If you’ve ever had to awkwardly tie a mattress, kayak or anything else to the top of your car, you know what it’s like to wish you had a secure place to tie the thing down. Luckily, all you need is some nylon straps, and you can give your car some secure tie-down points.
Andrew Morrow explains the whole thing over at his kayak fishing blog, YakAngler, but Hack A Day picked up the story, and we share their enthusiasm for how simply brilliant this trick is. They note:
Most all cars will have a few bolts along the top of the fender that ties into a semi-rigid or structural part of the vehicle. [Andrew Morrow] used about 12 inches of nylon strap, added a hole to the both ends, and attached them to the fender bolts. With the hood closed, he now has a convenient tie down location for whatever he’s hauling around.
The best part about this method is that those straps, once in place, can be folded down and hidden under the hood when they’re not in use, and then flipped out when you need to tie something down. They’re easy to add (although one of Hack a Day’s commenters rightly points out that a washer to trap the nylon down between metal would be a good addition) no matter what kind of car you have. As long as you keep them away from anything hot enough to melt the nylon, you’re in good shape.
Hit the links below to see more pictures, and read more about how Andrew did it.
Tie Downs – Securing Your Kayak For Transport [YakAngler via Hack a Day]
Comments