I am thinking about ordering one of these rollers to attach to my Yakima rack. I saw the link on the builders pages. Has anyone used these? I have a 17' kayak and a 16' Old Town. These look like handy devices for the solo canoist. Do they work as well as advertised?
Maine roll on
- Thread starter Don
- Start date
Maine Roll-on
Hi Don:
Ayuh,
I've had one for half a dozen or more years and love it. My father who's pushing 70 years of wisdom also uses one. It lets me take my 18 footers solo. It stays on my car 9-months of the year or more. I have it on a Thule rack on a high SUV. I have one of the older heavier rollers. The newer ones I've seen are constructed of somewhat lighter material.
I carry the canoe to the vehicle on my shoulders, rest the bow onto the roller, walk to the stern and roll the canoe onto the rack. Reverse the routine when unloading.
The only issue I've noticed is that the newer, shorter Thule towers sometimes are not high enough to lower the roller into the lowest notch - so the roller may rest on your factory rack, or you can store the roller on the next notch. There are 3 notches that adjust the height of the roller.
Also get one wide enough to handle the beam on your canoe.
(PS: I have no interest in the company - but I should. I get lots of comments at the take out about the slick roller thingy.
)
Hi Don:
Ayuh,
I've had one for half a dozen or more years and love it. My father who's pushing 70 years of wisdom also uses one. It lets me take my 18 footers solo. It stays on my car 9-months of the year or more. I have it on a Thule rack on a high SUV. I have one of the older heavier rollers. The newer ones I've seen are constructed of somewhat lighter material.
I carry the canoe to the vehicle on my shoulders, rest the bow onto the roller, walk to the stern and roll the canoe onto the rack. Reverse the routine when unloading.
The only issue I've noticed is that the newer, shorter Thule towers sometimes are not high enough to lower the roller into the lowest notch - so the roller may rest on your factory rack, or you can store the roller on the next notch. There are 3 notches that adjust the height of the roller.
Also get one wide enough to handle the beam on your canoe.
(PS: I have no interest in the company - but I should. I get lots of comments at the take out about the slick roller thingy.
)
Dave Wermuth
Who hid my paddle?
Ever consider the bar exptension? Slide it out to the side, set the bow on it, lift the stern to the back rack and move the bow over. I saw the roller once on a Tahoe. Worked great.
Dave
Dave
Morley Pinsent
canoeist & canoe nut
Rack Rollers
When I outfitted my new (to me) truck and box cap a couple of years ago, I got a set of Yakima racks and used some soft plastic high pressure water line (it is clear stuff with fibres criss-crossing through it) which was about 1/4 inch larger inside diameter than the "pipes" on the rack. Slid it on between the towers and it serves the role of allowing me to roll canoes on from the back very easily. Also put a length of it on the front rack for the last positioning. It is flexible enough that it protects the gunnels from any rubbing or abrasion. I also got the wide (6 foot or so) pipes for the racks so I can carry two or three canoes. Used the short, leftover pieces to go on with these pipe on the outside of the towers. The system has worked really well for me -- I leave it on the truck for 9-10 months per year. Have hauled canoes from the maritimes to northern Ontario with it, everything stayed snug and tight, and no abrasion. The flexible water pipe is a bit pricey, about a buck a foot as I recall, but much less than any kind of purchased roller system. I can dig out the details if anyone is interested.
Cheers,
Morley Pinsent
When I outfitted my new (to me) truck and box cap a couple of years ago, I got a set of Yakima racks and used some soft plastic high pressure water line (it is clear stuff with fibres criss-crossing through it) which was about 1/4 inch larger inside diameter than the "pipes" on the rack. Slid it on between the towers and it serves the role of allowing me to roll canoes on from the back very easily. Also put a length of it on the front rack for the last positioning. It is flexible enough that it protects the gunnels from any rubbing or abrasion. I also got the wide (6 foot or so) pipes for the racks so I can carry two or three canoes. Used the short, leftover pieces to go on with these pipe on the outside of the towers. The system has worked really well for me -- I leave it on the truck for 9-10 months per year. Have hauled canoes from the maritimes to northern Ontario with it, everything stayed snug and tight, and no abrasion. The flexible water pipe is a bit pricey, about a buck a foot as I recall, but much less than any kind of purchased roller system. I can dig out the details if anyone is interested.
Cheers,
Morley Pinsent
Greg Nolan
enthusiast
Following up on Wermuth's suggestion -- Yakima has an item called a boat loader that seems to be an accessory rod that fits inside the cross-bar, and pulls out when needed. Check their website under water accessories.
