Going back to your original post:
First, you’ll not find a cheap rotomolded (RM) sit-on-top (SOT) that is also light … at least by my definition of “light”.
If you really want a sit-on-top, take a look at the Hurricane Skimmer. It comes in different length’s (11’ 6" weighs 42 lbs). I don’t see many Hurricanes in the north, but they’re far more plentiful in the SE so you should be able to check one out. Some have said that older Hurricanes have durability issues, but I can’t speak to that.
I’m far more familiar with Eddylines and agree with others who recommend them. However, both Eddyline and Hurricane use thermoformed hulls. They have weight and perhaps other advantages, but the ability to stand “a lot of abuse” vs RM isn’t one of them.
If you really plan to beat the thing up, you might consider buying a cheap, used RM boat and deal with the extra weight by spending your money on a rack system with some kind of lift assist.
I recall when paddling mags had annual issues that contained the specs on a wide range of the currently available kayak models. Very useful to be able to compare weights and features. But I have not seen those in recent years (probably due to the gradual demise of print media).
I’ve randomly collected data on older boats over the years wherever I could find such information. I’ve felt that I should set up a spread sheet to compile it – something that could be useful to share among those of us who scavenge for used boats for ourselves or to recommend to others. I suppose the reason I have not created such a central data resource is that I had to expend so much of the final decades of my professional career tediously building and managing freaking databases. But after being retired for 8 years now it’s past time to get over that…
Ok they’re Subaru Crossbars, Probably made by Thule for Subaru, I know the other ones that extend beyond the rails are.
These mount between the rails they’re only the width of the rails (inside to inside.) which is fine.
Now as for transporting your kayak, Ues you can just tie down to the cross bar, but I do not recommend this especially with this type of cross bar.
as there’s no real good way to secure the boat. so for this type of setup I would recommend a Kayak rack. Normally I’d suggest a good set of J-Hooks but hefting your boat onto you Crosstrek is your main concern, hence a light boat.
so if price was no option, Id day go for a Hullavator (Thule) as this is basically a boat lift but it’s kind of expensive. Thule and Yakima both have similar options and are the most costly. $899.
Amazon has knock offs for around half.
So I would point you at something like this from Malone
this allows you to load the boat from behind as the carrier has an extension that overhangs your car and allows you to lift the nose of the boat onto it. and then slide it up and into place.
This is better than the suction cup stick on the back of your window things that really do not work (I have 4-all failures.)
The neat thing here is since you are only lifting the nose of the boat up boat weight will be less of an issue as you lift the nose up into the cradle then lift the rear and push forward.
I do something similar with a 18 ft 68lb boat, although my crossbars on the crosstrek extend over the side of the car. I simply lift the nose of the boat up onto the Crossbar, then I just lift the rear up, and rotate it into the cradle I then do the same with the front pushing it up off the crossbar and then into the cradle.
Either way these will open up your options for boats and potentially allow you to look at a somewhat better and more capable boat.
You will be laying the boat directly on the crossbars, but when you wrap the straps they should got around the factory mounted lateral bars, not the crossbars. You should use good quality 1" webbing straps with cam buckles. You can get these at stores like REI, EMS and L. L. Bean. Do NOT use ratchet straps as they will deform your boat from the pressure, especially on hot days. A pair of 12’ long 1" straps is a good start. Also get a 25 to 50’ hank of some good midweight 1/4" or 3/8" nylon or polyester braided rope so you can fasten the bow and stern to the front and rear of the car for additional security.
I think you are overly anxious about your ability to load a kayak on a normal car. Lots of people do it without having to spend $1000 on fancy loading mechanisms like the Hullavator. Like anything, it takes some getting used to and finding the most comfortable way for you to manage it. I’m an elderly average sized woman (I’ll be 74 in 3 weeks) with a Mazda CX-5 with a Thule rack mounted on the factory laterals. I have solo loaded boats up to 18 feet long and as heavy as 70 plus pounds on that car and previous cars (Volvo wagons, a Subaru Outback and a Hyundai Santa Fe.
Get yourself a boat first and then get a reality check on how you can load it before jumping to conclusions.
Great stuff. And as far as light and cheap, I agree with what someone suggested on Hurricane–light and cheap. Of course Eddyline SOTs are beautiful, but of course not cheap unless you get lucky with a used. Not sure about Hurricanes being durable as I have compared them to eddyline and delta and not quite the same quality, but I never owned a Hurricane and it seems to have a cult following.
Based on your follow-on info, I agree the way to go is used, as light as you can get. It is the 3 legged stool scenario–cost, quality, performance (weight in this case). Can usually focus on two, but has to be a tradeoff somewhere.
o wow, so much info… need to digest all of it. Thanks!
I use the Malone Sea Wing for my touring yak and the Malone Mega Wing for my crescent ck1, they fit simultaneously on my honda crosstour. Easy to load. The lighter 40 pound boat I load from the side, the 60 pound/34 inch ck1 I have to load from the back. I just lay a furniture blanket pad over the rear hatch. I agree the suction cup thing is crap.
The various products, including the suction cup rollers, are essential for certain car shapes, so it’s good to be aware of them as a possibility.
