That looks good - very secure!
I like the loops of strapping material that Thule provides. The carrying handle D-rings keep them in place but there’s no direct strain on them.
My boats stay hull down, but the same idea could be used for hull up…
@sturoc said:
Is there a way to mount a D ring type plate on the Bow and Stern for a better tie off connection rather than using the lifting strap ?
I have a SOF that just has nylon carry straps at the ends. I pass the bow line through the carry strap and then around the hull. The hull carries the load of the bow line, the carry strap just keeps it in place. This would work well on the stern in your setup, maybe not the bow. The deck-down setup on your Jeep looks very solid, BTW.
That is a good method on the stern tie down Carldelo since the pull is down and forward somewhat.
Wih my set up I ran consistent cruising speeds anywhere from 55 to 75 mph, She barely moved.
Again the front and rear tie downs were not real tight, the cam straps on the rails were very snug.
No Oil canning and I was going thru some Hot desert temps.
Use a cockpit cover as well. ( center strap is for that )
Kayak moved around alot when using J Cradles at those speeds, so now the J’s are relegated to being used as storage cradles
where ever I am at, which at $30 for the pair is not a bad application !
One suggestion I would make for your set ups (both Sturoc and KFBrady): always secure the straps holding the kayak not just to the removable rack but also around the factory rack that is integral to the car itself. Racks have been known to come off the vehicle and if your boat is only attached to the rack it will fly off with it. This is easier with lateral racks like I have on my Mazda CX5 , but I also did the same when I had my Thule’s sitting above factory crossbars, as both of your vehicles have.
My aftermarket rails are gutter mounts which clamp down tightly, a total metal on metal clamp. . I check them prior to starting and then again before a return drive. They are always tight. There’s no way these are coming off. The Cherokee’s OEM rails are pretty loose these days and i dont really trust them for big stuff. Cherokee itself has 270k+ miles and going strong .
I wish more vehicles still had roof gutters. That really is a preferable way to mount racks. Damned “wind tunnel” generated and faddish “swoopy style” has ruined the utility of most modern vehicles. Excessively curved windows and quarter panels have distorted and blocked driver view, interior space has become cramped, roof-lines are too short and curved and there is nothing substantial to attach anything to on the outside now that gutters and metal bumpers have gone the way of the buggy whip.
I used to be able to switch my $20 a pair Quick’n’Easy gutter clamps and their adjustable width home-made wooden crossbars from my 1979 Datsun B210 to my 1978 Subaru DL wagon to my 1989 Caravan mini-van to my 1992 Volvo 740 – it fit on every gutter and could be swapped in a few minutes. Now every new car requires several hundred dollars worth of new Thule widgets.
For sure, but they get better mileage.
My 4 cylinder manual transmission '89 Caravan got 30 to 34 mpg on long highway trips. And unlike the automatic transmission version of the 4-banger, it COULD “get out of its own way.” And that is close to the MPGs I get with the 2015 6-speed CX5. The other 3 cars I listed got 25 to 28 mpg on the highway. That’s better than the woe-begotten '02 Outback I suffered for a couple of years ever did.
Well my 92 Jeep gets prob 18 maybe 20 if I am driving in good conditions But I’ll always give up a few mpg’s for reliabity and cargo space any day !
Well this topic seems to be a very common one. Myself, I load my boats up top of my canopy. Pool noodles under them and strap them to the rear bumper, nerf bars and front bumper. I was wrapping the straps around the boats, then to the truck.
I now use a cam strap near the stern and the front of the cockpit. I thread them through a pool noodle, wrap them around the boat in front of the cockpit and near the stern so they are sitting on the pool noodles. With my Chesapeake I add one in the middle to protect the boat because of the rocker. I then tie the cam straps together with one on each side going between the front and back straps. I then put my ratchet straps from the cam straps on the sides to the truck. It seems to hold it pretty solid without torqueing on the actual boat. Oh, and I add a bow line. I’ve often got two boats up there so I cross the bow lines.
That being said, I am planning on having an aluminum rack built for the canopy to carry the boats.