Hey…
if you’re happy with cams, by all means use them. I’ve just used ropes all my life and don’t want to change. No maintenance, trucker’s hitch tightens everything as tight as you’d ever want it, and there’s no mechanism to possibly fail. The ropes just seem easier to me. And I’ve never had a knot fail (had a rope break a long, long time ago, but it was parachute cord so no wonder).
I prefer NRS
1.5 inch straps. The additional area distributes the tension and gives a better grip.
has anyone else ever had a knot fail?
– Last Updated: Jul-08-15 1:02 PM EST –
I'm convinced that rack failure, strap failure and rope failure are all in fact cases of user error. I don't think many people use straps because they don't trust rope. More likely because they see straps as faster if given the choice. Part of that is probably not using rope regularly enough.
Straps not needed, if tying knots anyway
Might as well use rope.
Ratchet Straps…
I’ve always just used a pair of ratchet straps on my canoe, not bothering with bow and stern lines. One strap on either side of the “fat” part of the canoe, and I’ve never had an issue.
How far are your load bars apart?
I have
But it was a cheap POS strap that I got from Wal-Mart.
The boat was on the trailer, with another strap, so the kayak gods smiled and it didn’t fall off. Since they came in a two-pack, the other one was ‘taken out of service’. Lesson learned, buy quality stuff.
About 3 and a half feet apart.
I’ve Had Two Buckles Fail…
both on China-made straps. One sold by Masterlock via Amazon ( p/n 3060DAT ) for $10/pair. Do not buy these, the design is defective. The ‘axle’ is merely press fit into the housing. Significant side load can dislodge it and the buckle releases. Luckily this did not happen while securing a kayak.
Needless to say, I don’t use those anymore. I stick with gear from Lodi Metals in Ohio. $4 for 12’ straps with a 500# WLL. 1500# buckles ( not 600 like the “premium” straps mentioned elsewhere in this thread ). Double the strap strength compared to NRS, who don’t seem to quote any meaningful numbers on their gear. Made in Ohio. http://www.lodimetals.com/1-endless-loop-cambuckle-strap-3,000
I buy all my cargo gear from them ( including things to move and tie-down thousands of pounds ), and it’s all top notch and completely affordable.
Discussed before…
I used to just tie to the racks and never used bow and stern tie downs. But I realized that, although I’m perfectly confident in my racks, in the way the Yakima racks attach to the factory roof rack, and in my ropes and knots, what I don’t know for sure because I didn’t install them is the factory roof racks and how strong and secore their attachment to the roof of the vehicle is. I’ve never had any of the system fail, but nowadays I use bow and stern tie downs if I’m going to be on high speed highways, though I don’t use them for short trips on local roads.
Good point
I imagine it’s a different set up for kayaks, but while my canoe is resting on my Thule rack, the ratchet straps run down through my vehicle roof rack rails. I guess if I took it down more highways, I might add extra straps…but here in Maine there’s only a couple of highways. This is the way I was taught to strap on my canoe by a game warden.
So if you were to use ropes
– Last Updated: Jul-09-15 9:08 AM EST –
instead of straps, are the ropes hard on the hull at all? I thought it might be bad for my kayak because there is more pressure concentrated over a smaller area. Maybe the difference is minuscule, though?
I chose straps because it seems easiest to tension. My hubby assures me that his knots won't fail or slip and that it would be more secure than cam buckles. But because I'm not a knot/rope person myself(I don't tie great knots), I'm hesitant to trust knots. Probably kinda dumb. I'm just using what I know I guess. And he just wants to use what HE knows.
I know knots and I still prefer
straps for the very reasons you state.
We have canoes and kayaks, and are constantly changing boats and vehicles
Jack L