The last 2 boats I've had I replaced the rubrail but never with stainless steel. I used the plastic with rubber insert which can be a pain in the a$$ to get the rubber insert set.
Good luck getting the stainless to bend around the front, I would just use the rubber rail they use today, I did mine, and it was quite easy with 2 people.
I helped a friend of mine replace the rub rail on his cafe racer. It was a breeze. He just replaced old stainless with new stainless. I've heard that the insert was the most difficult part of the plastic & rubber variety. I think it cost about $300 to do his 35' cig.
