Discussion: Bike travel case

Question to all the international adventure travelers - any tips on shipping the bike ? Cardboard or soft case or Hard case bike box ??

Need to take my lovely a** Cervelo for IM Whales this September & hence want to know which one should I go with.

Also, If someone has a case that I can borrow for the duration or know a place that can rent the case at a reasonable price or if someone wants to sell me one ! Any info would be appreciated.

I borrowed a friend's hard case when I started flying with a bike.

When the case was packed properly, I think my bike would be fine even if a truck ran over it. Advantage: hard case.

However, when the nice security folks decided to open the case after I'd checked it so they could look for bombs and drugs, they didn't close it properly. When I picked it up after the flight, the case wasn't closed properly and my carefully packed bike pieces had shifted around. So much for my advantage.

After travelling with it a few times, the weight and size really started to get to me. I think the case weighed over 30 lb before I put a bike in it, and if I was renting a vehicle, I had to get one big enough to hold it. Depending on the trip, I had to find a place to keep the large hard case while I was off riding.

So I got a much lighter Pika Packworks bike bag. I've flown with it on three trips, travelling on 3 different continents. No issues so far but I am taking a risk compared to a hard case. For me, it's worth it though. It is possible to add some extra protection inside the bag.
http://pikapackworks.com/

Btw I have my friend's old hard case in our basement since he never seems to have the right vehicle when we get together. He may be willing to lend it in exchange for a donation to his favourite charity.

I've looked at some in the past, I saw a guy at WT last year with the Pikapackworks as Bash mentioned and got to ask him about it - he loved it.

I had a friend that I do the work on her bike and as she travells for IM as well, she has been considering a case. I came across this Toronto based service. She hasn't used them or made a purchase as yet, but I know she is still thinking about it.

http://www.bikeboxrentals.ca/Home.html

Prices are pretty good actually...

D

Thanks Bash. Borrowing in exchange for a donation to a charity - sounds good! Can you please check with your friend & let me know?

Also, can you pls tell me what brand case that is so that I can check the dimensions/wt etc !

And Osteo, I already checked with bikeboxrentals & that is the best deal I have currently! Its no big deal for a week but for a month...um...If I have to shell out that money, I might as well buy one!

Came across this thread and throwing my two cents.

A.
Traveling with a soft case or cardboard box is taking a huge gamble. I mean you're traveling with your $$$$ steed after all and the amount of money spent on it and all the sweat & training, who would want to take a chance with those gorillas at the airport. We all know they're not gentle on anything and when they see fragile stickers they throw the luggage even further - sick bastards!!!
With security - you should try to watch (if u can/possible) and they will repack much more thoroughly.

I find that damage is most often caused by OVERPACKING the bike case, so keep it simple - just bike, shoes, wetsuit and that's it. Remember, if it's HEAVY for you it's heavy for the airport handlers and simple physics is that the heavier the case / luggage the higher the chance of damage to the case/luggage and its contents.

B.
I've used bikeboxrentals.ca and they are five star!!! They know their stuff about travel, they pack my steed really well, the cases are clean, they are very detailed, and communication is fast. I have used their trico cases as well as the bikeboxalan brands (they are much lighter & easier to pack/move around). I even sent a buddy who lives in Vancouver to them and he bought a new bikeboxalan case from them- loves the case. Give them a shout.

If you're traveling not that often, renting is obviously the way, but if you want convenience and or you're traveling "more" often then yeah, purchase - it's an long term investment.

Hope this helps :)

With security - you should try to watch (if u can/possible) and they will repack much more thoroughly.

The 3-4 times that my bike box/bag has been opened and searched, it was after the bag had been checked, before it was loaded on the plane - or during a plane change on a multi-leg flight. They put a little note inside so you know but they've never done it when I was around. If you're not flying through the U.S., the odds of this happening go way down.

I'll write my friend to ask. As mentioned, the bike box is around 30 lb. It's a Trico Sports Iron Case. Pretty sure most bikes would fit.
http://www.tricosports.com/iron_case.html

I have flown several times with the TriAll3 Velo Safe II, and it worked really well and requires minimal disassembly/reassembly of the bike. That's the best part for AR - who wants to be removing rotors and derailleurs at a TA? i know people who have travelled internationally with this case, but the biggest problem is fitting it in your rental vehicle - especially in Europe where I am told the rental cars tend to be smaller with not as many SUV options. Overall, though, it's a great case and fits your helmet, shoes, etc right in with your bike.

My go to...

http://www.orionadventure.com/images/stories/misc/...

