Roof top straps digging into shellac bottom

[Peter E]

I have a 13 foot wooden canvas boat that I built a few years ago and I’ve been taking on trips and carrying locally. The sides are painted, but the bottom is shellac. I have an issue with rooftop straps and rope digging into the shellac when I tie it onto the car. It forces me to sand and redo the shellac after a trip.
Does anybody have a solution for this? I’m thinking I need a pad of some sort under the straps or rope. Would appreciate any help!
Peter

 

[Rob Stevens]

Tie in to the thwarts and seats or gunwales.

 

[Dan Lindberg]

We've had this with ropes, never with straps.
Don't tighten the straps so tight. (never use ratchet straps, they get too tight, use the cam straps)
Use gunnel blocks to prevent the canoe from moving around.
Especially if you have a Yakama rack (round bar).
If we are driving more then a few miles, there are always 2 straps over the canoe/s and 2 ropes (1 at each end) - no exceptions.

 

[John Sand]

I have used foam pipe insulation to protect boats from straps.

 

[Benson Gray]

I have used foam pipe insulation to protect boats from straps.

I've also used foam to protect canoes as shown at https://forums.wcha.org/attachments/5305/ for example.

Benson

 

[MGC]

When I canvas I save the strips of canvas I trim off. I use these under my straps. I am very careful not to allow the straps to twist and I make sure the canvas bits are flat.
For my all wood canoes I had my wife sew me flannel tubes that I can slide over the straps. These are a bit of a pain to use but they do a good job of protection things. I have also used these with somewhat fresh (under a year) paint.

 

[Peter E]

Thank you all so much for the quick responses! I think I will try the foam insulation around the straps. Using the rope is a big mistake and I think I have been too zealous when clamping things down. My rack is actually fairly grippy so I don’t need to overdo the tension. I have a front and rear ropes, and a rope to the thwart to stop forward movement.

 

[patrick corry]

flannel tubes

I'll second this. I made tubes from an old Polartec blanket to serve as anti-chafe on the mahogany gunwales of my 15' Barbour runabout. I use 2" wide ratchet straps to secure the boat onto a trailer.

 

[MGC]

Thanks for the memory jog Patrick. We used a polar fleece blanket...one with very tight and short nap, and we turned it inside out.. Before we did that, I was using old tube sox that I cut the ends out of.
I'd be super cautious about using anything that does not breath up tight against paint, shellac or varnish. That is why I only use cloth straps. Strange things happen on the roof of a car. The heat of the sun really beats down on the straps and canoe.

 

[Worth Gretter]

How about pool noodles? I have used them on gunwales when someone needs to cartop a canoe and doesn't have a rack, but I could see feeding the strap though one as well. And they are cheap.

 

[MGC]

I remember my MILs shock when she realized that our sons were never going to use them for floating or swimming. They mercilessly flogged each other with them. Boys.
I have used them on the rails. I have one duct taped to one of my carry thwarts. I would not use them between the straps and paint or shellack. But, I haven't tried them for that so I have no factual basis for my opinion. They might be fine.