How to get 2 kayaks on an R29

[SKI3PO]

I am thinking of upgrading from an R27c to an R29. On our 27 we have 2 kayaks that fit nicely on Yakima racks on either side of the solar panel. On the R29 it looks like there is not enough room to fit a kayak on each side of the solar panel. Any solutions for mounting 2 kayaks that makes them accessible and doesn’t look horrible?

 

[BradOwens]

I don't see a way to do it on the 29. If you move up a little more, to the 31 sedan, there will be even more room than on your 27 because of the extra beam.

 

[vertigo]

I don't see a way to do it on the 29. If you move up a little more, to the 31 sedan, there will be even more room than on your 27 because of the extra beam.

That's curious! I have two kayaks on my R29, one to each side of the solar panel, and I think it looks fine. Pretty sure I don't have a 31 sedan, but I've been wrong about bigger things, so anything's possible. 🙂

 

[Hydraulicjump]

I have the command bridge which makes it hard for kayaks. But I use the Magma kayak rack and it works fine. See pics in my gallery.

Otherwise, on the sedan or the classic there is plenty of room for kayaks.

 

[BradOwens]

My earlier post about not seeing a way to get kayaks on the roof of a 29 was about the new 29. The 29 classic is a different story. We have one, and carry our kayak on the cabin top.
Looking at HydraulicJump's photo gallery shows the perfect solution for the new 29. Kayak racks off to the sides. Effective and nice looking!

 

[vertigo]

My earlier post about not seeing a way to get kayaks on the roof of a 29 was about the new 29. The 29 classic is a different story. We have one, and carry our kayak on the cabin top.
Looking at HydraulicJump's photo album shows the perfect solution for the new 29. Kayak racks off to the sides. Effective and nice looking!

There's a new 29? 😎

 

[Scuba Too]

I have the command bridge which makes it hard for kayaks. But I use the Magma kayak rack and it works fine. See pics in my gallery.

Otherwise, on the sedan or the classic there is plenty of room for kayaks.

It does look good! Did you get the 14” or 20” magmas?

 

[Kimberly Dawn]

I replaced my stock sportrack with a 1" diam post and beam sportrack, where the horizontal rails are 7'-6" wide. I have a Yakima Jaylow kayak rack on port side and a Yakima cargo basket on the starboard side, with the original solar panel in the center, unobstructed. My kayak rack takes up less space than the cargo basket, so you would have plenty of room for another kayak rack.

I bought (1) 20' stick of thick wall (.125) 316 and had my local railmaker cut to specified length and electro-polish the pieces. My local chandlery had Sea Dog tees to fit my design... everything works great!

Bob
The Doghouse 2

 

[SKI3PO]

I have the command bridge which makes it hard for kayaks. But I use the Magma kayak rack and it works fine. See pics in my gallery.

Otherwise, on the sedan or the classic there is plenty of room for kayaks.

Thanks, that looks like a good solution for me. A couple of questions:

1. Is it difficult to get the kayaks in to the racks?

2. Do you trailer? Is it secure enough to trailer with the kayaks still in there racks?

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Hydraulicjump]

The catch is getting the kayaks into the racks. It is easy to lower them over the side, so that is never an issue. Basically I start by hefting the kayak into the cockpit. Then I pull it up onto the command bridge with a bow line. My wife will often help shove it up. Once I get a hand on the cockpit it, depending the weight of the kayak, is pretty easy to finish the job. It is that first lift that gets the nose of the kayak onto the command bridge that is the hardest. Sometimes I will haul the kayak up onto the foredeck and then just slide it onto the command bridge, perching it there before going around and hefting it into the rack. What does NOT work well is simply sliding it into the rack because the foam that covers the rack puts up too much resistance.

I guess I just did a lousy job of selling this approach! You work out a technique.

We ship the boat rather than trailer it. We usually follow it with the kayaks on our truck. Although the kayaks are very secure, they stick up too high to meet clearance requirements.

Jeff

 

[Toki]

Interesting timing on this thread. My wife and I are getting our R27 prepared for a 2 week trip the end of the month, and we wanted to bring the kayaks. I mounted kayak holders on the roof rack, then we brought one of the kayaks down to the dock to practice loading and unloading. We quickly realized we couldn't lift the kayak from the side while balancing on that little lip, and the stern was out of the question due to the canvas. We could get it on there by lifting it up from the bow, putting one end on the roof, then sliding it back into place. But this involved a great deal of rubbing and bumping, including a couple of those skylites, and we felt quite certain that we'd damage things if we did this regularly. In the end we decided not to bring the kayaks this trip. We chose to remove the kayak racks, as I certainly don't want charterers attempting that.

At another marina last summer we spoke to a couple with an R27 who created this fantastic kayak loading system. It involved swing-out bars on the rack with pulley systems. They'd swing the bars over the side, hook the lines on the kayak, hoist the kayak tight to the bars with the lines/pulleys, then swing the bars up and over placing the kayak upside down on the rack. When I have some time, I may consider building such a contraption for our R27.

By the way, if any of you Tugnutters happen to be that couple we spoke to, please post pics of your marvelous contraption you rigged up!