The Malone SeaWing/Stinger thing works great on my Mazda3 because the stinger can rest on the rear hatch structure, but the boat would scrape the paint below the hatch window if I didn’t use the suction cup rollers, which are a godsend, and with them I can just run the boat up onto the seawings. One roller shape works in that situation, other shapes do not.
In the case of my wagon, the stinger doesn’t reach to any structure to support it, so it is not at all useful, so I use a suction cup roller which reaches above the rear lip of the tailgate, and it is a godsend because I can just run the boat up it into the seawings.
Blankets or foam sheets tend to move during load, and they rub the dirt on the car into the paint.
There are caveats with the rollers - you need to focus on attaching the suction cups to the glass to get them secure, and the mechanism on the one on my wagon wouldn’t stay in position, so I drilled a hole through the mechanism and pinned it in the position I need.
Yes the cross bars are fine. The most simple method I have used on Subarus and now Honda CRV is to buy Dakine aeorodynamic sufboard pads, that is about 32 inches wide, and tie the kayak down, upside down with straps as described by others in this thread. A set of the two wide pads cost $50.
You can purchase straps with padded end plugs that fit under your hatchback for a rear tiedown. Front tie downs can go inside the hood to structural screws ( google for youtube examples). For short trips not at highway speed for a 10 ft kayak, front and rear tiedowns are a bit of overkill, but you definitely don’t want your kayak sailing forward in a collision. Early this winter I totaled my subaru with a 10’6" stand up paddle board on Yakima Crossbars and NRS straps, no front or rear tie down, the board stayed in place and unlike the car was not damaged.
There are lots of gimmick devices to make loading kayaks easier, but you can just pad the car with a PFD and load from behind, once you know how, it’s pretty trivial.
Crossbars are fine, but they don’t offer much lateral support and the lack of padding may make rotomolded boats more susceptible to oil canning on hot days. For thermoform or composite boats the crossbars or the boat may be scratched.
The cheapest option are foam blocks on the crossbars, but if loading from the rear they can tend to roll over.
A better option are padded saddles. Some incorporate rollers for rear loading.
For solo loading from the rear, if you have one of those silly flimsy plastic spoilers and can’t just use a bath mat or your spray skirt, they make different load assist hardware.
Rear extender.
Side Extender
If carrying more than one boat keep in mind the vehicle roof load limit. 150 lbs for most Subarus including the weight of any added rack components.
whoa!
Wow–if nothing else, the OP got a whole mess of options and experiences and I’ve learned a bunch watching this thread. Which goes to show that there is an easier way for everyone and just have to find what works.
About 10 yrs ago I had a 4Runner with a large plastic spoiler. I make a roller assist gizmo from a v-shaped dock roller. Soon after, Oak Orchard (near Rochester NY) started selling similar products.
If your Crosstrek has roof rails the dynamic load limit is 150 pounds TOTAL, not per bar. Here is a screenshot from the Crosstrek user manual:
The car will support much more than that standing still (hence people can sleep in a rooftop tent), but that is how much you can drive with on top.
There have been several other threads on this site that discuss these limits, if interested in more info please do a search.
It’s a sit in,but perception sunrise 10 ft kayak may work for you.
If the budget is in this arena, here is one that you’d have to order, but you’d have to speak to them and see if it’s too small for you to be fitted to.
https://paddlelincoln.com/quoddy-light-kayak/
In semi-custom kayaks it’s often possible to have foot pegs and even seats moved a bit to fit longer or shorter legs. To get a truly custom fit however you need to build a kayak to specific measurements and only hand made one-off kayaks can do that.
A custom kayak is necessarily expensive in either time or money or both.
The easiest to get a prefect fit from is the skin on frame (so I am told) but all SOF kayaks share the same problems and the same strengths. The high points of a SOF kayak is ease of custom fitting and light weight. The “problems” are no flotation as built so they are dependent on float bags or dry bags to haul any cargo, and of course they are not as tough and not as long-lasting as more durable builds.
A stitch and glue is the easiest to make is starting with a kit but quite exactly to build if you are starting only with a set of plans.
A strip-built is probably the best of all for custom fitting but also the most time consuming and therefore the most expensive of them all if you don’t do the work yourself. But a strip built kayak can be fitted to any set of dimensions you need and made to fit in the same way a tailored suit can be fit.
So says all the books I am reading on the subjects anyway…
Those with hands-on experience may want to chime in here.
I do have a spoiler. Also, sorry for stupid question, but what
am I to do with antenna? If I put kayak right on crossbars, do I need to remove antenna?
Is the antenna flexible? i know that the taller ones on a couple of my vehicles could bend down without being damaged. Once you install a cross rack it will sit higher than the lateral factory rails. You can also get J-racks or stackers for the crossbar rack so whatever boat you get can be carried on its side along one side of the rack, clearing the antenna.
By the way, before we keep going down the road with recommendations for you it would be useful to all of us (you especially) if you would provide the following details:
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Your height and approximate weight (so we are not wasting your time suggesting boats that will not fit you.
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What area you live in and how far you would be willing to drive to get a boat if a used one showed up nearby, or not so nearby>
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Your real maximum budget for getting a boat (and you need to include at least $300 for a decent PFD and paddle in that amount)