Bicycle box / bag recommendations for flights?

Triathlon Forum
1

Hi,

I’m looking to get a box bike / bag to transport my touring bike and my daughter’s mountain bike to take on holiday.
I’ve never flown with a bike before. I don’t know whether I need a hard shell case or a cheaper soft bag will do. I don’t want us to arrive for our holiday only to find issues with the bikes from rough handling etc. Any recommendations?

Thank You!

2

Bikeboxallen seems to be the top choice,
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3

I just got back from Switzerland with 2 bike boxes from BikeBox Alan. TSA opened one box on each trip and we had no problems. Coming back, we put the bikes in the boxes in the hotel lobby in 10 minutes.

I know countless people have used soft cases or cardboard boxes but the peace of mind of a hardcase out weighs the negatives of size and weight.

BTW, it was free to fly with the cases even though the tri easy fit is larger than acceptable and the way we packed we were overweight. United didn’t even blink. Swiss Air had some discussions about it, charged me 230 CHF for each box then refunded it without me asking.

4

I have the bigger tri model of the Bike Box Alan and here are my thoughts:

  1. My large frame bike still has issues fitting. I have to remove the seat post (or push it all the way in) and remove the tri bars and attach them to the side in a clunky way. Still need to remove the derailleur hanger. So my hope of a fast rebuild and take down was gone. Not a big deal, but I was hoping to make things easier.
  2. Travelling in the USA I get 75lbs, so no issues there. Travelling overseas, I get 50lbs, and my complete bike and the box without helmet shoes, etc. weighs nearly 60lbs. So I’m thinking I’ll need to pack the derailleur, chain, pedals, bento box, some of the front hardware and possibly my seat post and saddle in a separate bag. Ugh.
  3. The size is very large so you need to order a large vehicle. The box stands up in the back of a minivan with the seats folded down, but not in an SUV. You have to lay it sideways and take up the whole cargo area and the 2nd row with the seats flat.
  4. TSA handling on the way out on my recent trip was fine. They checked it, closed it, all good. On the way back, they apparently wanted to dig around a bit more and search the bento box (no c02s or anything looking like one in there) and in the process didn’t reattach the bike right. No damage, but instead of a tightly held bike, it was rattling around a little in there.
  5. Closure clasps are a little clunky. The plastic box doesn’t always line up exactly right, and I find myself having to go over them all a couple times to get them to seat just right. Of course, the TSA doesn’t do that and I had one of the clasps not closed with a velcro strap hanging out when I picked up the bike.
  6. Storing it in between trips is very inconvenient if you don’t have a lot of storage space at home/apartment.

So with all of that I can conclude:

  1. Damage is a reasonable possibility since TSA seems to insist on opening the box every time no matter what (I even used to remove my Di2 battery and carry it on the plane and they still search it every time, so I stopped bothering there).
  2. The hassle and size is a real pain and I had hoped I would be trading a pain in disassembly/airport issues for a pain in transport, and now I’m saddled with both.

If I could do it again, I’d just increase my personal property insurance on my bike, and use a soft bag again.

5

I have the bigger tri model of the Bike Box Alan and here are my thoughts:

  1. My large frame bike still has issues fitting. I have to remove the seat post (or push it all the way in) and remove the tri bars and attach them to the side in a clunky way. Still need to remove the derailleur hanger. So my hope of a fast rebuild and take down was gone. Not a big deal, but I was hoping to make things easier.
  2. Travelling in the USA I get 75lbs, so no issues there. Travelling overseas, I get 50lbs, and my complete bike and the box without helmet shoes, etc. weighs nearly 60lbs. So I’m thinking I’ll need to pack the derailleur, chain, pedals, bento box, some of the front hardware and possibly my seat post and saddle in a separate bag. Ugh.
  3. The size is very large so you need to order a large vehicle. The box stands up in the back of a minivan with the seats folded down, but not in an SUV. You have to lay it sideways and take up the whole cargo area and the 2nd row with the seats flat.
  4. TSA handling on the way out on my recent trip was fine. They checked it, closed it, all good. On the way back, they apparently wanted to dig around a bit more and search the bento box (no c02s or anything looking like one in there) and in the process didn’t reattach the bike right. No damage, but instead of a tightly held bike, it was rattling around a little in there.
  5. Closure clasps are a little clunky. The plastic box doesn’t always line up exactly right, and I find myself having to go over them all a couple times to get them to seat just right. Of course, the TSA doesn’t do that and I had one of the clasps not closed with a velcro strap hanging out when I picked up the bike.
  6. Storing it in between trips is very inconvenient if you don’t have a lot of storage space at home/apartment.

