Making Kayak Rack Carriers

Now that I have a new to me kayak I need some carriers for my racks.  I could easily order some but am too cheap and not being able to work on the Mystery Canoe until warmer weather comes I need something to do.  I came up with the idea to make something I could literally drop right on to my racks which is really nothing more than my Mondial rack with a two by four mounted on it.  What I have never liked about foam blocks is they always seem to slide off while you're putting the boat on the racks! 

What I decided on is simple to make with just a few hand tools.  I had some foam on hand and junk wood so I all I needed to buy was adhesive.  I got Elmer's Spray Adhesive for under five bucks at the local hardware store.  The 3M product was almost fifteen bucks!!  A helpful hint...wear rubber gloves!  Why I don't just start with them on is beyond me!  After all the screw ups with resin I've made you'd think I would have learned my lesson by now!  That damn adhesive sure is tacky!

After looking at a bunch of carriers online I decided to make them sixteen inches long. I cut my board and then cut a shallow V which I then traced onto the board for the next set.

 I then used a piece of junk plywood to cut out the end/cap pieces and attached them with some stainless steel screws.

End Pieces Screwed In.

I cut them so they V would be just above the two by four.  If the bottoms of the V boards are too long and are touching the car roof  I will run them through the table saw to shorten them up.  Using some more junk plywood I cut two pieces to cover the top and then cut foam to size.  I did roll the foam strip several times to get it to fit down into the V.

 To get some weight on the foam and plywood so the adhesive would make contact and get a good bond I used the cut outs from the shallow V with a board on top of them with a couple of long bricks I had laying around.

I waited a few hours for drying time even though the can of adhesive says one hour.  The foam was on tight and none of the edges feel loose like they want to peel up.  Total time spent on making one was about two hours but I was figuring out shapes, measuring and making shit up as I went along.  I am guessing the second one will take less then an hour without drying time!  The next step is to see the kayak sits in it but I'm guessing it will do just fine.  If I needed I can add more foam.

Drop Em ' Right On

Once the Kayak is on and Tied Down It's Solid.

4/12/2013

Ok, the best laid plans go astray and although I was hoping for the best it didn't happen.  One of the carriers peeled it's foam off.  I'm not surprised, it's the nature of working in cooler weather.  I cut a new piece and reapplied it with additional weight on it.  If that fails then I will tack it down with some small head nails or screws.  I am also adding some more foam as it seems I cut my V's a hair to shallow.  The beauty of DIY is one can always tweak it to make it work! I'll be using these for a while so I guess that is the end of this story! 

Taking the Plunge!

Since my youth I have been a canoeist.  Yes, I may have dabbled with those kayaks most folks have.  There is the story of buying a Klepper with its bow filled with ice, bought in January and hoisted it up three stories to my apartment to thaw it out, the generic kayak in the 80's that sat so high I kept flipping the goddamn thing!  I spent more time emptying that bugger out then I did paddling it. I kept washing my hands of anything kayak and bought more canoes than I could keep up with.  Then an something happened.  I had a chance to fix a free kayak from Craigslist.  I didn't know what to expect but hell it was free!

It turned out to be a Hurricane Santee 116, a short stubby little thing but it was not a plastic hull and so well made I was actually impressed!  My fixes turned out rock solid and after taking it for a test ride twice in a day I was a bit hooked!  I sold it to my buddy who needed a kayak with a bigger cockpit than the ones his wife and daughters have.

So began the search!  I looked and looked and looked.  I got in touch with friends with some hulls I was looking at but this one was too big for me, that one was to expensive, the other was too short.  I was getting really frustrated!  In one final attempt I searched once again on line and found someone who had a Hurricane Tampico 140S which seemed to be the hull I was looking for.  Built for a smaller and lighter person, that'd be me, good tracker and lightweight but rugged.  All the reviews I read were positive.  So in the end I finally got a kayak.

Don't See This Much!

My buddy Scott joined me for my maiden paddle on the Mack.  I was hesitant as I am not used to such a thin boat!  My first mistake was wearing my muck boots!  Too big!  I had a hard time getting them in and down to the foot pegs.  I later found a pair of booties that will fit just fine.  It was great to paddle with such ease into a headwind!  I had a grin on my face the entire day!

It is just a matter of spending time in this boat to get comfortable!  I think I'm going to enjoy this!