I've just got regular $10 straps to hold my board to the roof rack, but I noticed you can buy these things that have steel through the ribbons so they're harder to cut. It seems like if somebody was going to steal your board though, that's not really going to help. If you're motivated enough to carry a knife, surely you'd think to bring wire cutters or a little hacksaw.

www.kanulock.com/

nah they dent your rails if you do them up enough to hold your board.
leave them for canoes as their name suggests.

I have these straps though don't use them much as I now have a van. Yes if someone was determined they would use an angle grinder to chop the roof racks off the car. Like every theft prevention measure its a case of your property not being the lowest hanging fruit. If your neighbour has regular straps and you have the steel cabled ones, most thieves would be inclined to steal your neighbour's stuff first. Hopefully by the time they get to stealing your stuff someone will have seen them.

In any case if you happened upon a thief stealing your stuff and you had one of these straps handy, they would make a mighty fine weapon, a heavy cable with metal weight on the end.

Aye, I'm not likely to be going out and buying a van any time soon. Are thefts common?

Ive had a set of these for yonks but dont use a lot, they're a bit cumbersome and one lock is a bit difficult to use. If I go on a long trip I do use them, very handy if you leave your car unattended for short periods.

Yes.

I have had a board cut off my roof when using normal straps, as well as mates who have had kayaks stolen the same way. I bought spt (kanu locks old branding) when we were touring oz and had no issues with anyone even trying to take my full quiver off the roof racks despite having to leave the car in some dodgy places. These were the first version and were very hard to lock, so eventually stopped locking them altogether, but they still worked just the same. They make your stuff look harder to steal, even when they are not locked.

I have now replaced this pair with a new set which are much easier to lock thanks to a small redesign, but still use them unlocked a majority of the time. To this day no-one has ever looked twice at my gear under these straps.
Get some... They work, and you don't want to know what it feels like to find your board missing off the top of your car one morning!

yes I would agree with Bomber, they are worth every cent and good for peace of mind - once your boards are on the racks and locked they are as safe as they are going to be. I use mine all the time. I have been using a set for three years for my sup boards and now for sail board with no issues.

Have fun

I rate them

as Bertie said, if you are going to use them just take care as the steel cable can damage your board.

I use mine only when stopped for a period where the car is in a risky/out of sight spot. Most other times I use a set of DK straps which are fantastic.

I rate them, worth every cent.
As a windsurfer and surfer I spend a bit of time on here, I'm more of a reader than a poster. Anyway here is my two cents.
The reason I designed these straps is so I could lock my boards to my racks. My wife and I both windsurf and we always had multiple boards on the rack worth more than the car itself.

So do they work?
From a theft point of view -
Regular tie-downs - It takes someone 10 seconds without any tools and without attracting any attention to grab your board. They just pretend they own the board walk up untie it and walk off.
KanuLock tie-downs - A thief has to be prepared and have tools to cut braided stainless cables - yes it can be done, but requires planning, and in a public place, it would attract some attention being up on the racks with some bolt cutters etc..
Even locking your boards in your car is only a deterrent, anyone can smash a window with a rock.
Compared to tying your boards down with regular straps and hoping no-one walks off with it, the Kanulocks are a big theft deterrent.

Kanulocks as a tie-down- They work great! The wires in the webbing make it easy to throw the webbing (don't throw the buckle)over the board even when it is windy. They make almost no wind noise compared to standard straps. You can easily tie off the excess strap, you just use them exactly how you would use a regular set of tiedowns.

Denting rails? I have never had this happen, but I guess like with any strap if it is way too tight over a hard rail there is the possibility. I only ever tension my boards down with enough tension to stop them moving. If you are really worried use a board bag, or tie your boards with the fins facing down at the front of the car (that way the straps pull over the rolled top of the rails rather than the sharpe under edge.) I do this with some boards because it allows me to drive under our roller door with the fins in.
If you have a really fragile hard rail board and are still worried then get a small off-cut of carpet. Do this regardless of what type of straps you use.

