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Product Highlights
- Allows a single individual to lift watercraft into roof racks
- Lever-controlled suction cups are easy to install
- Unique molded cradle designed to work with most boats
- Compact size makes it easy to store in trunk or backseat
- Great for use on windows, hatchbacks, and trunks
- Comes with one boat roller & two suction cups
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Product Description
Single-person roof rack loading made simple Ever have trouble lifting your kayak on to your roof rack? You're not alone - most kayaks take two people to lift up without scratching or banging into your car. Fortunately, this Kayak Roof Roller provides a neat solution to this issue. The Kayak Roof Roller is a kayak lift assist that allows you to slide your kayak into place. This eliminates the need to awkwardly lift your kayak overhead. Instead, you can align it with your roof rack and just push it into place!
How does it work? The Kayak Roof Roller has a durable frame and two heavy-duty lever-controlled suction cups that allow you to securely fasten it to a window, hatchback, or trunk. Its closed-cell foam padding gentle cradles your boat during loading. The load assist can be adjusted to one of 2 mounting angles to make loading easier depending on your vehicle. The entire Kayak Roof Roller (one frame and two suction cups) is small enough to keep stored in a trunk or rear compartment when not in use!
Will it work on my vehicle? Because the Kayak Roof Assist can be set at one of 2 mounting angles it's compatible with almost any vehicle! For cars, hatchbacks, SUVs, and vans; one Kayak Roof Roller load assist frame should work just fine for loading your kayak. For hatchbacks and SUVs with large rear window spoilers, be sure to measure in advance to ensure the 6.5" height will provide enough of an angle to clear the spoiler.
Will it work loading J-Style kayak cradles? Yes, the Kayak Lift Assist will work with popular kayak roof rack cradles with a J-shaped design. The rollers will allow you to push the kayak up onto your car in a flat position, then you will need to adjust the kayak onto it's side in order to properly fit down into your J-style roof racks.
- 2.75" tall when set to 90°
- 6.5" tall when upright
- 27" wide with 9" roller area
- 4.62" roller diameter
- (1) Sherpak boat roller frame
- (2) Suction cup assemblies
- Assembly hardware
- Assembly and installation instructions
Otherwise it should work for your Honda Odyssey - it would just need to clear any spoiler near the rooftop, and it should.
https://www.storeyourboard.com/kayak-and-canoe-lift-boat-lift-assist-from-inno/.
Will this roller work on a Subaru Outback with mounted J racks for two single kayaks?
There isn't an official fit guide to guarantee how well this kayak lift assist will work for any year/make/model vehicle, since it can be used on most types of autos. Basically you just need to have somewhere clean, on the rear of the auto, where you can place the suction mounts it uses. That can be on the rear window, rear hatch, trunk, of a vehicle.
Then, you have some play on where you set it, and which position you set it at, to adjust the angle your boat would be going/aiming, so that the boat can get to the top of the roof, clearing any spoilers or anything one may have near the rooftop.
So there is flexibility there -- but, you do need to roll the boat over the rollers in what I call, "boating position," meaning you have the bottom/hull of the boat going over the rollers, as the boat is pushed up to the rooftop...so, ultimately, while it would help you get the boat to the top of the auto, if you are securing the boat on its side in a J-rack, you would need to turn the boat sideways once it was on top -- so it really doesn't help as much to get the boat into a rack that holds the boat on its side.
It is mostly designed to get it to a transportation system that has the boat flat, again, in boating position. In your case, too, using it for two boats, you would need to be repositioning the roller to try to get each boat aimed towards the side you would be securing it to the rack, and then flipping the boat upwards on its side once it was there, and that can be awkward, so it isn't something I would really recommend as a great aide in your case. If they are heavy boats, maybe it would help a little, but it may be awkward and not work well.
I don't have a roof rack on my Toyota Venza because it has a double sunroof. Instead, I use foam cradles. Do you think it would still work? I have a 17 ft long sea kayak.
Yes, this kayak lift assist should work to help you get your boat up to the top of the roof, where you could secure it to your foam cradles, or any other type of tie-downs you use to transport the boat. As long as your cradles or tie-downs work on your vehicle, for transporting the boat, and they hold the boat in "boating position" (not on its side), then the lift assist is a great aide to help get the boat up to the roof. You just need a clean surface on the rear of your vehicle to place the assist's suction cups, then place it at the angle and in the place that works best to maneuver the boat over the roller to clear any rear spoilers, etc., a vehicle may have, to get it up to the roof.
1) Will this work with a J Style carrier? 2) Will this work with a 2013 Toyota Highlander?
These kayak lift assists work by having you roll the boat over them basically in "boating position", with the hull/bottom of the kayak going over the rollers. It doesn't work to roll the kayak up on its side. So when you are securing your boat to a J-style rack that holds the the kayak on its side, you would need to turn the boat onto its side once it made it to the roof top -- so in most cases, that isn't going to provide as much lift assist as one would want, but basically it would just be helping get the boat directed to the rooftop, but at that point, maneuvering the boat onto its side may be awkward. I don't have an alternative lift assist that works to get the kayak into a rack that holds it on its side. It might help a little bit in some cases where you have a heavier boat and, say, a tall vehicle, to at least get it to the rooftop, though it may be a bit tricky to get it into the J-rack.
As to whether these work on your Highlander, there is no official fit guide for them since they are basically universal -- you just need a clean place on the rear of a vehicle to set up the suction cups, and then you can place it where needed, and at one of the two angles it has, to get the boat directed to the rooftop, as well as over any spoiler on top of the rear of a car.
How can it help with J hooks?
