I’ll be transporting my bike by plane gor the first time in a couple days. I’ll use a cardboard box as my trip is from point A to B (Seville-Santiago).
As I read all the horror stories about luggage handlers, I want to check if anyone with experience thinks my bike is safe enough like this. I am also throwing in some bags etc for every padding.
Thanks so much!
Lillienpud on
Safe from scratched paint.
Wheel out, install pvc piping w qr to mprevent frame getting bent by crushing.
retrac1324 on
Seems good to me
defroach84 on
I would not leave the rear wheel attached.
Flipside68 on
Real wheel and seat – detach em.
TylerBlozak on
Just make sure you have some brake blocks in the front calliper there, that could be a bad situation if it’s pressed and pushes the ceramic pots out too far. I would also place a bunch of styrofoam and bubble wrap in between the brake lever and the bar, always good practice.
Also people are saying to detach the rear wheel.. unless it exceeds the length of the box, then why bother? I’ve done this half a dozen times, never had an issue with that.
crutlefish on
Get a bike box and put it in it. That’s going to get ruined exposed like that.
SheriffSlug on
It’s not enough to leave the thru axle in the dropouts to prevent crush damage as one side isn’t threaded at all. Can you put a piece of pvc pipe in between the dropouts or get something from the bike shop? They might have leftover packing material from new bikes. They look like smaller diameter but thick-walled cardboard tubes. Fork and rear dropouts have different widths.
wutangclan187 on
Watch out for snakes
OooEeeWoo on
Wrap up those shifters
Proof-Worldliness-34 on
I would also remove the rear wheel and remove the derailleur (+wrapping it). Also brake pads stops – jamming some cardboard + tape worked for me
Tom_Mangold on
Lol! Safe on an airplane! Best joke for today. : )
KashGravel on
lol I just realized this is technically the definition of bikepacking
Separate-Donut-6462 on
Shipped a bike from Phoenix to Tennessee back in 2016. It cost like $50 and the box and bike were unscathed. Shipped two bikes from Southeast Asia in 2021 with all the extra bubble wrap and packaging you could think of and both bikes got damaged.
I’m pretty thorough when I pack a bike. I know for a fact nothing was loose. Handlebars that were zip tied to a frame were magically cut free. My best guess is that customs dug around and didn’t give a rats ass what happened to my stuff after they inspected it. And yes they left their calling card in my bike box.
Separate-Donut-6462 on
The “This End Up” apparently means nothing in the shipping world. I drew smiley faces on one of the boxes and it faired better than the one I didn’t draw smiley faces on. I also wrote “Happy Bike, Happy Life” on the smiley box. Maybe we gotta start taping cash to the sides of those things from now on.
Separate-Donut-6462 on
Don’t forget your front wheel!
Separate-Donut-6462 on
I’d take the derailleur off of the hanger and zip tie it to the chainstay or rear wheel, with some packaging between them of course. Having your rear mech take a hit when you’re expecting to assemble and ride off would be a bummer.
17 Comments
Hi everyone,
I’ll be transporting my bike by plane gor the first time in a couple days. I’ll use a cardboard box as my trip is from point A to B (Seville-Santiago).
As I read all the horror stories about luggage handlers, I want to check if anyone with experience thinks my bike is safe enough like this. I am also throwing in some bags etc for every padding.
Thanks so much!
Safe from scratched paint.
Wheel out, install pvc piping w qr to mprevent frame getting bent by crushing.
Seems good to me
I would not leave the rear wheel attached.
Real wheel and seat – detach em.
Just make sure you have some brake blocks in the front calliper there, that could be a bad situation if it’s pressed and pushes the ceramic pots out too far. I would also place a bunch of styrofoam and bubble wrap in between the brake lever and the bar, always good practice.
Also people are saying to detach the rear wheel.. unless it exceeds the length of the box, then why bother? I’ve done this half a dozen times, never had an issue with that.
Get a bike box and put it in it. That’s going to get ruined exposed like that.
It’s not enough to leave the thru axle in the dropouts to prevent crush damage as one side isn’t threaded at all. Can you put a piece of pvc pipe in between the dropouts or get something from the bike shop? They might have leftover packing material from new bikes. They look like smaller diameter but thick-walled cardboard tubes. Fork and rear dropouts have different widths.
Watch out for snakes
Wrap up those shifters
I would also remove the rear wheel and remove the derailleur (+wrapping it). Also brake pads stops – jamming some cardboard + tape worked for me
Lol! Safe on an airplane! Best joke for today. : )
lol I just realized this is technically the definition of bikepacking
Shipped a bike from Phoenix to Tennessee back in 2016. It cost like $50 and the box and bike were unscathed. Shipped two bikes from Southeast Asia in 2021 with all the extra bubble wrap and packaging you could think of and both bikes got damaged.
I’m pretty thorough when I pack a bike. I know for a fact nothing was loose. Handlebars that were zip tied to a frame were magically cut free. My best guess is that customs dug around and didn’t give a rats ass what happened to my stuff after they inspected it. And yes they left their calling card in my bike box.
The “This End Up” apparently means nothing in the shipping world. I drew smiley faces on one of the boxes and it faired better than the one I didn’t draw smiley faces on. I also wrote “Happy Bike, Happy Life” on the smiley box. Maybe we gotta start taping cash to the sides of those things from now on.
Don’t forget your front wheel!
I’d take the derailleur off of the hanger and zip tie it to the chainstay or rear wheel, with some packaging between them of course. Having your rear mech take a hit when you’re expecting to assemble and ride off would be a bummer.