Difficulty locking? The early models required a fair amount of tension to lock - the new ones (since about 2011) are super easy to lock, they also have numbered keys so if you lose them, you can call me and I can send you new keys.
Anyone with old ones get in contact and I can sort something to get you an easy to lock set.

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone gets some good sessions over the holidays.

Clinton

I have a set and use them all the time.

They just give you that peace of mind that no toe wrag walking past will take your kit on a whim.

One word of warning; be careful when you undo the straps by running your fingers away from the buckle. a couple of weeks ago I needed 6 stitches when a bit of wire had poked through the canvass sliced a digit open.

I've had mine for 2 years and will be getting a less worn pair.

Ok, thanks guys. I'm gonna pick a set up. I'm thinking of going camping with my gear over the xmas period, so they'd get some use then.

I have the KanuLock straps as well as the Yakima Ripcord lock straps. I use both of them all the time. The Kanu ones have two stainless steel cables while the Ripcord has only one that isn't stainless (as far as I know) but it's enclosed in a plastic casing to protect it from rusting. The Ripcord is a much stiffer strap due to the plastic.

I've used them both for over two years. The Yakima ones are easier to get in and out of locks. The lock is easier to close but it's much bigger. The Kanu locks are basically holding at the buckle ends with a folded, sewn section. The Ripcords have an aluminum crimped end that holds the cables.

Both could be cut in about 30 seconds with a pair of cheap pliers and a knife. I would not trust these straps for anything other than running into the store for a a minute or two. They provide a peace of mind if you're driving fast on the highway as you have a steel cord running through them.

I like them as i can use 1 strap to tie down 2 boards at a time as they are that long and really unlikely to break due to the steel. This is great for a short trip. I leave them on in Manly as it is a dodgy area where I have lost boards before.

Have a nice day
Aloha

I had a set for a 5 years, great product and Aussie Designed
I don't use them a lot mainly for long trips ect, the locking mech abit tight but there is a trick when locking them.
sounds like the new ones have rectified this problem.
as far as crashing rails with them the wires are pretty well padded so it would take a lot of pressure to do it.

Travelled around Oz with my gear on the roof everyday for 12 months, using kanuLock straps. They are heavy duty, unlikely to snap and the lock is a visual and physical deterrent. If a thief really wants the gear they will get past the lock, so I didn't leave the gear on the roof overnight unless we camped close to the car.

Mine are getting old now, must be 6 years old, but still very sturdy......I use them for long trips because of the sturdy strap even though I rarely lock them any more.

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Bertie said..

nah they dent your rails if you do them up enough to hold your board.
leave them for canoes as their name suggests.

I use them all the time. Never dented a rail. Maybe I'm not very strong

I use one strap instead of two. It's quicker.

The locking mechanism is awesome but I hardly ever turn the key.

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Yuppy said...

Bertie said..

nah they dent your rails if you do them up enough to hold your board.
leave them for canoes as their name suggests.

I use them all the time. Never dented a rail. Maybe I'm not very strong

I use one strap instead of two. It's quicker.

The locking mechanism is awesome but I hardly ever turn the key.

I'm with Yuppy - I bought some before xmas and have used them about 10 times with w/surf and sup boards. I've parked in a few places with all my gear on that I normally would stress about losing gear without a problem. I can't imagine how tight they would have to be pulled down to damage rails unless you have a super light performance board with sharp rails - if so, any strap would damage rails without using padding.

Great quality straps and worth every cent - even if you don't lock them.

I've had some for 10 years. great peace of mind.

Had boards locked to a campet trailer for 1.5 yrs tavelling,

flew them to maui for the hire boards left on the roof in the street o/night.

still being used (when I'm not in my van)good stick protection technology(I think that was the original name)

yep, had a set for ages, like most said, forget the locking part, but the straps are a good heavy duty set, good for longer trips, or bigger loads etc,

I don't have the kanulocks but I do have the Thule lock straps. They help me sleep better at night when I do leave the boards on my rack for the next day (never on the rack for more than 1 night). I do live in a pretty save neighborhood though.

-Kevin

today i took two boards to the beach with me and locked one up against a post on the beach with a Kanu lock. it wasn't mine so this gave me great peace of mind.