Thanks for the praise. I want to tell you, I love your sig line every time I read your posts.

Well done, very inspiring and fun to watch the complete process. Me too I want one ;-)

Wow that thing is seriously sweet. How much experience does one need to do that? I'm going to fly to IMC next year and wouldn't mind making one. Maybe out of CF.

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This is your life, and it's ending one minute at a time. - Fight Club
Industry Brat.

The case dimensions are frame and wheel specific. You would have to layout your bike to determine the dimensions you need. I think I could get a 51" Cervelo P3 and wheels in this box if the box was 10" thick.

The airline rep asked me "just one suitcase?" She asked other travelers what was in their cases. Technically, it shouldn't matter. My bag is oversize. Practically, I saw many suitcases that were oversize pass without charge, while cases identified as having bikes got charged extra.

So one of your 'techniques' was to carry everything else you needed for the trip in a carry-on?

Traveling in my "warm clothes" and running shoes was part of the tecnique. Helmet and flops were in carry-on. My running shoes could have been in carry on. Scuba mask, snorkel, bike shoes, extra beam, tools, torque wrench, race clothes and pretty much everything else was in bike case. GF stuffed shampoo, conditioner and other liquids that added a few pounds in my case on the outbound trip. I gave them to hotel staff rather than return with them.

That makes me wonder if travelling without bike fees is less about the bike case's size/weight and more about disguising it's status as a bike case.

Don't know how to evaluate required experience. Everyone has different knowledge. Many STers could point out things I did wrong, and ways to improve. I don't do many crafts. This was my first polyester project, but I've experimented with CF and epoxy before. Polyester seemed undemanding, but toxic. Spring, outdoors would be a good combination. I did a couple minor boat repairs a few years ago. I made a CF bento box and CF tool case that were each one layer thick with no structural demands. The hinge grew out of an experiment impregnating CF with silicone. It seemed to work, and Kevlar is even tougher. I've been designing a CF seatpost for the 2010 season. You and many other people probably have the required ability. I'll see you at IMCAN. That reminds me, I have to find accommodations.

What size Softride frame is in that, also is it based on 650 or 700 wheels? Rough cost?

Makes me wonder too. Smaller, lighter and disguised don't have to exclude each other. Can you think of better ways to disguise it? A big Hello Kitty image or Calvin Klein logo on the side?

Large Softride FasTT7 (frame size 58-61) (700c wheels)
Cost about $150 per case

Cool,

Do you think the same size Softride Qualifier should fit (tt7/rocket beam)?

Doesn't the Qualifier have the classic beam, not that it matters? You would have to layout your chosen frame and wheels, experimenting with all the possible configurations to discover the most compact. Hed3 wheels are very flat, and allow the rear chainstay to pass between the trispokes during travel. FasTT rear dropouts are removable, which shortened the case a bit. My aerobars break down very flat, which added no thickness. My case dimensions were limited by the frame length and rear thickness. Just guessing, a Qualifier case would be limited by the measurement from the top of the headset to the extreme of the frame's rear end.

Came in both beams, also running HED3

You could figure out what the most likely musical instrument is to put in a case similar to that and then place decals appropriately.

Cymbals!

If they asked if there was a bike in there, what would you say? If they asked what was in the box, what would you say?

I'd guess that if you said "bike parts," only someone familiar with beam bikes would recognize it as a complete bike if opened.

Still, remember that lying to the TSA might not be a career-enhancing move.

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"Go yell at an M&M"

Great point. It's probably a federal offense...and if not explicitly so, they could detain you for suspicion of terrorism.

Anyway, just put cymbal stickers on the case then don't lie. Who's going to ask you if they can read the case?

Pack your pedals/stem/brake pads in your carry on. Then the object in your case is not a rideable bike - it does not contain all of the necessary parts. You are therefore completely honest when you say it's bike parts, and not a whole bike.

I read this whole thread, thank you for all the details, and I'm SUPER sorry if I missed it, but: I saw total cost ($150) but did you post total amount of work time? And time elapsed from start to finish?

Thank you!

Also I have an Akona Biospeed. It's fine, it works, your case is super awesome-r. The only way I get out of bike fees with mine is I be sure not to wear any bike logos and I say I'm a massage therapist. And then I go find a real massage therapist to help me recover from carrying it.

Great project. Congratulations and thank you for posting the development/production pics.

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Work hard, but with a purpose!!!
http://www.vo2tc.com

In most cases you NEVER speak the TSA. Remember there are two roles here. The airline has to be able to carry your bike to it's destination. To do this they have to make sure that it will fit in the aircraft and that in loading it it is in the right place for weight distribution. They also have a duty to their staff to make sure they are alerted to any overweight baggage to avoid injuries.

The airlines really don't care they are shipping bikes. However over the years they've gone from taking fully assembled bikes with the pedals removed and the bars rotated, but they were completely recognizable as bikes(and are what the bike baggage rules were written for), perhaps with old rags wrapped around tubes. etc. To shipping manufactures boxes, to shipping bike bags and then to shipping the monster boxes that things like the Trico Iron cases are. Also, while the weight of our bikes have gone down, as the airlines started charging, we (typically) put more stuff in the boxes to get the most out of shipping.

