etrailer | Malone Kayak Carriers Telos XL Load Assist Review

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Hi, everyone. It's Evangeline here at etrailer. And today, we'll be taking a look at our Malone Telos XL load assist for your kayak carriers right here at etrailer. So as the shortest person in the video team here at etrailer, I use a bunch of different tools to help me out with putting roof racks on your cars or let's say cargo baskets or roof boxes, and they do help out. The one thing they don't help out with though is putting kayaks on our roof. So whenever we do have to work with kayaks, that's usually an issue for me.

So with that in mind, let's take a look at our Telos XL load assist and see if it actually does help out. One question is how big of a boat can I get onto this thing We have a small kayak, so obviously that fit very well. But can I use my really large canoe with this So let's take some measurements to find out. First thing is this has a weight capacity of 75 pounds. So if you do have a large fishing boat, probably not gonna fit in that weight capacity.

Another thing is measurement. So measuring from right where that arm is to the end of this handle, we have it at 11 inches and this comes up at about four inches. So for the very end of your hull, that's gonna have to fit inside that 11-inch gap, and then you have space further out here. So if it is wider than that, if your boat is bigger than that, it's probably most definitely not gonna fit with this load assist arm. Also, when it comes to that weight or boat capacity, the question is, can you lift it You're still gonna have to be able to lift it onto the arms itself, and then push it up the load assist arm.

So if you are able to lift your boat up part of the way, this still gives you a break as you do so, so you do not have to do it in all one big movement. But if you can't move it up just that little space, this might not be the best fit for you. So your cradles have this foam padding on it, and that's gonna be helpful since it adds a little bit of extra grip to your kayak as you go up and also will help protect your hull from extra scratches and scuffs. Now, I did notice that just after a little bit of use, I did apply too much pressure right over here on this handle, and I dented that foam padding. So that's gonna be natural and that will happen over time as you use this kayak carrier load assist.

That is gonna be some wear and tear that you will experience. Next question, what kayak carriers can I use with this I'm using the Malone DownLoader, which is a very popular pairing with our Telos load assist. They're actually kinda made for each other, but you can also use this load assist device with other kayak carriers like the Malone SeaWing. And if you have these universal adapters, you can also use them with your own brand of kayak carrier. So I have this where the bottom leg is fully extended, just to kinda see what is the tallest or the longest setting this can be in. So if you have your taller vehicles, maybe you have, let's say, a Yukon or a 4Runner where you need a little extra height, you might need a longer load assist arm. So measuring from our bottom arm or bottom leg, it's about 27 inches long. And this other pole can be adjusted with these knobs, and that's going to be 36 inches long. Now, you have to make sure you still have a good amount of support. These knobs can actually be moved up and down if needed. Now, I still think maybe around 10 inches of support is needed, so that would be a total of about 33, 34 inches of length. Now, that measurement was the extension you can add to its current height of about 55 inches from where you hook it onto your kayak carrier. So if you add those up together, you can see how even with your extra tall vehicles, you'll have enough support. So this utilizes a ratcheting mechanism where you have these little notches that help you lift your kayak here. So you pull on this knob in order to release it from those ratcheting notches and you keep it in place, so that goes up automatically. One thing about that is you have to be mindful to go all the way up. If you only go halfway, it will drop down on its own. If you go all the way up though, it will stop. So we talked about these feet during install and how I was able to use it. Another thing I noticed is that we do have a hole on these feet. So if you are in an area, let's say a campground where it's a little bit softer turf, you could even use a stake to hold that down as you carry or mount and dismount your kayak. All right, so the assembly process is very simple. You