I have also used both the TriAll3 Velo Safe and ironcase. Both have pro's and cons to them. I will say that i liked the convenience of the TriAll3 but when TSA checked BiT's bike, they unlatched the front fork and did not put it back in properly. Our 3 day riding trip in Tucson was reduced to 2 days as we spent the first day sourcing replacement parts for his front brake.

I've had this one for the past 5 years or so with usually a few exp adv. races/year, IM's, general bike travel, etc.

http://www.crateworks.com/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD...

Cheap, light, durable. But if you're handy (like FB or Leanimal) you can probably build it for 1/4 of the price as per Tico's link.

Seems to also meet required dimensions from ARWS races (when applicable) which might be a big factor if you get into international AR.

As per Tico, but add in a 3/4" PVC framework and you both a) stop your box from being crushed and b) have posts that hold the equipment in place. Even if I bought a pre-made one, I'd do this.

The secret is not to pack to much and zip tie everything together. If they open and look at the box, they pull everything out and it goes right back in. I made one like Tico 2.0 recommends for Paulette. It made it to Chile and back twice and has a couple of more trips in it.

I've got the TriAll3 box and love the simplicity and the peace of mind of how bombproof it is.

My friend's Trico Sports Iron Case is available to Chief for the month of September in exchange for a $50 donation to the charity of Chief's choice.

One thing to consider these days is that you are more likely to be over 50lbs with a hard case plus bike (although a road bike may sneak in under that weight). Alot of airlines start charging you way more once you are over that weight. I have a TriAll3 sports case and it was great in the good old days of 70lb luggage allowances. Would be happy to sell cheaply it if anyone was interested...

Lately I have used a home built corflute box which was great until TSA lazily cut through the box to check the contents (instead of using the velcro top flap).

Same boat as revy. TriAll3 two bike version. Was awesome when I got it. Could pile all my other gear on top and wheel around the airports etc.

It's now used for 'mobile' storage in my garage. Probably why they sell more cheaply now than when I bought it about 10 years ago... surprised they still sell them.

I was surprised when we flew American Airlines to Argentina that they still allowed 70 lb for a bike because I've had trouble hitting a 50 lb limit (with the hard case - not the soft), and I've been on flights where they cared about 1 lb extra.

I have a Thule Bike Box, hard case with wheels.Traveled to Europe with it a few times with my tri bike. Need to get a midsize car though and flip the seats down to fit it in unless the car has a roof rack. Works well and closes easily for security since it has internal straps that cinch everything down inside.

After helping flight pack and unpack a Thule Bike Box, I opted for the Biknd Helium. It has a much smaller footprint and is designed to be easy to pack into. It is soft shelled but has inflatable bladders on each side to protect the bike. Super light, easy rolling and the packed size does not incur a shipping premium.

I chose it over the TriAll3, which it thought was brilliant, primarily for the reduced shipping cost over its life, which I expect to be about four uses a year.

I made a coro 'Bent box which has been all over the world, occasionally with the 'bent but more often when other racers borrow it from me to fit their 29ers. Super-light, but still kicking. I got a little wheeled dolly to go with it, and the combo is perfect.

This was posted the other day on mtbr.com, Chief you may have already finalized your decision but this might be useful info for someone in the future:

EVOC bike Travel Bag review:
http://reviews.mtbr.com/review-evoc-bike-travel-ba...

Purchased a Pika Packworks MTB size case for my trip from Orlando to Estonia later this week for the world mountain bike orienteering championships. Not a cheap case, but light and well designed. I can lift it easily with one hand, and carry it on my shoulder for short distances. Shipping a Niner Air Carbon size Large hard tail. Took of both wheels, pedals, handle bars, both brakes and rear derailleur hanger but they are all in the case. I'll post if I have any issues. ~Dash (Rev3/MK)

Dash, I've taken the Pika bag on several trips now, usually with plane changes, and all has been well. A soft bag is a risk but I'm really happy with it.

Returned from Estonia, bike is fine. Bonus is that the airline didn't charge me for a bike, so I saved some $$ there and almost paid for the Pika bag in one trip. My teammates all were charged, they had either cardboard bike boxes or hard cases.

Interesting Dash. Why didn't they charge you the bike fee? Did they know it was a bike or just not bother to ask? I always thought if it was a bike you got charged for a bike. Doesn't matter what it is in or how big it is. Never made sense to me but was the way it always seemed to be.

One of the features of the Pika bag is that it doesn't advertise that it's a bike bag so it's up to you whether you want to volunteer that info. In most cases, it's cheaper got me to fly with a bike than with an oversized piece of luggage so I have always confessed!