Kayak Mount Options

[StashT4R]

Sort of a random question here, but I figured someone out there could give me some good personal insight... wife and I are looking to add two 10-12ft kayaks to our hobby collection, and I’m looking for some roof mounting suggestions. I’ve done some research on it, but looking to see if anyone has any first hand experience that could point me in the right direction.

Need to be able to carry 2x 10-12ft kayaks, roof top mount, and hopefully not be a complete and total PITA to get the boats onto the roof and secured.

Help a kayak rookie out

 

[RET2]

Inflatable models. no, seriously.

 

[CharlieS]

Thule crossbars can be attached to the factory rails. You can get them in all different widths. From there you can lay them flat, put on kayak racks, etc. I find the J shaped mounts to be pretty useful and easy to use (ours are Rhino brand). It is fairly easy to load and unload, even though I have a minor lift and am under 6’ tall.

Although this is obviously not two kayaks, you can see how it could work.

 

[eatSleepWoof]

I have two sets of generic, folding J-bar kayak mounts. They work well. What I don't like is the 1) wind noise they add when not hauling kayaks, 2) can't go through the car wash with them on. So I end up taking them off after every kayak trip, which is a pain in the butt. Simple process, but each mount (there are four for two kayaks) requires threading on four star nuts, and that adds up to being a pain. I'd love to come up with some sort of quick-disconnect solution.

 

[dcs111]

I kept the factory rack. We run two light duty cargo straps across middle of boats and use 550 cord for securing the bow and stern. Works great and cost almost nada

 

[StashT4R]

Appreciate the feedback, I hadn’t even considered an inflatable kayak lol.

I’ll take a look into the Thule bars, with J arm mounts. That seems like something that could be a fairly efficient setup. Not trying to break the bank, but I’d gladly pay for a setup that is user friendly and secure.

 

[catastrofe]

We went with the Thule Hullavator. Not an inexpensive option, but certainly the easiest way to load a heavy kayak on the roof. Can be added to factory side rails with Yakima towers and crossbars. Possibly Thule as well.

 

[USMCVader]

I use a Yakima Showboat to help get it up on top of the factory rails. I have foam kayak cradles but they are not built for more than one kayak. To be honest, I am looking for a different cradle system, perhaps Yakima Sweetroll or Deckhand set up if I can find them. The foam cradle I have now is not quite tall enough and the back of the kayak pushes on the Showboat roller a bit.

 

[StashT4R]

The Hullavator looks like a phenomenal system, granted I assume I would need two of them to carry two kayaks at the same time.... that would get pricey pretty quick.

I’m thinking cross bars with the J arm may be my ticket for carry two at the same time. Granted I’m not sure how big of a PITA it will be to load/unload on a taller land cruiser, but that may be my best option.

 

[catastrofe]

The Hullavator looks like a phenomenal system, granted I assume I would need two of them to carry two kayaks at the same time.... that would get pricey pretty quick.

I’m thinking cross bars with the J arm may be my ticket for carry two at the same time. Granted I’m not sure how big of a PITA it will be to load/unload on a taller land cruiser, but that may be my best option.

Yes, definitely a pricey option for two sets. Have you thought of just a single tandem kayak? For us, we realized that neither one of us would ever go kayaking solo (even thought it might sound nice). That's how we arrived at the tandem decision.

 

[StashT4R]

That’s actually not the worst idea, as you’re right, solo trips would probably be EXTREMELY rare. We may have to consider that a bit more in depth.

 

[CharlieS]

A lot depends on how strong you are, your height, your range of motion and how heavy the boats are. I can load both my canoe and kayak alone onto the land cruiser, but everyone’s situation is different. I have to stand on the side steps and rear tire to get straps over the top to tie things down. I could see one of those hydraulic assist lifts being awesome!

 

[TimCFJ40]

I've been a paddler forever, and nothing beats the versatility of standard Yakima or Thule load bars. I use wide (76") Yakima bars and kayak stackers with NRS cam straps. Here’s one such load. No issues at all.

