Let the fun begin....

I used a Scicon Aerocomfort Tri 3.0 TSA travel bag 8 times, my bike has never been damaged. However last time I used it the plastic frame on the inside broke and it is not functional anymore. I have to talk to Scicon to see if I can order a replacement part.

I have used mine on a dozen trips with my Felt IA1 and friends have used it for another 20+...I have also had a pro friend of mine use it for 6 international trips....all without a single issue. I think it is a great bag. I only wish it was bigger because I have to remove my extension for my large frame.

But, let the horror stories begin

Thank you for that feedback. I assume all of your travel include the airlines?

Do you guys use any additional padding to protect the sides of the handlebars from impacts?
That is my only fear of the Scicon bags, and why I wanted one of the Premier cases......same sort of design as the Scicon but hard sided...

Lots of padding. Virtually every square inch

I use a Scicon bag for my road bike. I do not use padding but my frame is titanium so I’m not terribly concerned about it breaking. I do wrap the derailleur pretty good though.

I use Albopads to wrap my frame, bars, derailleur, etc., when flying with my Scicon bag. Works great and haven't had any problems so far.

 

I personally had a bad expedience with an Evoc bike (and Air-Canada)... they but the bike at the bottom of the pile of luggage and broke a seat stay... the transporter did refuse to take any responsibility because their policy talk about rigid box.

What ever you do don't buy a Scicon Aerocomfort. Mareen Hufe winner pro female at IM Malaysia a few weeks ago while travelling to that race was the last of many athletes I have seen had their base handlebars snapped in transit. A lot easier to transport your bike not having to remove the bars but as your bike gets thrown around they are broken too easily. Luke Bell pro I have seen also plus at least a dozen more over the years. If you want to leave your bars on get a Premier Tactical hard case.


I have used Biknd bags with air bag protection for years including the newer version Helium V4 now. I have never had a bike or wheel damaged with numerous flights over about 8 years using the brand. They are light, fold up compact for storage and fit across the back seat of a reasonable sized car/taxi for the trip too and from the airport.

https://www.biknd.com/helium-v4-travel-case-2

I've checked the Premier website and don't see any option to purchase just the case. Are there other sources to buy it?

It does not appear so right now. I sourced mine off ebay from someone who bought the bike but didn't need the case. On my recommendation, I had a few friends reach out to Dan to ask when cases might be available again and he didn't have a date. He's reserving all the cases for folks who buy the bike.

If you can't get the premier case, I would recommend the scicon hard case but you will have to disassemble the base bar.

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I'm also looking for your recommendations for a reliable travel case for small road or TT bikes.
I Don't mind taking the handlebars off.

Louis :-)

Took my Scicon 3.0 on its maiden voyage 3 weeks ago to IMCOZ from Boston. My P5 made it both ways unharmed so nothing negative to say. Aero bars did get shifted a little... Not going with a hard case certainly is the lazy man choice and I guess I won't regret it until it is too late...
Delta (the vultures) charged me $150 on BOS-COZ via ATL. Jet Blue $70 on CUN-BOS.

Not cheap but Alan's box are awesome

https://bikeboxalan.com

I considered the Alan until I came across the Velovault. Similar with important improvements: better latches and no finicky bar. It's got a thick split bar design so when the TSA inevitably opens the box, the support bar will actually be in place when they're done.

Had the Scicon Aerocomfort 2.0 Tri, but after a lot of trips, one of the airlines decided to crack my rear seat stay.

After that trip I’ve purchased the Buxum Box (https://www.buxumbox.com/) for me and my wife and never looked back. Sure - some disassembly required, but also piece of mind.

Premier Tactical hard case flew it to Kona this year with my Omni in it no base bar removal simple easy to pack. No problem staying under 50 pounds even with wheels in it

For the OP I have the thule transition and if the frame is small enough, it can fit the frame with bars still attached tilted down. The thing is a beast at 37lbs, but will keep your bike as safe as any case is capable of.

A caveat though is you are also guaranteed to be slapped with the overweight fee, which does rack up after a few flights. So not sure where you are on the risk vs flight fee scale, but the thule transition is definitely on the far right. No worries but you pay for it.

On that that note, can people recommend a few of the lightest hard shell bike cases? The premier is one, but its not available currently and I believe it was around 27lb (please correct me if im wrong).

I've been using softsides for over 10 years ... and never any damage. I'm getting too old to bag drag so upgraded this year to the Thule Roundtrip Pro XT. It's hard to categorize this bike bag since it is a hybrid between a soft side and hard case. The bottom 6 inches or so is clearly hard with wheels on one end of the case and the carry handle on the other. The rest is a softside, but the bag comes with hard plastic inserts so packed, the sides are very rigid. Only the upper enclosure is truly soft. I took two international trips with it this past year to Norway and to South Africa. It's just under 20lbs empty and packed with bike and a pump and a all my extra packing material, I was coming in at 42 lbs. Here's a video that shows the bag being packed.

Orucase all the way. Used to use the bigger hardcases, would pay fees, and even had some broken wheels. Been using the airport ninja this year with not a single bike fee...