Tower Hamlets Canoe Club

It seems like a typical problem every trip. With 2 boats per car you can take 4 people with 2 cars, a fifth person would need to travel down on their own, but with 3 boats per car then 2 cars could take up to 6 people, 3 cars up to 9 etc. Btw anyone got any suggestions on the cheapest place to buy cockpit covers or on how to make them?

I managed to squeeze 3 kayaks on my van roofrack. But this doesn't seem possible on a normal car unless you use J-bars or T-bars. I found this link on ukrivers: Guidebook Community Pages :: View topic - sea kayak and short roof. Presumably a J-bar is better for a fibreglass boat, and in the pic below two sets of T-bars are being used?

Could the club buy a couple of sets of T-bars and J-bars for general use? 

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O London, see
Swelling with naval pride, the pride of thee!
Wide, deep, unsullied Thames, meandering glides,
and bears thy wealth on mild majestic tides.

it certainly sounds like a good idea.

with a bit of forward planning then it would solve a great logistic problem and also work out cheaper to split the fuel cost amongst the passengers too.

how much are the t and j bars for one roofrack set up? it need'nt break the bank.

glad your still around.

china.

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O London, see
Swelling with naval pride, the pride of thee!
Wide, deep, unsullied Thames, meandering glides,
and bears thy wealth on mild majestic tides.

I have searched the web for T-bars and found that it is easier to buy these in the US than here. However e-bay to the rescue!

 Kayak Roof Rack Upright Bars for Kayak Canoe Surfboard on eBay, also, Kayaks, Canoeing Kayaking, Sporting Goods (end time 17-Aug-08 10:01:07 BST) (BuyIt Now)

 

and  Kayak/Surf/ canoe roof rack supports (stainless steel) on eBay, also, Accessories, Canoeing Kayaking, Sporting Goods (end time 23-Jul-08 22:00:00 BST)

 

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O London, see
Swelling with naval pride, the pride of thee!
Wide, deep, unsullied Thames, meandering glides,
and bears thy wealth on mild majestic tides.

The ones that fold down could save some fuel when you aren't actually carrying boats.

 I have 4 sets of Eckla J-bars for sale. Two pairs brand new in box, one as new but has been opened and one has been used for a week and has scuffs and slight rust marks. £75 the lot delivered.

 

Thanks Chris, that seems like a good price. What are the max dimensions of the roof rack bar the J-bars fit onto?

I've been looking for something that will fit with the Thule Aero bars (curved), the top ebay t-bar claims to have a fitting to fit into the T-shaped groove within the aero bars and the bottom one can be adapted with some extra component(s) - awaiting photos. The bottom one is claimed to be dismountable (pillar unscrews?). Good for avoiding hitting garage ceilings too. Good tip - take kayak, bicycle off roof before driving into garage, multi-story car park etc.

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O London, see
Swelling with naval pride, the pride of thee!
Wide, deep, unsullied Thames, meandering glides,
and bears thy wealth on mild majestic tides.

The Eckla j-bars as they stand fit standard rectangular section Thule cross bars, but you can get an adaptor for aero bars: http://www.canoesandkayaks.co.uk/product/521/Aerobar_Adaptors_Eckla