New PA12, Looking for Storage Advice & Long Term Advice

Hey guys,

I recently purchased a PA12. I love it, but as with anything I dig into, I did manage to find some issues with scupper hole damage that caused someone to sink a kayak in a video, then further research yielded that this is not a manufacturing defect and therefore not a warrantable issue.

So, what's the best storage option to keep my Hobie nice and safe without voiding warranty, and without breaking the bank? Ideally, I'd like for it to look nice in the garage, and bonus points if it could be stored at waist level with storage underneath for accessories.

Second pressing concern is best techniques for loading and unloading into truck. Also related to load on scupper holes. I've been fortunate to have help loading and unloading, so this hasn't been a concern quite yet, but of course it will be in the future. One way that I thought of is to simply use the cart and put the nose up on to the truck bed. I own a 3500 series heavy duty truck, and the bed is quite tall, so doing this would put quite a bit of tilt on the nose. So, I'm curious to know if this awkward load is bad for the scuppers, and if so, how I can best avoid this.

I'm curious why after reading about all of this, that Hobie isn't a little more proactive about being innovative about the cart system. It seems like, if there's nothing that I'm missing, you could almost just put a piece of foam around the bit that inserts into the kayak to put less strain on the plastic. Then again, perhaps the load is still pretty heavy in that one spot? But I don't claim to be an expert, I'm just here to figure out how to preserve my new toy so that I can feel confident in buying another down the road.

With that said, any advice on long term ownership that I may have missed? Scupper damage was the biggest I've run across that I didn't know about, but I'm sure there's more I don't know.

Thanks!

Bump

Not an expert but I have a similar setup.

I have a new PA12 that I transport in the back of an SUV. I load it by transporting on the heavy duty plug in cart, lifting the nose onto the trunk, then going behind and lifting it into the trunk enough to pull the wheels and reinsert on top. Then, I push it in all the way, secure, and I'm off. I don't see how this could create a problem with the scuppers when you're loading into your truck bed. You can only tilt it so much before the weight is bearing on the skid guards. Even if the weight is bearing on the wheels/scuppers, I don't see how doing this could cause damage unless you leave it in that position for an extended period.

For storage I got a 72" adjustable height (29" - 45") workbench that rolls on casters. I mounted the Hobie cradles on top (which I'm not a fan of, but that's another discussion). So whenever I want to leave, I can just roll the workbench up to my trunk that I reversed up to my garage stall, push it in, then leave the work bench there. When I come back, I just reverse back up to the workbench, pull the PA back onto it, then roll the workbench back to the wall where I want it (and can put stuff underneath if I want). This seemed like a much easier solution that haven't to store upside down, spend $$$$ on a kayak trailer (and take up a lot more space), or develop a more elaborate hoist system.