Home made roof racks

Roof racks for a 19 foot skin on frame kayak

After looking at a few overpriced and sub-standard roof racks, i tried to look at the problem from a logical point of view. The commercial racks are flimsy (roughly 60kg max), the feet of the cross bars have a footprint the size of a sausage, and they are held on by one allen bolt.

Now when accelerating or braking, simple physics tells you that excess weight and torque on a small area generates a large amount of force, enough to either dent your roof or completely shear the allen bolts. Not to mention what happens at speed, and the effects of lift and side winds. I've heard too many stories of roof rack damage to remain complacent.

So my idea was to combine the feet into one. Sitting on the rail either side of the roof, a 2x4 carved to fit the longitudinal contour of the roof, with a concave bottom to hug the raised rubber rails (your car may be different). To protect the roof finish, a pool noodle split lengthways is stuck into the concave bottom. Two 2x4 planks are bolted on athwart, and an extra length added with v-shaped ends to support the stern and bow of the kayak.

All joints are shallow halved joints.

Commercial roof racks all seem to mount less than a metre apart. Stick a 19 foot kayak onto it and the overhangs and subsequent stress on your hull would be horrendous.

The idea of the extra length is to spread out this stress and also to provide a cradle.


Two 200kg ratchet tie-downs secure the rack to the roof. It has yet to move, even at highway speeds. I am satisfied with the strength and durability of the wood. However, perhaps one could be made of aluminium or steel. The bow and stern of the kayak will still need to be tied down.
All up cost including tie-downs was around 20 dollars and a couple of hours. I hope i have given you food for thought.
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