Dolly for PA 14

Tomorrow I will be picking up a 2021 PA14 360. Here is my situation. My neighbor purchased a 12’ passport this year and after using his I wanted one for fishing. My problem is that I am a pretty old codger and I need to be able to transport it down a 400 foot long 4 ‘ wide dock , then down a ramp about 14 feet to a floating dock for launching and retrieval. Also, this is my first kayak. My neighbor has a homemade cart which is basically a long (about 10’ ) 4 wheel wagon with plywood supports cut to the contour of the kayak on each end. I was thinking of fabricating something like his using a 2” x 6” frame with pipe as a support. I have seen PVC pipe used for kayak trailers and dollies. It looks to be about 3” dwv pipe but I may be wrong. Would this be the way to go or would one of the kayak dollies work also. Remember I am old and it is a long way down the dock. I have helped him launch and retrieve on a similar dock that is only about a third of that distance and it was not that difficult. This will probably be my preferred and only way of accessing the tidal water. Thanks for your input.

I find it frustrating that for every do-it-yourself tip on storing the pro Angler there is a caveat. Pipe , no pipe, 2" , 3" on and on... It makes sense the supporting pipe should conform to the hull, but If you want to store your Hobie PA14 on it's bottom there seems no simple answer. Is your question about just transporting or do you want to store your boat on the cart as well? I'm old too, with a bad back and I just want some simple guidance on storing it under cover ie. my deck, but not on a trailer. I am a woodworker by trade, so building a simple frame that is not in rack,,, "twisted" is straight forward. The longitudinal flex of PVC pipe gets a little abstract to say the least. I think the only undisputed method to store the boat is upside down on the gunwales, as per Hobie. I am sure you checked You tube. there are plenty of carts , handbuilt for transporting and storing the Yak. I wonder if just storing on a level platform with the trailer cradles for holding the boat is good for long winter storage? At what spacing...

Sidless,

Thanks for the reply!

Whatever I end up building will be what the kayak will be sitting on permanently when not in use. I too am in that quandary of what type support. It would be perfect if there was something that could be molded to the contours of the hull without harming the hull or being too heavy, brittle, etc. and being another problem. I am still trying to work thru the details as I now have the hobie. I am also a retired builder. My intent is to roll it out of my garage, pull it down the dock, launch and retrieve after fishing.

Bruce

Bruce , I hope you have come up with a workable solution. I wrote Hobie and they suggested two solutions. Store on their cradles ( they are in the $270 range) placed at 67" centers. The other suggestion was laying the Kayak on a flat piece of plywood , bottom down. This suggestion flies in the face of weight distribution because the hull has a bit of rocker, curve in it's length. I built a 2x6 platform that I made sure was not in rack, the frame had no twist and then laid a 72" x 33"x 3/4" piece of BC plywood screwed to the frame. I don't have enough height to story on a cart or my trailer but this platform gives me a flat plane and I will mount the cradles to it. Laying it flat on a sheet of plywood makes no sense to me. I am too old to be fooling around with this, so i chose the cradles. We will see if there is a problem next spring. Good luck, make it once,,, and forgo endless variations on the theme.

I just lay mine flat on a metal cart with wheels so I can move it around easier. It also sits on a rubber mat on the cart. That helps it from moving around.