Kuat Grip Ski and Snowboard Carrier - Slide Out - 6 Pairs of Skis or 4 Boards - Black

Video Transcript for A Closer Look at the Kuat Grip Ski and Snowboard Carrier

Hi everyone, it's Evangeline right here at etrailer. Today we will be reviewing the Kuat Grip 6 Ski and Snowboard Carrier. This is going to be a premium carrier with a lot of features and while it does take up a lot of space on your roof, that's because it allows you to carry a lot of skis and a lot of boards. Now, if you've ever had to carry a ski and snowboard on top of your roof before, something you may have experienced is, you got your boots full of snow, you don't wanna climb up onto your car side. Well, this one has a special feature to make it easier to load and unload those skis. With a turn of a key, (mechanism clicks) a push of a tab, (tab clatters) a push of a lever and a press of the button, you can slide out your whole system.

So now there's no more need to sketchily stand on your tires or on your icy running boards. You probably won't even need a stool anymore because just like that, your skis and snowboards are within arms reach. This makes it a lot safer when you're at the resort and you're trying to load things up or take skis off. But also this just saves you a lot of time and effort. You'll have a usable pad length of up to 28 inches long, and that way you can carry up to six sets of skis or four boards, or after checking the measurements of your skis, you might even be able to carry more.

If I'm gonna invest in the Kuat Grip Ski and Snowboard Carrier, something in mind is that it is kind of pricey. So why would I spend on this when I could get something that's a little bit more affordable, or I could upgrade a little bit and get something with more features like a roof box Well, compared to the more affordable options, you're not gonna get the same type of features. One is gonna be the slide out functionality, but also just the different color options, as well as the different locks. And then something else too is even with those more affordable carriers that can slide out, they don't have the same type of longevity that Kuat offers. Kuat's been around for a while, they've always made solid carriers, whether it's bike racks, kayak carriers, or ski and snowboard carriers.

But what if I wanna spend a little bit more and maybe get an enclosed cargo carrier, like a small roof box Well, the price points for those can get pretty high up, especially one that is long enough to carry boards and skis. While this can technically carry up to 165 pounds, that weight measurement isn't really that important to me because I usually am more mindful of my actual roof rack or roof weight capacity. And 165 pounds seems like a lot for a bunch of skis and boards. And finally, this does not decrease the weight that you still have to push and pull. Once you do start loading this up with multiple skis and boards, this movement over here might get a little hefty.

Still a lot easier than lifting it up and over your head, but (mechanism clicks) that's still something to be mindful of. Now there are gonna be a lot of carriers that have this slide out function, but what makes the Kuat design a little bit different is that it does use more premium materials so that that slide out function still works well even in the snowy and icy conditions. That's because the outer case is made of aluminum, which makes it rust and corrosion resistant, but also less affected by those extreme weather conditions. (mechanism clicks) What's not aluminum are the rubber grips used to hold onto your skis and your snowboards. Technically, Kuat also says that during the warmer season you can put fishing rods in here. I prefer the straight across rubber bases that other carriers have for those fishing rods because I don't like the uneven feeling of the rubber teeth. Technically, because the teeth do compress around your boards, you should still have a sturdier fit, (mechanism clicks) but I really do think that that really shines when you have skis and boards. Now, if you do have multiple boards or some thick skis, you have three notches you can work with. One, (mechanism clicks) two (mechanism clicks) and then compressed all the way down, three. (mechanism clicks) So that way you can get the best tension and the best fitment around your skis and boards. (mechanism clatters) If you happen to only be able to get down to the first notch, the good news is that you would still be able (mechanism clicks) to lock and secure your carrier and not worry at all that your security is lacking. Speaking of security, this is definitely where I think the Kuat Grip has gone overboard in security because you have six lock cores on the Kuat Grip. So one for every latch (mechanism clicks) and another one for every clamp. Fortunately, all your keys are keyed alike, and that way with your two keys included with this system, you really only need one to unlock everything. But with that being said, if you do prefer to lock and unlock every time you're using your carrier, there is one little downside. You're locking tabs, (mechanism clicks) so this doesn't really need any metal on metal contact. This will not freeze in a shut position. You'll still be able to operate this in extreme weather conditions. And the same thing goes for our really large handle here. I love this design because if I'm wearing extra thick mittens or gloves, I just need to push up (handle clatters) on the handle and it disengages. But when I'm bringing the handle down, even with my larger gloves, I'm able to put all my force on this carrier to bring it down and to secure my skis and boards. Very convenient design. Another convenient design is how your Kuat Grip clamps around your crossbars. So this utilizes a metal strap with a rubber covering. And the way this works is that your metal strap fits around your bars. You adjust the tension in the back with a simple Allen key, and then you fit the end of the strap into this lever. So holding the lever in place, you're then able to press down on the lever, (lever clicks) and that really pulls the whole clamp tight around your crossbars. So because of this design, this is gonna be very low profile. You'll see you don't take up much space underneath your crossbar, potentially scratching up your roof. But also being able to adjust the tension means even if you have small crossbars or extra heavy duty crossbars, this is gonna be very likely to fit. So while your carrier comes with the universal flip mount, which is gonna be that strap that goes around, you also have the option of direct mounting your carrier. So those are gonna be channel mounted adapters. It is sold separately, but I do recommend looking into it if let's say you have a roof rack with towers right where the clamps need to go, or if you want the super, super streamlined way of mounting your carrier to those channels. (lever clicks) This is gonna be a really large carrier though. So if you're planning on carrying other things on your roof, or if you're never gonna carry six of the skis and maybe just one all the time, you may wanna get consider getting a smaller rack. But if you want something that can carry all of the things, here's some measurements to see if it'll fit on your roof rack. So first, let's measure for the clamps. From the end of one clamp to the end of the other, that's gonna be 30 inches and a half. That's how much space you need to devote on your crossbars for this to mount. So also consider the location of let's say your towers or other things on your bars. The next measurement is gonna be the length of the carrier, and I have it at about 41 inches of length. So that's gonna be your overall dimension. And as for height, while this does not fold down to be more streamlined when not in use, it is pretty aerodynamic on its own. So for height, your height on top of your crossbar, will range from about five and a half inches to six inches depending on which notch you use. And obviously once you do have skis and boards on there, that will take up more room too. Two final important measurements are going to be your crossbar spread, as well as your base clearance. So crossbar spread is where your roof rack sits. Usually you can't really change that and your carrier just follows where your roof rack is. So depending on your boards or your crossbar spread, that could also change your experience with whether your bindings fit in between or not, like what happened over here. But the other thing is what if you have tall bindings Is it gonna scratch up your roof Well, the measurement from the base to the top of the crossbar is four inches. And then that will help you figure out adding up the height of your roof rack where your bindings sit on your roof. So the good clearance is where you know it's not gonna be scratching up your roof and you also know that you're able to slide out your whole system. Again, this is available in two different sizes. The Grip 4 or the Grip 6, and you can get in different colors, whether it's matte black, shiny black, gray or pearl. All available here at etrailer.com. So hopefully this video just helps show how this ski and snowboard carrier works. Some measurements that you may need to know, especially to see if it works with your skis, your boards and your vehicle. This here was a Kuat Grip 6 Ski and Snowboard Carrier at etrailer.com. My name's Evangeline and I hope you enjoyed this journey.