These lift assists work best for transportation racks that hold the kayak flat. You can get them into a J-hook rack, but since you have to roll the boat up over the list assist in that flat, boating position with the hull/bottom of the boat going over the roller, once you get the boat to the top of the car where your J-hook rack is situated, you will need to tilt the boat onto its side....so the lift assist may help some to get it to the top of the car, but then you will still need to rotate the boat at that point to fit into the J-rack. In some cases, that may be a bit awkward, in some cases the assist may help enough that it makes a difference overall.
Our new 2 person kayak was much heavier and longer than our old one making it a real chore to get up on our roof rack. The Kayak Lift Assist was a great solution allowing us to roll it onto the roof with minimal effort. The assist assembled in a few minutes and mounted easily to our rear hatch window. Would definitely recommend.
I have a 2014 Subaru crosstrek, and it fits the window perfectly, no matter where I place it, so that I am able to put it off to one side, and miss the huge radio antenna. The spoiler on my car is also huge....Just about level with the rollers on the lift assist. But thanks to the shape of the rollers, I am able to take the pressure off the spoiler, ( which I cover with a bathroom rug ) and roll the 49 lb. kayak in the direction I want. It’s not easy, because I am a shrinking septuagenarian.... 4’ 11”..... But it’s doable! Thank you!
the product does what is supposed to do. It is easy to get the kayak into my car roof.
I bought this so I could get my 17' kayak over the rear spoiler on my car. I worked, but it would have been easier to attach it to the rear window if the suction cups were a bit closer together. In order to get away from the curve in the window, I had to offset the roller quite a bit.
This only works if you are loading a single kayak in the center. If you have a two kayak rack and need to load each to side it won't work (on a 2017 Rav 4 anyway). The suction cups are big and do not conform to the contour of the side of the rear hatch glass.
My husband and I love to kayak but I'm only 5' 3" and we have an SUV. My kayak is fairly light and my husband can put it on the car easily. His kayak is a fishing kayak and weighs almost 75 pounds. We used to put an old towel over the back on the car and he would push the kayak onto the j-rack. I would try to keep it going on straight and not fall off the roof. Now, he places the bow onto the roof roller and I can push it onto the rack with ease. The suction cups will stick to the windows as well as the part of the hood that overlaps the rear window.
Excellent product. Saves my back lifting my kayak on the roof of my vehicle
I have been kayaking for over 20 years and have travelled to many places thoughout the US. This product has made it so easy for me to load and unload my kayak by myself. I am 65 years old and it was putting stress on my shoulder to lift over my head a 50 pound 12 ft kayak. A simple brilliant well made device delivered exactly how it was advertised. Thank you Storeyourboard!
One thing don't forget to press down on the suction cups when push the lever. And keep your hand away when you release them they are very powerful and can snap back on your finger......
I am 52 years old, and I enjoy fishing, I just bought my first kayak so I wanted to be able to get it on the roof of my car by myself. This product allows me to do it all by myself. Love it!
This is a great solution for loading my kayak onto my Subaru Forester! However, I just traded my 2012 Forester for a 2018 Forester model, which now has a real hatch spoiler above the rear window edge. I am not sure if this kayak lift assist roller will work without causing rubbing on the roof or the Subaru Forester's roof radio antenna unit.
If only this roof roller's "arms" were maybe a couple of inches longer in terms of "reach" it would be 100% fine. But I still might have to put a rubber mat on the roof to prevent my kayak from rubbing the roof while loading.
BUT... all of that said, this is a GREAT and affordable solution to help get my 'yak up on by roof rack! No complaints, just a suggestion! BTW, all of the other comments about the suction cups not working... not true! I have absolutely no trouble getting the suction cups to stick. But ya gotta hold them firmly down to the glass BEFORE you flip the lock levers, and the glass has to be pretty clean (not perfect, just clean). I have no trouble... works every time.
I tried it out when it came, good fit and nice and tight!! saves wear and tear on the car and much better than a wet towell or rug! (easier too.
Was looking for a way to conveniently get kayak on our Subaru without damaging the paint or the fin that overhangs the rear window and protects the camera. This product was just what the doctor ordered!
Bought this a few years ago. Very rarely will it stay suctioned to the car glass.
The suction cups have a small nipple in the center which make this very difficult to get connected to a flat surface. Once you do, it's an excellent solution for loading a kayak by yourself. Mine is a tandem kayak and I'm loading it to the top of a Jeep Liberty. It was near impossible any other way. I suggest you buy two as I did, one for the hood and one for the top of your vehicle.
Securely attaches and makes it so much easier to load my kayak.
did not work for my vehicle which is a Toyota 4Runner which is quite tall and has a faring on the back and this item does not clear the faring. The suction cups didn't work either but since the fit was not right anyway I did not try too hard to get them to work right.
The roller assist makes putting large kayaks on top of the vehicle much easier. Just make sure the suction cups are secure! Definitely a product worth buying
Don't let being single keep you off the water. I needed to find a way to load my kayak on top of my SUV. This roller was a cheap, easy, and convenient product. Awesome gadget. I just lean the tip of the kayak on the rollers, position my portable step ladder beside the kayak, pick up the other end and start walking towards the vehicle and up the ladder. Hardly any upper body strength needed.
The roller probably works well on a few car models, but on mine at least, the arm does not rise above the roofline. Doesn't matter how the suctions are oriented, the kayak scrapes the roof. Anyone want an unused roof roller?
Also, if you have any curvature in your rear window, forget attaching the device. The shoes do not rotate to account for curvature. Overall, before you buy, try.
Gone are the days when I could toss an 85 lb. boat on the roof rack by myself. This roller works beautifully - and doesn't break the bank. There's a bit of a learning curve to get the suction cups to seat properly, but that's a small problem. I love it!
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