I have 2 Perception Tribe 13ft 34in x 14 Kayaks. I have been used to stacking and taking them in my truck. I need advice on what j cradle carrier would be best to carry them on my Subaru Ascent.
I wouldnât carry a 34" wide kayak in a J-Cradle. That thing is going to catch a LOT of side wind. If you have enough room to carry them on their bottoms, the Malone MegaWing might be a good option. Often you can mount wing-style carriers towards the outside of your crossbars to effectively give you a wider roof.
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Third on not Jcradles. Malone Mega wings seem like a sound idea.
I would use extension cross bars and haul them upside down side by side.
This is how I can haul two full size 38â wide canoes with no issues on my little KIA Soul. The only drawback is you will want to remove the extensions when not hauling the boats as they will stick past your car and you will hit your head on them. Donât ask how I know that.
I made mine DIY and they only take a couple minutes to put on or take off. Mine are 86â and that allows for lots of room for cam straps to loop around and space between the two boats.
Here is an example of how wing-style carriers can allow you to carry boats âbeyondâ your roof width. These arenât Malone saddles and the boat is about 22" wide, but the idea is the same. Be sure to check the weight capacity of your roof and rack system, too.
Goodboy Racks
Best you can buy.
The best part is that it is infinitely adjustable, front and back bars are easy to remove and American made.
I highly recommend.
Be the last rack youâll ever need.
Brightly colored tennis balls on the ends of the bars if long. Still will hit them but slightly less often and it doesnât hurt as much.
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Tennis balls wouldnât work for me as my extension bars are made from PT 2x4s. I rounded the ends really good and painted them a bright color and that along with remembering they are up there did the trick. In my case I load from the side with my DIY ramp/ladder and I didnât want anything that would catch on the boats sliding them up. In the OPs case with those heavy wide tandem kayaks the ramp idea might be very helpful if loading alone.
I have seen people use pipe even saw PVC pipe used. Also square tubing both aluminum and steel. Saw one DIY design where the guy used square tubing that slipped one inside the other so the extensions could telescope out.
Yup. You have painted them as brightly as possible. Carpeting?
Looks like a great setup.
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I have thought about strip rubber or hard foam, carpet is a good idea also some kind of indoor outdoor would be easy on the gunwales and would slide easy. If my boat was higher quality and not a beater I would be more likely to put something protective on them.
My fear actually with them sticking out is someone walking past when the car is parked and we are on the water not paying attention and running into them. I figured with the bright paint they would see I made an effort to warn them. People in general today donât pay enough attention to their surroundings.
I had two goals with my rack setup, Cheap and Easy.
Maybe cut up a bicycle tube and staple it on the sides of the bar (not the top)? Only problem with that is I doubt it would hold paint well, which is something you would want for visual even with the impact softened. The orange you have is a great color.
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