Kayak Bracket, SUP Bracket on 32-3 MAGMA

[Norwester]

Installing new-to-me MAGMA kayak brackets and seeking any subjective comments.

I've just dry-fitted without making any final adjustments. All things can change.

Product:

Removable Rail Mounted Kayak/Sup Rack | Kayak Storage Rack | Magma

Looking for Removable Rail Mounted Kayak/Sup Rack? We've got it in stock! Magma Products - Your place for high-quality marine and RV grills and accessories!

magmaproducts.com

Choices: (current choice made)
1. In/out-board: (Outboard)
2. Fore/Aft : (Forward but only so far as kayak bow does not project more than pulpit)
3. Height on stanchions : (higher than bottom to allow for tying of fender(s)).
4. Starboard/Port (port. We're currently on a loaner slip and choose to have mounts opposite side of regular tie Starboard-to)

See pics and throw out experience pros/cons or unused 2$ opinions (venmo me.

 

[ConchyDug]

I'm still on the fence if they are worth it honestly. I've had a set for like 8 yrs they hold a couple SUPs, the foam disappeared in a year from the Texas sun. I only put them on the boat when I know we'll be anchored mostly and not sailing. I didn't mount them forward because more snag points for sheets isn't fun. They keep the side decks clear and hold the boards semi secured in flat water. They also don't have to be installed perpendicular to the toe rail, you can set them at like 45° or whatever to fit the load. I would not leave these on past the Demarcation line.

 

[AK67]

Can't do them. I get the practicality, but the impact on the aesthetic is too much. That's a me problem, I know.

 

[Prairie Schooner]

Installing new-to-me MAGMA kayak brackets and seeking any subjective comments.

I've just dry-fitted without making any final adjustments. All things can change.

Product:

Removable Rail Mounted Kayak/Sup Rack | Kayak Storage Rack | Magma

Looking for Removable Rail Mounted Kayak/Sup Rack? We've got it in stock! Magma Products - Your place for high-quality marine and RV grills and accessories!

magmaproducts.com

Choices: (current choice made)
1. In/out-board: (Outboard)
2. Fore/Aft : (Forward but only so far as kayak bow does not project more than pulpit)
3. Height on stanchions : (higher than bottom to allow for tying of fender(s)).
4. Starboard/Port (port. We're currently on a loaner slip and choose to have mounts opposite side of regular tie Starboard-to)

See pics and throw out experience pros/cons or unused 2$ opinions (venmo me.

Will the kayak or SUPBs be your 'tender'? Or will you have a dinghy too?

 

[Christian Williams]

I drilled a hole in the SUP skeg, and was able to lash it 90 degrees to the deck from stanchions with fair solidity. Bow end has a useful fitting.

I guess your mounts are for permanent storage of the unwieldy board. Storage is a problem without a garage at home or a rack at the marina, and even then inconvenient. But I would not want to sail with the thing on the boat. Or own one again, since our SUP was all talk and no real use.

 

[Norwester]

I drilled a hole in the SUP skeg,

Practical sailor idea, Christian. Add one more tie-down point to the darn thing, which could be used to shuttle me tenderly from mooring to shore.
Extra sun isn't such an issue in Seattle, but these SUPs require more attention when inflated and tied up in such an unsightly place where lines may foul.
Youngsters seem to like them for easy escapes from older onboard humans.

 

[windblown]

I suspect that much additional bow windage would make tight marina navigation even more of a challenge in our locale. Interested to hear your experience.

 

[toddster]

I've tried them in just about every position. With iSUP and kayak.

Had them mid-ships on the E29. (The iSUP was the tender. Often left it at the dock during day sails.) Worked OKish. The genoa sheet would saw against the SUP and had to be aussaged. Restricted lines of sight.

Toward the bow on the J42 was a no-go. Waves would slam into the board and yank on the stanchions. Required some frantic trips to the bow to reattach things. If the weather suddenly turns heavy, there is tremendous force in the water coming over the bow - you don't want anything up there that doesn't have to be there.

As far aft as possible on the J42 was the best location. Waves didn't seem to slam into them, and the yak made a decent lee cloth. (Usually deflated the SUP on passages.) However, this squarely blocked the spinnaker sheets. The next step was going to be to try to raise one or both brackets so the spin sheet could go beneath. It seemed like that was going to require some extra bracing. But then I lost the yak instead.

I actually had two sets. One with foam only and one came with sunbrella-like covers. The foam lasts a few years and gets grotty. The covers have torn after a couple of years and are starting to expose the foam.

One of the brackets disappeared in the middle of the night on a choppy passage. Fortunately empty at the time. I can only guess that the lazy sheet must have got snagged on it and yanked the stanchion out of its socket.

I prefer them on starboard because I usually dock to port. When I had two sets, they were on both sides.
As mentioned above, mounting them above deck level creates more lever-arm forces on the stanchion and is to be avoided. Especially for something as weighty as a kayak.