Bike travel case question

yes expect to bend over and grab your ankles as far as bike case fees - however I have had some success getting a first/business class ticket and then no hassle. The first time I flew with my bike I rented a case from my LBS (subsequently I bought a trico case) and had them break it down with me (so I got a lesson on how to do it) I wrote everything down including which number wrench for what.... basically you take off the pedals, seat and wheels and the face plate to your handle bars so they can drop down/turn around and fit in the case.

I mark everything with a silver sharpie so I can get exact seat height and handle bar placement...

It is now routine for me

We used crateworks pro cases for our travels to Cancun for the HIM. Flew from Canada to Cancun on Westjet, paid $120 each way extra for the bike boxes.

No damage and the crateworks boxes are easy to use and you can buy the dolly for them and carry 2 boxes easily.

Had LBS help me pack it up the first time, then practiced a little at home and no problems. Wheels, pedals, seat and bars need to come off. Secure tie downs for all parts in box. Really impressed

This is why I try to always use Southwest whenever traveling to a race.  They just charge you a flat oversize fee of $50.  If you can fit it in their size they don't charge you.

You can read countless horror stories on this and other forums of what people have to go through with their bikes on airlines.  Unfortunately the cycling community doesn't have the numbers the golf and ski communities do.  They fought early on to get airlines to carry them as normal luggage.

Cat has it right, make sure you mark everything so you know what level your seat was, and the angle of your bars.  Pedals, seat and wheels need to come off, and handlebars need to be adjusted so they can swivel flat.  The wrenching required to do all of this is pretty minimal.

I don't travel enough to buy so I just rent from my LBS when I need one.

Don't forget the fork / chainstay spacers - metal screws that go in after you remove the wheels, to prevent those parts from getting squashed and cracking your frame.

In a Trico case or similar one where the wheels lay on top of the frame, even though there's a foam layer -- make sure the hubs are not directly above any part of the frame, so there's no pressure point on the carbon.  Similar precaution if you have a disc wheel.

Also you may want to get some old clothes, bubble wrap or whatever to wrap the frame and chain so stuff doesn't get scratched up.  I also tossed my wetsuit, tool bag and bike shoes into the bike box.  Weigh it though, because the airlines get pretty grumpy these days if you're even slightly over the limit.

I read this review on DCrainmaker.com about the Aerus soft case: http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2011/02/how-i-travel-with-my-bike.html

It is non-descript, the bike is light enough, and it seems to work quite well for him.  His reviews have generally been very useful and true and I've put some of his equipment recommendations in to practice. I am traveling to Zurich for Ironman switzerland and was planning to buy this case and do this with my bike.  Does anyone have experience with this particular soft case?

I agree he has a good setup there - and the foam pipe protection is a good idea.  But I'd be extremely nervous putting a disc wheel into a soft case... after my most recent travel, it was pretty obvious my hard case had taken a beating.

This is the case that I got after reading his post a while back.  I'll start off by saying that when I traveled down to the Key West Triathlon, I paid $25 each way in baggage fees on American Airlines.  So, I'm pretty happy with how it worked out. 

As far as the case goes, the new ones come with a whole bunch of frame pads that you wrap around the frame and attach via Velcro.  The bottom and sides of the case have a removable pad that essentially wraps around the bike and protects the bottom and the sides.  Inside, there are two padded pockets for the wheels and two pockets for things like seat, skewers, etc.

I really didn't have any problems.  I didn't do the best job wrapping the handlebars and stem with bubble wrap when I attached it to the frame during packing and I got some scratches.  I did take off my RD and wrapped it in bubble wrap and taped it to the frame.  I didn't have to remove my pedals.  The case had enough room for my road helmet, a pump, wetsuit, and water bottles.

I did what Ray suggests in his post and I pre-paid and checked in ahead of time with 1 piece of checked luggage.  On the way down to MIA, the agent knew exactly what was in the bag, but didn't bother with re-doing the baggage fee.  On the way back, the agent asked and I told him it was triathlon equipment...he looked confused and then attached the tag.

So, all in all it worked out well for me.  I do recommend getting one of the smart carts that you can rent at the airport if you are going to have a long carry through the airport.  It got a bit heavy after a while and was kind of awkward to carry.  I got my case at www.mpgear.com 

x2.

