We have two 10' long kayaks, we tow a TT, and we want to haul the kayaks on the roof of our quad cab truck. I have seen pairs of kayaks hauled on the top of SUV's and even cars, so I know it is safely doable. I would probably put tie downs from each end of the kayaks to the front and back of the truck, as I have often seen done. I don't want to have to put a front hitch on the truck plus a goal post type support. The problem is that, unlike many SUV's which already have roof rails running down each side of the roof, our truck (2004 Dodge Ram quad cab) does not have roof rails, so I have to start from scratch, with either a removable or a permanent roof rack for the kayaks. We don't haul the kayaks all the time, so a permanent rack probably isn't necessary, removable should be fine. (Note: the truck has a folding bed cover, so that would likely interfere with any rack that would mount in the bed stake holes)I have looked at removable roof racks on Amazon and a couple other places, and the average of reviews on these products are not very good. I'm looking for recommendations of roof racks for my application and purpose that you all have some experience with. Thanks in advance!

We have a roof rack on our Ram Quad and haul two ten foot yaks . Several good brands out there , we have " Yakima ', if i spelled correct ! Also for many years we carried two yaks on the back bumper of the trailer . Our racks straps grip the door openings and have for seven years .

We use a Yakima roof rack and J bars we purchased from Amazon to haul an 11' and an 8' kayaks on the roof of our 08 GMC CC while pulling our fifth wheel. No issues after four years.

wanderingbob & Halmfamily, thanks for your responses. Are the Yakima roof racks you both speak of the Q Tower with Q clips Yakima Roof Rack System?

Thule also make a good rack. I have one on my 2017 F350 CCSB. It is pretty easy to put on and take off. I have the SquareBar. Would probably go with the AeroBlade if going to put in a lot of miles.ThuleI Got mine from Rack Attack.Rack Attack

Thule and Yakima are the only products I'd use on my roof. They make good stuff, but it can get expensive. I'd think about taking the bed cover off, and using a rack on the bed. I bought a ladder rack off amazon for $100, and the. Some Kayak J mounts for $40. Works great, I can carry 4 yaks, and still have the use of my bed to put 4 mountain bikes.

Suggestions for Roof Rack to Haul 2 Kayaks on Quad Cab Truck

crcr
Explorer
May 25, 2017
Thanks to everyone for your replies and information! All very informative and very helpful for me in deciding on a roof rack.
crcr
Explorer
May 25, 2017
wowens79 wrote:
crcr wrote:
One last question for those of you with the Yakima or Thule roof racks. As you know, the bars come in various lengths. What length bars would be needed for a full size truck?

If there is enough width, I would load the two kayaks upside down on the roof rack. If not, I would use J-racks.

If you are not super tall where you would hit your head on them, I would get the longest available. I used to sell them, and install them at a bike shop. I never had someone wish they had shorter bars unless they hit their head on them.

If they are long, they come in handy to hang onto while securing the yaks while standing in the door of the truck.

Great information to know! Thanks!
brulaz
Explorer
May 24, 2017
crcr wrote:
One last question for those of you with the Yakima or Thule roof racks. As you know, the bars come in various lengths. What length bars would be needed for a full size truck?

If there is enough width, I would load the two kayaks upside down on the roof rack. If not, I would use J-racks.

Width depends upon what you're carrying. You'll need to measure your kayaks side-by-side.

I have relatively short bars that work fine with my 2 kayaks carried upside down, but I need to strap a longer 2x4 to them when carrying two wide canoes (this is on my truck's cap/topper, not the cabin).
mbopp
Explorer
May 23, 2017
I've been using Yakima racks for close to 20 years. The current setup is a pair of Outdoorsman racks w/ 60" bars for hauling one canoe along with the TT. I also have a set of 78" bars if I need to haul 2 canoes or a canoe and DD's kayak. The racks came from CL, to do it over from scratch I'd use one Outdoorsman rack and one clip setup over the cab.
Outdoorsman racks don't work with tonneau covers though.
Eons ago Fleetwood had rack tracks on their pop-ups and had special (90"?) Yakima bars for them.
wowens79
Explorer III
May 23, 2017
crcr wrote:
One last question for those of you with the Yakima or Thule roof racks. As you know, the bars come in various lengths. What length bars would be needed for a full size truck?

If there is enough width, I would load the two kayaks upside down on the roof rack. If not, I would use J-racks.

If you are not super tall where you would hit your head on them, I would get the longest available. I used to sell them, and install them at a bike shop. I never had someone wish they had shorter bars unless they hit their head on them.

If they are long, they come in handy to hang onto while securing the yaks while standing in the door of the truck.
wanderingbob
Explorer II
May 23, 2017
I measured the width of the cab at that point and bought close . I also made two sets of " rail road track " that spaces the rails so that the groves in the bottom of the yaks will fit over them . If not for the tracks the yaks slide all over the place when loading , now just start the yak and push , it will follow the tracks with out slipping side ways . I lash the rail road tracks to the Yakima cross bars with para-cord . My yaks ride up there 24/7, as we full time . Never understood j racks ?
crcr
Explorer
May 23, 2017
One last question for those of you with the Yakima or Thule roof racks. As you know, the bars come in various lengths. What length bars would be needed for a full size truck?

If there is enough width, I would load the two kayaks upside down on the roof rack. If not, I would use J-racks.
LAJMINNIEPLUS
Explorer
May 23, 2017
Why not haul them over the truck bed with a Thule system or TracRac. I have a TracRac on my truck and installed two Thule 883 glide racks. I haul a 135 and 145 Wilderness Systems on my racks. You can get the 883 Thule for real low prices through Jeep or Chrysler dealers online.
crcr
Explorer
May 22, 2017
wanderingbob wrote:
My Yakima racks take a long time to take off , sometimes a full 60 seconds ! Mark them front and back so ya can put them back , takes about two whole minutes to reinstall !

Awesome! Thanks!
wanderingbob
Explorer II
May 22, 2017
My Yakima racks take a long time to take off , sometimes a full 60 seconds ! Mark them front and back so ya can put them back , takes about two whole minutes to reinstall !