 

[lx200inAR]

I just started down the same path. I ordered 2 sets of folding J Cradles off Amazon (random chinese. I don’t think they look as nice as the Thule/Yakima options, but functionally they work fine. I bought one set that is a 4 in 1 and one standard set, since I may need to carry 3 Kayaks on occasion, as well as option to carry canoe or whatever else. The 4 in 1 had no problem carrying 2 12’ kayaks (55 lbs each) from the store, but its much easier to load when you can load one on each side of the truck. These attach well to the factory aero cross bars. The picture is one set loaded from the store. I didn’t get a picture of the 2 sets of racks with one Kayak on either side. Only other note is you can’t fold the arm down to the middle on both sides, they interfere with each other.

IKURAM Kayak/Surf/Ski Roof Carrier Rack of Bilateral Premier J-Style Folding 4-in-1 for Canoe, SUP, Kayaks, Surfboard and Ski Board Rooftop Mount on SUV, Car and Truck Amazon product ASIN B087C1H1N4

 

[Fisher23]

I think that Thule Hullavator is the nicest (but priciest) option out there.

I use just the plain Thule kayak holders "BUT" you need to be very careful not to break that rear spoiler.

I have a trailer to haul kayaks and like that the BEST .. low lift and very easy..



The other option are these bars which I use sometimes --

https://www.etrailer.com/Truck-Bed-Extender/Erickson/EM07600-07601.html?feed=npn&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Google%20%7C%20Shop%20-%20Truck%20Bed%20Extender&adgroupid=101166588195&campaignid=203065937&creative=431609811323&device=c&devicemodel=&feeditemid=&keyword=&loc_interest_ms=&loc_physical_ms=1015160&matchtype=&network=g&placement=&position=&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8Z-bgJjm8AIVkyc4Ch07cg9UEAQYAyABEgKuPvD_BwE

 

[Fisher23]

We went with the Thule Hullavator. Not an inexpensive option, but certainly the easiest way to load a heavy kayak on the roof. Can be added to factory side rails with Yakima towers and crossbars. Possibly Thule as well.

View attachment 2684209

View attachment 2684210

What roof rack is that? .. has a great mounting system!

 

[catastrofe]

What roof rack is that? .. has a great mounting system!

Thanks...it’s a Gamiviti rack. Very versatile.

Products — Gamiviti

www.gamiviti.com

 

[TomCruis]

I use a Yakima Showboat to help get it up on top of the factory rails. I have foam kayak cradles but they are not built for more than one kayak. To be honest, I am looking for a different cradle system, perhaps Yakima Sweetroll or Deckhand set up if I can find them. The foam cradle I have now is not quite tall enough and the back of the kayak pushes on the Showboat roller a bit. View attachment 2684242

Nice. Picked up a showboat and the sweetroll for my 200... will mount them to a Prinsu. Feel like it is the most versatile solution since you could use the showboat roller to load other things up top.

 

[Markuson]

I’ve had various mounts, but frankly, none of them are as handy as just the basic two-piece foam units that have slots for cross bars.

I have a couple mounts from Thule if anyone wants them. The angled side mounts I found to be a pain, because kayaks don’t like to be lifted up on their sides.

Here are my two…back before Bubba was fully built…but they still work well:

Using two sets of these.
Simple, secure, quiet and low.

 

[USMCVader]

These are what I have been using too and they would be fine if I didn’t also have a Yakima Showboat roller on the back. They are just a bit too low and the kayak puts pressure on the Showboat roller. Bought a Thule Dock Grip cradle system to replace them, but have yet to put it on since I live in Rhode Island and we are just now starting to come out of the cold. Depending on how the Thule system works, I can see the potential of having both systems up there, if only to protect the cross bars from my normal wham-bam approach to getting the Kayak on top of the LC.

I’ve had various mounts, but frankly, none of them are as handy as just the basic two-piece foam units that have slots for cross bars.

I have a couple mounts from Thule if anyone wants them. The angled side mounts I found to be a pain, because kayaks don’t like to be lifted up on their sides.

Here are my two…back before Bubba was fully built…but they still work well:

View attachment 2962773

Using two sets of these.
Simple, secure, quiet and low.
View attachment 2962774