The hitch-mount rack 1.5 year review

[entropy]

I thought it was a good idea to share my experience with the hitchmount rack and story with all of you.

Back in 2018 I bought a brand new Sport JL 2-D with a softop. I am an avid kayak fisherman, both freshwater and saltwater and needed a solution to carry my kayak around. I ended up buying the hitchmount rack https://www.hitchmount-rack.com/.

My first trip with it was taking two kayaks as shown in the pictures from Los Angeles to the Eastern Sierras near Bishop, CA. When driving to the Sierras you have to go through the Mojave desert. At the time we were crossing the desert we had 50~60MPH wind gusts, and even though I was worried and took precautions stopping every 30 minutes or so, the kayaks did not move an inch. After that, I was pretty much not worried and drove around the Sierras knowing that my Kayaks were secured.

I ended up selling my 12ft kayak and bought a lighter but much longer Ocean Kayak Prowler 13. I took it on several trips to the coast, going on the freeway at 70 MPH with absolutely no issues. On one of those trips I had the bad luck to be involved in a high speed (60~65 MPH) accident in the freeway, the jeep was totaled, airbags went off, there was so much damage even one of the straps holding the kayak snapped. With all the noise I was sure the kayak went flying and who knows what. I was surprised when I exited the vehicle, the rack was intact and so was my kayak in the exact same position it was when I left the beach.

I now own a 2019 hardtop JL and still use my rack. It is an awesome rack and manufactured right here in the U.S. by U.S. Army veterans. It is solid quality and I recommend it to anyone looking for an easy take off kayak rack. Once assembled it takes literally 1 minute to put on the hitch and remove. It is a very convenient rack and I would recommend it to anyone. Not only you are buying a great product but also supporting a great cause.

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[TrailJoy]

Someone from here (I forget your name, but thank you!) tipped me off to this thing, so I spent some time researching it. My 2020 JLUS will have the hard top over the winter and the soft top from July - Sept, but 90% of my kayaking is done between April and end of June when the ice comes off the water (no motor boats yet) and the kids are still in school. Last spring we had six weeks of "summer" (+28C) weather during this time, and it kills me slowly to not be able to use the soft top. This might be the perfect solution!!

 

[Boatbuilder88]

@entropy ... Glad you weren't serious hurt in your accident.

I'm still not convinced that this configuration is safe. Significant aerodynamic loads (lift and yaw) are put on the rack's vertical component.

If I decide to carry my kayaks on my 2-door, I'd probably combine a hitch mounted rack with a gutter mounted crossbar on my hardtop.

 

[entropy]

@entropy ... Glad you weren't serious hurt in your accident.

I'm still not convinced that this configuration is safe. Significant aerodynamic loads (lift and yaw) are put on the rack's vertical component.

If I decide to carry my kayaks on my 2-door, I'd probably combine a hitch mounted rack with a gutter mounted crossbar on my hardtop.

It can take it. It is very nicely built, I just make sure to strap the front of the Kayak to the frame of the Jeep. I tested it on extremely aggressive wind gusts with two kayaks on top of it, one of them 75lbs the other about 45lbs.

 

[Pat’s Sahara Unlimited]

I hope someone will follow on this old thread! Would this hitch mount rack work with a Thule short box or bag? I’m now the « dad » of 2 Bernese Mountain dogs that will now be the almost sole occupants of the seat down JLU back, so I’m looking at storage solutions or vacation travel and keep the benefit of using the top down. Bag would contain clothes and dog food, essentially...

 

[entropy]

I hope someone will follow on this old thread! Would this hitch mount rack work with a Thule short box or bag? I’m now the « dad » of 2 Bernese Mountain dogs that will now be the almost sole occupants of the seat down JLU back, so I’m looking at storage solutions or vacation travel and keep the benefit of using the top down. Bag would contain clothes and dog food, essentially...

It should work just fine. the rack has 2 crossbars like any other roof rack. The benefit with this setup is you can run it top on or off. But if you just gonna run it with top down, take a look at exposed racks. Also for your application, you might benefit more with a hitch mounted cargo basket, cheaper, easier, but not good if you are going on any trails. Hitchmount rack does well on easy trails.

 

[Pat’s Sahara Unlimited]

It should work just fine. the rack has 2 crossbars like any other roof rack. The benefit with this setup is you can run it top on or off. But if you just gonna run it with top down, take a look at exposed racks. Also for your application, you might benefit more with a hitch mounted cargo basket, cheaper, easier, but not good if you are going on any trails. Hitchmount rack does well on easy trails.

Thank you for the reply! This is a good option for me. We just want to put the dog stuff and luggage there, and free up the whole back seats and tub for the dogs. I don’t see any trail use for this - it’s just to go on vacation with the dogs and have the opportunity to travel top on or top off. The Exposes rack are not an option - it‘s only good if you want to head to the beach on a mice day, but you would get screwed if it startrs raining at the end of the day. That option is good only on short trips or when you really know the weather will hold - can’t garantee that on a 10 day vacation!

 

[WreckEm711]

Wow, stumbled on this right as I was trying to decide whether to pull the trigger on a roof rack that I wouldn't use often or an overpriced kayak trailer... 2-door soft top here so not many options. This is FANTASTIC, solves my biggest problem!!!! Thank you for your insights.

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