Given that the Hullavator is a rather select (read expensive) product, it is no wonder that trying to research it is hard. In fact I have been trying to get the low down on this product for a couple years now without much success.

It was with raised eyebrows that I noticed a rather subtle upgrade to the product and I thought to myself...ah ha! it must have had some pretty big flaws to need upgrading so quickly. Yet the product itself has won awards for innovation and manufacturing so how bad could it be? I had no idea as there were so few pertinent reviews)

So here was my dilema. I own a 21 foot ocean kayak double. Its no light weight, reaching almost 80lbs and coming close to the size of a medium sailboat! Researching the Thule website not only do they not give any real idea of what it will do, but they dont even really tell you what racks it will work with. very frustrating.

So I finally bit the bullet and am in a seemingly unique place to offer anyone that finds this the low down having within this very hour taken it from its box to loading my kayak.

Firstly. this will NOT work with what I think are European legs. it only works with north american thule gutter legs that have the sheet metal top, not the moulded metal kind. The roof rack leg must be thin or your stuck .... like I was needing to shell out yet another $250 for new legs. They may work with the round poles but I cannot speak to that.

Secondly. They are easy to install once you have the right rack on your truck. Make sure that you install the kayak holders first while on the ground, thats about the trickiest part and only if you  leave it to last as i did.

Thats it for the set up, really easy, no nonsence. I always get the feeling that thule has somehow ripped me off with thier stuff, but it works and thats alot.

So now for the useability. This is the bit that I couldnt get any answers on. Would it work with a big double, and the answer is...

Kind of.

Sadly I can only report that it pretty much works. It is definetly at the far end of the happy scale as it moans and groans the yak up there.

So here it is play by play.

I got the kayak onto the kayak holders that were nicely positioned by the side of the car. I did this by myself which was the whole purpose of the operation as I expect that soon my wife may be pregnant again and unable to help with this task. So it was a real groan to get it onto the holders, but once up, stayed nicely in place. A gust of wind may have pushed it over again due to its size (a smaller yak would have stayed better) so be ready with tie downs if youve a big one like me:).

Now in position for the magic moment when the arms raise the yak to the sky and your done....nope. this is the disappointing part I guess. due to its size and width, the flick of the wrist just didnt do it. it took a fair squeeze and jerk to get it started, and once moving, needed guiding up and then slowing down to prevent too much of a commotion. It also needed a fair bit of guiding due to the fact that the bars want to move at different speeds.

This last point was somewhat evident in that fancy video that thule shot. It shows the pretty girl guiding it up, but you can sort of tell that thiey are hiding a little wobble in there somewhere...take 12 comes to mind.

And so its up but on its side now, this is a bit noisy as it comes to a loud stop...and now the lowering tilt. a little push and bang...the boat is locked into place. slide in the locking bars and your done.

and now the other way. this too is quite unsatifactory relative to the cost and image that they portray on the video, but the fact remains that I can do this by myself which is huge!

so I need a ladder to start with, something I was really hoping to avoid. Secondly I need a pretty wide reach with the arms to grab both handles (this can be reduced by bringing the racks closer, but as the yak is so big I want the greatest distance apart possible...this again is a big difference between having a single and a double yak). This coupled with the fact that you need a fair bit of pressure to bring the boat onto its side again makes you look like your struggling to onlookers (which there will be many so practice lots and often)

You may be tempted to turn your back to the car...dont. Just reach up, find the place that the arms start to move, and hang on. it wobbles and one arm wants to go fast, the other slow...its a bit scary doing this with something that has so much potential energy. With the landrover discovery I own (which is very..very tall...and Im no basketball player) all of this is exagerated of course, but then this is part of the article...this is my experience with the hullavator.

Once its down, and with only a minor bump into the side view mirror, the arms lock off and all that is needed it to pull it off the arms and walk away. for me, it really is a two person job. But there you go.

It does work with the large double kayaks...sort of. enough to make it a less life and death job...(there have been more than a few occasions that life and limb have been at stake trying to get it on the roof without the hullavator!)

I hope this gives you some insight that is otherwise very hard to find. I bought this unit off the net for about half price NIB. I am not dissatisfied with it...yet, but there are some things that could be better..arent there always.

I hope it makes your yaking that much more fun.

Gerald