Painter tiedown — in the water and on car top

[Moonswept Blackwater]

When using my canoe (quiet water), I attach bow and stern painters to the carry handles. Any tips for keeping the painters ready for use when paddling, and stowed securely in the same place (without blowing around) when transporting the canoe on the roof of my car?

In other words, I want to leave the painters in the canoe, whether it’s on the water or traveling on my car.

PS I attach separate lines (not the painters) for my bow and stern tie-downs to the car.

 

[dramey]

I have industrial grade self adhesive velco that I attach to the air tanks in the bow & stern of the canoe. I the use a piece of double sided velcro the wrap around the coiled painter line and then attach that to the velcro on the air tanks.

 

[Ralph]

Under a piece of bungee when paddling.
I usually take mine off for car travel because I assume that any rope that can possibly get loose will probably get loose and cause problems, however, I have looped them around a thwart or seat and tied them securely for driving. No issues with looping and tieing.

 

[Jmharrick]

I personally would never leave the painters attached to the canoe while on the roof of my car. If one of them comes loose and gets caught under a tire you are going to hear a loud crunch, snap, or popping sound depending on what it’s attached to and how strong the rope is. Then you’ll be doing a damage assessment. The risk is too high for me.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

When using my canoe (quiet water), I attach bow and stern painters to the carry handles. Any tips for keeping the painters ready for use when paddling, and stowed securely in the same place (without blowing around) when transporting the canoe on the roof of my car?

In other words, I want to leave the painters in the canoe, whether it’s on the water or traveling on my car.

PS I attach separate lines (not the painters) for my bow and stern tie-downs to the car.

I've never done it like you. Over many decades, I've almost always used my painters as my bow and stern tie-downs on my vehicle, which usually was a full-size van. That's easy, and can be done many ways. The photo below shows rear painter from grab loop to door hinge, wrapped several times. The front painter is attached to the front bumper with an S-hook.



More recently, when using a low sedan for car-topping, I use separate lines for the bow and stern tie-downs.



When I don't use my painters as my vehicle tie-downs, I most frequently just leave them loose on the floor of canoe for day trips, which makes them easy to reach and use, especially if the canoe went turtle in the water.



When I do this, or even if I bungee the painters to the grab handles or decks, I will remove the painters for long distance driving, or tie them off to the other end's grab handles or thwarts, strung under the seat, for short drives. I realize you don't want to remove the painters for some reason, but it only takes a minute to do so.

 

[Chip]

When the boat is on the van, I use the bow painter to tie off to the vehicle. I can't see the canoe on the roof, and if the boat got loose on the rack, I'd see that line moving. Plus, very important for the absent minded, the painter is a visual reminder to not drive into the garage with the boat on (it doesn't fit!). I don't use the stern painter to tie down, so it is either removed or tied off around thwarts.

Driving over a loose painter is a valid concern, and usually a disaster. Take care to avoid that. Thule sells a tie-down for the boat ends that features a ratchet and a hook for you to connect to the frame of the vehicle. Those things scare me. If the line is slack, that hook is going to fall off.

In the boat, I lay the painters across the thwarts that are closest to me. I want to be able to grab the painter if I need to hop out of the canoe. Some take pain to secure the painter while paddling, but I think that kind of defeats the purpose. I want the painter close at hand, and, if I should end up swimming, the painter is going to float free for me to grab. Whitewater is a different set of concerns, and I used to keep the painters under bungees on the deck plates, but for flatwater, I just lay them across a thwart close enough to grab.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

Thule sells a tie-down for the boat ends that features a ratchet and a hook for you to connect to the frame of the vehicle. Those things scare me. If the line is slack, that hook is going to fall off.

I can visualize that.

The S-hook I referred to in my previous post about my van was the Mad River Bumper Hook sold in the 1970s and 80s. It was like a squashed "S" or "?" made of white injection molded plastic. You had to slide its tight slot onto your steel bumper with some force, which kept it from falling off. The other end had a hole through which you could thread a 3/8" rope. They fit so tight that I would sometimes just leave them on the bumper even when no painter was attached. They haven't been sold for decades, as soon as real metal bumpers (like rain gutters) began to disappear on cars.

 

[VA paddler]

I use as tie downs when driving. When tripping, tucked somewhere loose so they are quickly free to hand, or floating next to me if I swim.

 

[Pseudonym]

Here's one method that keeps the painter from getting tangled amongst any gear within the bilge and keeps it readily accessible from outside the boat, where it is most needed. By flaking it nicely, the entirety of the line pays out with a single pull of the loose end. My painters are 3/8" and float, so they're a little too thick (and also pricey) to use as tie downs during transport, but I don't get to car-top and day-paddle very much, so perhaps my experience isn't analogous.

 

[scoutergriz]

I also use the floating poly rope for painters and secure it under a bungee on my deck in what we call butterfly loops (never heard of flaking until now) and remove it for transport- my canoes are all strapped down with cam straps, not rope. I've seen too many ropes stretch in the rain, plus I don't want ropes I'll be handling with wet, bare, hands full of road grease and grit. a simple $15 locking gate carabiner makes them quick remove and ensures I've always got 2 if I need to rig a z-pull for a pinned canoe.
I've seen the result of loose painters and cars- a friend bought a new Malecite and let his son handle the painters when loading, then promptly backed over the stern one that was forgotten- it put a permanent crease in the canoe at the rear rack from folding, then stripped the gunnels off all the way to that rack. Even after repairs it still looked like crap...

 

[clemency]

Redleaf makes these thingies. I just use a bungie with a ball on it similar to what Redleaf is attaching to the thwart with velcro.

https://redleafdesigns.com/collections/accessories/products/tether-tabs