There is no reason why a small box should be charged as a bike, even if it contains a bike. In order for it to be carried as luggage it needs to conform to the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warsaw_Convention, and later modified by the Montreal convention, especially when travelling internationally. Mostly, any bag under 50lbs and less than 62-linear inches is a bag, even if it contains a bike.

Now, you can have an opinionated argument with the gate agent about this, and you'll always lose, especially if you have a large heavy box. The airlines run to pretty tight schedules and budgets these days,.

They won't necessarily have the number of people to load heavy boxes ready for every flight, so if you have a large box with your bike in, they can reasonably argue that it needs special handling and thus you should pay for it. However, if it's under a certain size and weight, then your ticket is a contract with them, and you have not broken that contract, it really doesn't matter that it's a bike.

So, look up the rules. Nearly always searching for sporting goods for the airline web site will find the page quickly. for example http://www.google.com/...g goods" site:aa.com

What this says is if it's between 63-81-inches linear, it's oversize. It doesn't matter if it's a bike. If it is 62-inches or under, it is not, and is 50lbs or less, it is a bag that should be carried based on the fact it is a bag, the contents is irrelevant. Now assuming your are over the linear length but under 50lbs then you are oversize.

If you print copies of the pages from the website, clearly understand what your ticket and airline frequent flyer status entitle you to, you can pretty much avoid gate checkin arguments. You are not required by law to tell them whats in your bag, only that it does not contain any of the prohibited items which include CO2 cartridges(even though there is no charge of them being a danger... but lets not debate that). The most successful tactic I used was to have a bike box under 62-linear inches. Well that was my opinion, I never came across a gate agent that had a tape measure. Of course, this doesn't work if you have a bike box thats visibly 4ft long and rectangular, it's an insult to gate agents to assume they can't do the math, especially when they are 5'2" ;-)

So, assuming you get your bike box checked in ok, either free or paid for, it then goes off to the TSA. If it's oversized, you may have to take it to the TSA scanning area, or a redcap/porter may be called to take it for you. Again, the TSA have the right to open it and examine it, and as such you don't need to tell them what's in it. I mostly just drop my Scion case at the TSA and walk away and find some discrete place to stand and watch to make sure they test/scan it and send it's on it's way.

Once in Miami on a connecting flight from the UK to SF for Escape from Alcatraz, my box sat for 45-mins waiting for the TSA to scan/check it, with only 15-mins to before my flight, there was no point in asking the TSA to hurry up, I went back to the AA desk and asked for a supervisor. I told them that the box had been sitting there for 45-mins and that I would not go through security until the box had gone. This potentially causes the airline headaches since my normal suitcase was already, I assume, on the plane, if I didn't board they'd have to unload it. The supervisor went and spoke to the TSA, it got checked immediately and I was on my way.

So, in general don't deal with the TSA unless specifically asked, don't volunteer, just let them do their job and stand back. Show up early for your flight, make sure you have printed copies of THE AIRLINE rules, answer questions accurately. Call ahead, get THEIR approval for your interpretation. My 2nd bag is this size, it weighs this much, am I correct in thinking I can check it for free/$xx etc. get their name and serial number.

If what you are trying to do is cheat the airline out of revenue by being deceptive, lying or otherwise being dishonest in trying to get your box the size of small car shipped for free, well good luck with that.

Here are a bunch of livejournal entries I wrote over the years on the subject, I don't travel so much now, even to races as it's got "old" and the last two races I used tri-bike transport. However, my young elite racing padwan has been very successful this year in getting her bike checked for no charge. http://triman.livejournal.com/tag/flying

http://pics.livejournal.com/...ic/00030bkb/s640x480

Good luck, happy travels!

This is really cool. A few years ago I made two boxes (one for wheels one for frame) out of corrugated plastic, velcro and a rivet gun (total cost ~$125 and plenty strong). I was never charged, though the cases were both about 65 linear inches. The cases stopped working when I got a new bike with slightly different dimensions.

How are you planning to add wheels to the case? With United Airline's new fees I'm thinking it's worthwhile to build a new case. I like your design, but I've never worked with fiberglass before so I'll likely try to make another plastic one. It just needs wheels so I don't hurt my back.

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Ben Collins
Amateur Swimmer, Amateur Cyclist, Amateur Runner...
...Professional Triathlete.
It's not the length that matters, but what you do with it.

I just glanced through this thread but it looks really cool.

Could this case be made out of carbon fiber? I know you can do it at home, a few buddies of mine have made a bike and a disc wheel. This shape seems easier than that.

I have an XL Pika Pack (Areus ripped off the design) and I always get charged. I have a 61 p2c and that case is HUGE. Works well though, although I like this design much better!

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CEO at TrainerRoad
Co-host of the Ask a Cycling Coach Podcast