I just did this project last month. I precisely measured every area that would require cove base and arrived at 135' 10" thus I opted for the 120' coil and four 4' pieces. I purchased mine at Lowes (Flexco ThermoPlastcRubber Wall Base 4"X120'X1/8"). I purposely selected an alcove area to install the 4' strips because of the seams. I had no issue with the coil material not standing up straight against the wall. In fact, it went up very well. My longest continuous piece was, as memory serves me, about 40' long with two inside corners. I measured tree times and cut once! I ended up with one seam in the area I used the coil. The alcove area looks good also but three seams are present and I prefer the look of a smooth, non-broken cove base. I applied the adhesive using just a putty knife.
The biggest issue I had was with the Lowes representative in charge of flooring! My wife wanted a different color other than the three colors available at Lowes. Even though Flexco's policy is a single price regardless of color (FlexOne Pricing), Lowes was going to charge nearly double to order the other color ($69 for the in-stock versus $112 for the other color). I purchased two of the in-stock 4' strips in different colors so that see what it would look like. We then opted for one of the in-stock colors. After watching a couple of YouTube videos concerning the installation, I was off and running.
As for the differences in vinyl versus rubber. I seem to remember reading that one material must be allowed to acclimate to the space whereas the other can be installed immediately but I could not locate that information this morning.
