Kayak rack for hightop

[mrdandandan]

Hello,

I've been looking to fabricate a good roofrack for my t25 hightop , a side rack with j bars to carry my 14ft kayak.
Fairwynds on here constructed a fantastic one from fiamma awning brackets but having looked at the spec, the awning weighs 40lbs so they'll obviously take that weight but my kayak is 64lbs...do you think they'd take the extra weight on the gutters and side pillars?

Dan

[clift_d]

Take a look at the Sherpas Translift first - they sometimes pop up second hand.

[mrdandandan]

Thanks for your reply.
They look good and i've considered them but I think you have to screw through the hightop at the top as far as I can tell - I'm trying to avoid any kind of water ingress if I can possibly help it and it just looks like a trouble spot. i'm going to look a little more into alternatives.

nice to see another hackney local!

[SamsBus2012]

Got a set of Thule bars which clear my HiTop (AH Komet style).
The uprights are big enough to bolt a j bar to with a bit of drilling.

Looks like this...



These bars will go quite a bit taller. You can also get longer spreader bars so the feet can be sited further apart. Use mine for kit on the back of the roof mainly.

[clift_d]

Thanks for your reply.
They look good and i've considered them but I think you have to screw through the hightop at the top as far as I can tell - I'm trying to avoid any kind of water ingress if I can possibly help it and it just looks like a trouble spot. i'm going to look a little more into alternatives.

It depends on what model of hightop you have. The Westy hightops have threaded inserts already set into the fibreglass roof to take the top fixings from the Translift - I don't know whether other manufacturers had this detailing. If your's doesn't have the inserts then something like SamsBus2012 suggestion seems your best bet.

nice to see another hackney local!

[SamsBus2012]

Looked up the codes, it's a Thule 420 foot pack with a 423 extension piece. You can use any Thule square bar for the roof bars, I seem to remember the side bars came with the 423 extension pack.