So with all of that I can conclude:

  1. Damage is a reasonable possibility since TSA seems to insist on opening the box every time no matter what (I even used to remove my Di2 battery and carry it on the plane and they still search it every time, so I stopped bothering there).
  2. The hassle and size is a real pain and I had hoped I would be trading a pain in disassembly/airport issues for a pain in transport, and now I’m saddled with both.

If I could do it again, I’d just increase my personal property insurance on my bike, and use a soft bag again.

You point #1 sounds odd. My wife has a Medium P3X and could just drop the bike in (without pedals). For my large P3X I dropped the saddle a few inches and unbolted the rear der. It still only took 10, minutes to pack. Exactly like their video.

#2. My box was about 60-65 lbs and United, Swiss and Lufthansa didn’t care.

#3 Agreed, these things are huge. I did get 2 boxes in the back of my Tahoe but it filled up the back.

#4 Agreed again. TSA opened my box twice. No damage and they closed it adequately but they emptied my spare parts storage on the P3x and left tire levers and a multitool bouncing around. I think that would happen with any case.

#5 and #6 Agreed again.

6

I have the bigger tri model of the Bike Box Alan and here are my thoughts:

  1. My large frame bike still has issues fitting. I have to remove the seat post (or push it all the way in) and remove the tri bars and attach them to the side in a clunky way. Still need to remove the derailleur hanger. So my hope of a fast rebuild and take down was gone. Not a big deal, but I was hoping to make things easier.
  2. Travelling in the USA I get 75lbs, so no issues there. Travelling overseas, I get 50lbs, and my complete bike and the box without helmet shoes, etc. weighs nearly 60lbs. So I’m thinking I’ll need to pack the derailleur, chain, pedals, bento box, some of the front hardware and possibly my seat post and saddle in a separate bag. Ugh.
  3. The size is very large so you need to order a large vehicle. The box stands up in the back of a minivan with the seats folded down, but not in an SUV. You have to lay it sideways and take up the whole cargo area and the 2nd row with the seats flat.
  4. TSA handling on the way out on my recent trip was fine. They checked it, closed it, all good. On the way back, they apparently wanted to dig around a bit more and search the bento box (no c02s or anything looking like one in there) and in the process didn’t reattach the bike right. No damage, but instead of a tightly held bike, it was rattling around a little in there.
  5. Closure clasps are a little clunky. The plastic box doesn’t always line up exactly right, and I find myself having to go over them all a couple times to get them to seat just right. Of course, the TSA doesn’t do that and I had one of the clasps not closed with a velcro strap hanging out when I picked up the bike.
  6. Storing it in between trips is very inconvenient if you don’t have a lot of storage space at home/apartment.

So with all of that I can conclude:

  1. Damage is a reasonable possibility since TSA seems to insist on opening the box every time no matter what (I even used to remove my Di2 battery and carry it on the plane and they still search it every time, so I stopped bothering there).
  2. The hassle and size is a real pain and I had hoped I would be trading a pain in disassembly/airport issues for a pain in transport, and now I’m saddled with both.

If I could do it again, I’d just increase my personal property insurance on my bike, and use a soft bag again.

You point #1 sounds odd. My wife has a Medium P3X and could just drop the bike in (without pedals). For my large P3X I dropped the saddle a few inches and unbolted the rear der. It still only took 10, minutes to pack. Exactly like their video.

Ya, I’m removing pedals, lowering seat all the way, removing front end bolts and turning aero bars to the side, removing the derailleur to get it to fit. Impossible without doing that. 58.5cm frame. Even then, I’m also putting a little piece of foam on the bottom of the chain ring (chain removed too) because it’s pressed hard into the plastic.

