Robert8252

Have a crew cab 5.5 foot bed. I have two 8 foot kayaks that I would like a easier way to take them with me camping. Found this one one amazon and eBay for about $80 shipped but I don't want to drill any new holes in the truck since I'm only using it once or twice a month. Anyone have one they use that doesn't cost and arm and a leg. Yamika has nice drilless ones but I'm not interested for $450.

eagleeyetv

It's always been my expeirience that if you buy the cheapest, you'll end up buying the best as the cheapest failed and cost way more in repair or loss.

SailorDon

I gave up on yak racks for my 2010 Platinum. Most required cutting the plastic cap on top of the bed. None were compatible with my BakFlip tonneau cover.

I've used the boat trailer solution up until now.



The rowboat is sort of an oversized kayak.
Many of the rowboat events in which I participate have camping accomodations. I'm too old for tent camping. So I move on to the next stage of trailering.



This of course limits the number of states in which you can travel.
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Festus150

I went with full Thule roof racks but was not cheap.

SailorDon

That looks really good.

I have seen many posts regarding excessive wind noise from roof racks. I have no personal experience with roof racks and any possible wind noise.

I don't want to get into the roof rack set up only to find that my $4,000 NavSynch system gets "blown away" by wind noise on the highway. And my Platinum also has a Sound Shield windshield for a quieter ride.

What is your experience with roof rack wind noise?
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SchoenFX413

Another vote for Thule products. Can't go wrong with them IMHO.

KP Texan

With 8' kayaks, there's no way that I would even mess with any sort of racks (unless you're towing a trailer too). Taking into account your tailgate, you would probably only have about 1' of overhang from your kayaks. Just toss them in the bed, use a few straps to secure them, and then pack/secure all your other gear around the kayaks.

3kushn

In Feb I traided my 08 Silverado for 2013 150 and later found out that neither Thule or Yakima list a roof rack that's compatable. The rack I used for the Chevy looks like it'll go on and stay but also looks like there's a possibility it could damage the door seal. I was afraid to try it on a new truck.

My other problem is I have to have a tonneau cover for my tools. On the Silverado I tried the "T" rack at the receiver and one bar on the roof. Didn't work well without help. Couldn't get it far enough on the T for it to land on the roof bar. It could possibly work if I were 6' tall. Maybe? I then bought another Yakima roof bar with the slide in extender. That was a great improvement but still a pain for one person. I needed to position the truck so I wasn't standing in a hole and get the kayak just right so it didn't fall off as I went to put up the other end.

If you get on some of the kayaking forums you'll find a bunch of people buying and modifying the utility trailer from Harbor Frieght. I would have gone this route but for lack of a place to store it. I really didn't want to have to pull a 250lb trailer up a hill, from where it would need to be stored.

In the end I got what I really wanted for years, the Yakima trailer. Its light and folds up for storage in my garage. Very expensive but putting a kayak on a pickup roof isn't as easy as it looks especially after a long day, hot on the river and no help

IMO there's no cheap solution.

murphFX4

I went with the Thule Xsportster bed racks. Expensive....but I like the fact that I can take the top portion off with the flip of a latch. They telescope up over the height of the cab, and the 'yaks extend over the cab and bed.

http://www.rackattack.com/product-pa...truck-rack.asp

Festus150

The Thule Aeroblades are fairly quiet. I have had previous square bars and they howled and whistled and drove me crazy. When the yaks on on the roof, there is a howl at highway speed but a simple turn of the radio volume **** makes that go away.