Southwest is the cheapest for bikes, but if you MUST go with another Airline (for a long time I didn't live anywhere near a Southwest airport, so....that wasn't an option) I think American is the next best at $100 each way.

Avoid Delta at all costs...I think their charge is $200 each way!

Check the airline websites to be sure!

I wish they would treat it like golf clubs.

I have a discontinued X-Port clamshell case.  It's served me well and even gotten my bike to Iraq and back in one piece.  I would look for a case with L + 2xW + 2xH that is less than 130 inches.  That is USPS standards for even being ELIGIBLE to ship and it prevents your bike box from being oversized according to Fed Ex or UPS as well.  It's just a good option to have because once you have the case you will find yourself going lots of places with it.   My bike case has gone to Alaska, Iraq, Qatar, Florida, South Dakota, Colorado, California...sheesh, I can't keep track much after that.  It's been around.

With the clamshell case that I have the only issue is that small parts could fall out due to the way it seals.  So I put all the parts into a gallon ziploc to keep them safe.  And don't go crazy overloading the case.  It's easy to fill up that big space but if it becomes TOO heavy you could have problems with the airline.  I put the light bulky stuff in there...empty water bottles, helmet, shoes, etc.  I've even thrown my wetsuit in!

DEFINITELY have someone walk you through the disassembly/packing/assembly the first time.  You'll save yourself a lot of crying and frustration.

Lastly, if you are flying out of a small airport they are likely to be quite kind in granting your request to be present if the bike has to be inspected.  Ft Walton Beach has let me come back to the TSA station every time.  You go back there, they run some kind of test to see if they have to open the case.  If not, your bike goes on it's merry way.  If they do have to open it you are there to "help" them get it all put back together.  The one time I didn't do this my bike arrived at destination with a destroyed derailleur cable from the TSA thugs improperly shoving it back in the case.  Bigger airports don't always grant the request, but you can ask!

I seriously cannot imagine trusting my expensive bike to something that doesn't have hard sides....have you SEEN how they treat luggage?????

I got this case last year and have used it for flights from LA to DC and back.  I got pipe insulation and used velcro ties to attach to all the tubes for a little extra protection, although with a naked Ti frame I'm less worried about scratches than most.  It was pretty easy to pack without too much disassembly and I didn't have any problems with damage.  Like DCRainmaker, I didn't remove the rear derailleur but just strapped it tight to the chainstay.  I did remove the pedals, because it's easy and I was kind of worried about them poking into the wheels.  When packed it's still fairly lightweight and not too difficult to carry around with the shoulder strap (as long as you don't load too much extra stuff into it).  Overall I've been very happy with it and look forward to getting more use out of it.

I didn't pay any baggage fees for my trip since I was traveling to Nation's Tri on Jetblue and they were a sponsor, but the people at the baggage counter did spot it as a bike bag.  On my first leg from Long Beach to Dulles they not only didn't charge me a bike fee, but were nice enough to back out the regular checked bag fee I'd paid at the kiosk.  But I think that was specific to Nation's Tri, I probably would have gotten stuck for at least the checked bag fee and possibly bike surcharge any other time.

I've also heard the theory that soft bike cases tend to take less abuse than hard cases, since it's a lot easier for baggage handlers to stack heavy stuff on top of a big, flat hard bike case.

I've got this case, but have only used it for one trip so far....RT from Houston to Las Vegas. Flew on Southwest and was not charged any extra for the flight to Vegas. The return flight was the day after Silverman. There were a bunch of bikes being checked and they changed me $50. As far as the bag goes, I like it. It took me a little time to figure out the packing, but now it's about a 10-15 minute process to get the bike taken apart or reassembled. Make sure you get to where you're going early enough for a test ride just to make sure you don't need additional adjustments. I agree that this case provides less protection than a most hard cases, but we're talking about a bike, not a Swiss Watch. I know you'll be able to find people who've used this case and had their bike damaged, but the likelihood is that your bike will come through just fine. The question is whether the lower cost of the bag, the ease in handling, and the potential avoidance of excess fees are worth accepting the higher potential for damage. Two other nice things about the bag. The bag is small and light enough when packed that I can throw it over one shoulder and carry all my stuff in one trip. The other nice thing about that the bag is that it's small enough to fit in the trunk or the back seat of most rental cars, which can be tough with some of the big cases.