7

Oh, there must be multiple threads on this topic, so a search might be helpful. I have an ancient CrateWorks box, no longer sold. It’s huge but light, pretty fiddley to get loaded/unloaded. No wheels on the CW box - so I built some that make the whole operation more fiddley. I flew my bike just last week and this strategy worked OK. I did borrow a BBA last year and it was great. If I could justify the cost, I’d buy one in a second. They announced a US distributor and I was hopeful that there would be some end buyer cost savings from (presuming here) shipping the BBA in a container to the distributor vs. shipping each from the UK to the US. That does not seem to be the case, so the price+shipping is, more-or-less, unchanged by the US distributor (other factors might be improved - or worsened - of course). There are too many factors to make one strategy the ‘best’ for everyone. But the BBA is tough to beat, overall, unless your priorities are quite different than most.

8

I assume you likely have a carbon bike. I have been flying with bikes for more than 40 years. Back when bikes were steal (and then titanium) soft cases were great . . . some (bike buddy) were super easy and stored well. That was before carbon bikes AND before TSA started opening cases virtually every time. Now, with carbon bikes and TSA I think it is foolish not to have a hard case. I’m heading to Roth in a couple weeks and I guarantee you there will be many people who used soft cases running around trying to get bikes fixed or borrow a bike.

I have a BBA. It is not perfect, and the “flaws” are noted in some posts above. But, it is currently the best alternative I have found. I’d probably now also look at the premiere case if I was in the market.

Safe travels!!

9

Soft
Of the soft bags:

  • Scicon aerocomfort triathlon. I have and use this one and my observation at airports travelling to IM events is that it’s the most popular out there. The bottom is hard and it makes it relatively easy to pack. I still remove the rd and add extra foam everywhere.
  • evoc road bike bag pro. This one is interesting because the bottom and the top are rigid plus there’s extra bits to give it structure. I’d seriously consider this one if I was buying now.
  • Canyon bike travel bag has a hard bottom and a sort of frame that gives it structure

Hard
Weight,size, tsa inspections and the price are what has always blocked me from buying the bike box Alan.
I have owned a hardcase Scicon Aero tech in the past but it only really works well for a road bike if it’s easy to disassemble the stem/cockpit from the frame/fork. And there’s some caveats with the system to attach the wheels.
I like to remind that despite all the bad press for problems with soft bags, 9 triathletes out of 10 travel with soft bags (number made up, but my observation is that soft bags are way more popular).

Cardboard
It’s worth mentioning that getting a cardboard bike box from a bike shop, or buying it online, is also a reasonable option. It’s not particularly easy to carry around and it doesn’t protect the bike as well but it’s doable if you’re not relying completely on public transport. It’s a particularly common choice for bike tourers and bikepackers. You build the bike at the destination airport and pedal from there. Some airports have shops that sell them.
There’s usually one of two sizes you can find. The smaller ones you have to remove both wheels and then it becomes key to protect the rear derailleur. Some bigger boxes allow you to keep the rear wheel on.
Some airlines even accept fully built bikes without the pedals in a super large plastic bag.

Renting
If that’s the case, depending on your destination, renting bikes can be cheaper and a lot less hassle. I always rent if I’m not travelling for a race.

Other thoughts
You mention a touring bike and a children MTB bike, I’d say that a bike box Alan in your case seems a bit overkill.
Assuming your bikes don’t have any fancy components, you could go with the smallest or cheapest bike bags you can find. You’ll just have to remove a bit more components (usually, remove wheels, pedals, rear derailleur, detach the stem from the fork). Because the bag will be packed compact, lighter, the chance of damage is small.
A broken frame is an uncommon, real bad luck kind of problem. The typical problem is a broken or bent rear derailleur, or issues with the aerobars.

Finally, I’ll add that travelling with two bike bags is quite a bit of hassle. So I’d prioritise smaller bags and make sure to book transportation from to airport in advance.
If renting a car, finding one that can fit two bike bags plus luggage is going to be tough.

10

Here is a recent opinion on the ‘best’ bike boxes. This list does not include BBA, a popular choice.

11

We don’t pay to get in the reviews- but we do sell a lot of our hard shell cases.

Our new model ( now in stock) is made to accommodate both rim brake and disc brake bikes, no base bar removal, three wheels, no zipper to break, multiple straps and TSA bucle locks, three wheel bags, inner pads on both sides of the bike and easy swivel wheels.

