Bike Bags

[didnothingfatal]

Has anybody got experience of either of these bike bags? Need a bag to stuff my bike into for a flight

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=68409

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=41796

Any others, I should look at? Don't want to spend loads on something I'll only use a few times.

[gairym]

the last few times i flew with my bike i got a cardboard bike box from the local bike shop and packaged my bike up in that.

cost noting and as long as you're not having to do any carrying of the thing via train or bus etc... to/from the airport it's not really any extra hassle.

i just collapsed the box and put it in the car at the other end and it stayed there until time to box it up for the return flight.

just a thought (as zero pounds is a pretty cheap option!).

gairy

[Chew]

I have one of the own branded Chain Reaction ones.

Plenty of padding and worked well for a trip to the Alps. Bit of a tight squeeze on getting the frame in so make sure you check the size of your bike against the bag. Other than that just buy loads of bubble wrap and go crazy.

[didnothingfatal]

I thought about the box option, but it's carbon and I have to lug it about getting to my final destination. I thought the CRC one looked good value, and then wrap the frame in pipe lagging.

[99percentchimp]

These http://www.zoogz.co.uk/ from Crateworks seem to be a good price and get good write-ups (on their own site admittedly )

[didnothingfatal]

They should be good at those prices! I'm thinking a soft bag as I 'll be able to put it in the attic when I get home.

[99percentchimp]

Sorry if that was a bit steep DNF... I had a quick look at the links you'd found on CRC and if it was me I would be very nervous packing a bike (esp. carbon) for flying into either of the softsided bags you'd linked too. You're a braver man than me if you're hoping to ride your bike at the other end of the flight with softbags - my faith in baggage handlers evaporated long ago :(
The CrateWorks looks to be the cheapest hard case I could find (happy to be corrected here) that is re-useable. It can be flat packed too for storage. I thought not too bad compared to the cost of a bike and the hassle if it's in bits at destination or return.
I'd be interested in any other alternatives too - the recycled LBS box with loads of pipe lagging/bubble wrap might be the route to take :)

[Taylor]

Got a soft bag and used a cardboard box before and I've had both ripped open. I've also seen both being "thrown" onto the conveyor belt whilst sitting on the plane and through the curtains at the start of the baggage reclaim.

Cardboard box was Heathrow to San Francisco, one pedal missing.
And the gorilla's at Bristol airport ripped my soft bag, finding my forks sticking out the bottom of the bag (half of the base was hanging off) and my daughters car seat was soaking by the time it got to a dry and hot Malaga (it was pissing it down at Bristol so I'm guessing they put it upside down on the tarmac so obviously UK end). Nothing missing but an unusable bag. I had to go to a hardware store and buy two rolls of duct tape to make it useable.

I've flown loads of times with my bike(it's almost as well traveled as me) but if I had a carbon bike it'd defo go in a hard case.

[Ian]

Having had a frame damaged in a soft bag I can tell you that they pay compensation based on the weight of the bag and not the value of the contents. A light carbon frame isn't likely to attract much in compensation if they do break it, or worse it becomes damaged but isn't visible and then fails while you're hurtling down an Alp somewhere...

[didnothingfatal]

Cheers :)

Hard case it is then, and thanks for that Crateworks link, guess it'll be one of them on order.

[pedalhead]

Just to be confusing, I use a cut down cardboard bike box *inside* a soft bike bag. Belt & braces :D

[numplumz]

I've always travelled with a softbag and had no problems on probably 20+ trips over the years. I use some light wooden battens fixed from side to side to strengthen against impacts that way. Bolt a wooden batten to the bottom of the forks and across the rear wheel mount and your pretty strong. The bag might get scuffed and ripped but its cheaper to get another one than a case.

I've travelled with quite a few people with hard cases and I think they get treated worse than soft bags as they are viewed to be solid and are very heavy, so they are always thrown. Seen corners smashed in and wheels broken off which makes them fun to move afterwards. And they take up so much room in hire cars, transfer busses etc.

The weight of most cases causes problems on budget airlines surely?