be to bond them in place with thickened epoxy and no permanent fasteners.

I think it really comes down to personal preference. There are many ways that work well.

Hi Old Yeller,

Many thanks for your reply and advice. When carrying the deck glass onto the sides, how do you manage the transition? I'm imagining trimming the deck cloth when it is tacky but since its not trimmed to a hard edge will that be difficult?

Chris

   Run a line of tape where you want the deck glass to stop.  Wet the deck glass out and down the sides just far enough to overlap the tape a little. Wait a few hours until the epoxy in still green but no longer tacky.  With a very sharp razor, cut the glass along the edge of the tape, and use the tape to pull it off.  The result is a straight seam that is easy to fair out.

Mark,

Great suggestion! Thanks for sharing your expertise, and the photo of your lovely kayak.

Chris