No need to remove the rear mech or base bar but it’s best to remove the pedals, extension tubes and seat post. Fits XL - XS.

Max base bar width 42cm.

12

Carboard all the way… :slight_smile:

316205117_10166736537315328_81809185051677971_n.jpg

13

A broken frame is an uncommon, real bad luck kind of problem. The typical problem is a broken or bent rear derailleur, or issues with the aerobars.
A damaged disc wheel is high risk also.

14

Carboard all the way… :slight_smile:

I just can’t imagine traveling to a major airport with a cardboard box like that and having to lug it around everywhere while trying to get to my pickup, rental car, or whatever. Sounds absolutely miserable.

But I fly with my bike a few times a year and have for year now, so a bike bag purchase a decade or so ago was easily justifiable. Bought a soft case Evoc bag back then and despite some stuffs, it works as good as when I first got it.

15

A broken frame is an uncommon, real bad luck kind of problem. The typical problem is a broken or bent rear derailleur, or issues with the aerobars.
A damaged disc wheel is high risk also.

Good point. I’ve got to remind the OP is about a touring bike and a child MTB and we’re all here talking about race triathlon bike problems 😇 and relative solutions which for the bikes in question are a bit overkill

16

Carboard all the way… :slight_smile:

I just can’t imagine traveling to a major airport with a cardboard box like that and having to lug it around everywhere while trying to get to my pickup, rental car, or whatever. Sounds absolutely miserable.

But I fly with my bike a few times a year and have for year now, so a bike bag purchase a decade or so ago was easily justifiable. Bought a soft case Evoc bag back then and despite some stuffs, it works as good as when I first got it.
.
.
I have never understood why people think using carboard is so difficult,been doing it for 33 years.God knows how many international flights and it is easy. Fits on a trolley no worries and slides into the back seat of most taxis around the world. It is actually lighter to carry and easier to deal with than all of the purpose built bike boxes I have seen.I sometimes throw a couple of straps around them and carry then over my shoulder. Easy peasy.

Here is one that we estimated had been on 33 aircraft in 18 months. I changed it after the check-in ladies at Singapore Airport laughed at me because they thought the tape weighed more than the box.

28616766_10159958112885328_11068503653584791_o.jpg

17

For domestic flights where I am fairly comfortable that the baggage handlers won’t throw the bike around too much I agree - cardboard all of the way. Done it many many times and will continue to do so.

On international flights however, where I am far less confident of the way in which baggage handlers will treat my pride and joy, and where a damaged bike could result in a spoiled holiday, I would opt for a hard shell case for the added piece of mind.

Cardboard is great though - weighs next to nothing, free from the local bike shop, and I have used it on international flights when a damaged bike wasn’t going to spoil anything for me.

18

Here is a recent opinion on the ‘best’ bike boxes. This list does not include BBA, a popular choice.

This is review is of road bike cases. Very different from tri-bike cases, particularly with integrated front ends. Apples and oranges.

19

This is review is of road bike cases. Very different from tri-bike cases, particularly with integrated front ends. Apples and oranges.

Well, that is true, of course. But the OP wants a case ‘…to transport my touring bike and my daughter’s mountain bike to take on holiday.’

20

Carboard all the way… :slight_smile:

I just can’t imagine traveling to a major airport with a cardboard box like that and having to lug it around everywhere while trying to get to my pickup, rental car, or whatever. Sounds absolutely miserable.

But I fly with my bike a few times a year and have for year now, so a bike bag purchase a decade or so ago was easily justifiable. Bought a soft case Evoc bag back then and despite some stuffs, it works as good as when I first got it.
.
.
I have never understood why people think using carboard is so difficult,been doing it for 33 years.God knows how many international flights and it is easy. Fits on a trolley no worries and slides into the back seat of most taxis around the world. It is actually lighter to carry and easier to deal with than all of the purpose built bike boxes I have seen.I sometimes throw a couple of straps around them and carry then over my shoulder. Easy peasy.

Here is one that we estimated had been on 33 aircraft in 18 months. I changed it after the check-in ladies at Singapore Airport laughed at me because they thought the tape weighed more than the box.

Should upgrade to one of these, then can save on tape cost https://www.bikeboxcompany.com/ , you can even strap on wheels