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Just curious if anyone has any experience with one of these trailer hitch T-Bar systems. Thule has one that is just a simple 'T' shape and Yakima has their version which is more of a giant 'Y'. I like the Yakima version because it has a hinge by the hitch so it can tilt back enough for you to open the tailgate.
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I bought, and then immediately sold, a custom made version of something similar. I didn't look at Yakima (bought their trailer instead), but being able to open the tailgate would be a huge improvement. The mistake I made was making it too high at the back, making the prow hit the cab of the truck when I placed the canoe on foam blocks. The cab-mount roof rack is just extra and wasteful in my opinion. You may as well just strap the canoe to the roof directly, which I do, since the truck cab roof is as big as a car anyway.
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I have the Thule system (it's called the Goalpost) for my F150. It has served me well (got a steal of a deal on it as it is fairly expensive a regular cost). It is a pain in that once it is on you can't lower your tailgate. I have the cross rack for the cab but like Shawn said, it's not necessary really. In terms of loading and unloading it, it takes a bit of practice but I can get my seemingly 150 pound Old Town canoe up and off on my own (usually with only a few expletives lol). That Yakima feature of being able to open the tailgate would definitely be great.
Last edited by Steve E (3/28/2016 9:20 pm)
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Yeah, the hinge on the Yakima is a big selling point for me.
The other thing I was wondering about, is there enough room with the hitch systems to allow for 2 canoes on the roof?
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It would be tight. If your canoes are 36" wide, then you would need 6' wide over the bed, less half the measurement of the taper at each support point (cab and back rack). I can just barely strap two 26" kayaks directly onto the roof of my Ram.
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I just bought a new Prospector 16 from Swift which they list maximum width @ 35". The second canoe that would go up would be my Osprey solo canoe which is 29". So total of about 64" plus a couple inches between them. May take some thinking. Probably have to extend the roof rack bar or lay one canoe flat and the second one on an angle overlapping the first one, with some padding between the 2.
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I went with a cap on the back of the truck and permanent mounting pads for the 2nd Yakima bar on the cap.
Will you actually get any use out of the hinge? It looks like a good idea, but once you have the canoe strapped on you would have to take the canoe back off to fold down the rack and open the tailgate.
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IMHO on a full size 4 door truck I would just go with a standard 2 cross bar roof rack like you would use on any car. No worries about access to gate. Also wouldn't hinder pulling a trailer if needed. Used a Tacoma last summer with just a roof rack and worked fine and it has a shorter roof line then a full size tundra or f150 type pick up. Just my opinion. Also if need for resale doesn't limit your potential market.
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