Great topic. I’ve had good and bad experiences traveling with bikes, mostly associated with being charged for putting a bike on a plane.
I’ve traveled with a bike three ways: 1) With a folding and disassembled Dahon Speed Pro that fits (with some practice) in a standard-sized suitcase. Never a problem, but it’s a hassle to get it in and out of the case. I have never been charged for putting this on a plane. 2) With a slightly larger folding Dahon Smooth Hound that fits easily into a case that’s a few inches over the maximum size for “oversized luggage” (but below the 50-pound weight limit that most airlines use). In some cases, the baggage handlers or ticket counter staff take the case (which looks like a really big suitcase—no bicycle pictures on it) and put it on the conveyor. In others, the person accepting baggage gets out the tape measure and I know I’m about to be charged for oversized baggage. On a recent trip from Sacramento to Portland, this bike flew free on the way up, and I paid $75 on the way back. In my experience, it all comes down to how much of a stickler the person at the counter is. The guys accepting baggage outside the terminal seem to care less about a few inches of excess size, but that’s not a sure thing. 3) With a regular bike inside an Iron Case. I’ve flown around the US and to France twice this way without any problems. Downside is of course the cost—no getting a bike case on the plane without paying—and the need to have ground transport at the other end with the capacity for something this large. The airline I usually use (Southwest) now charges $75 per leg, which adds $150 to each trip. My personal calculation, based on the number of times I fly each year, doesn’t make it pencil out to get an S&S-coupled frame. I’ve been hunting around my local thrift store for a large, used suitcase that I could squeeze the Dahon Smooth Hound into. That would solve many of my problems—it’s a good bike that rides almost as well as a standard bike, and if I could fly with it for free it would be worth it. --Eric Norris Email: campyonly...@me.com Web: www.campyonly.com Blog: http://campyonlyguy.blogspot.com Twitter: @CampyOnlyGuy Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/campyonlyguy On Jan 2, 2014, at 8:16 AM, Kieran J <kjo...@gmail.com> wrote: > Hey Y'alls, > > I'm starting to think about air travel with a bike, with the first possible > destination of the Bay Area this upcoming summer (hoping to repatriate the > Ram Dawg, at least for a visit). > > Do any of you have experience with bike boxes or bike bags, on an airline? > TSC/ATA cases, fabric bags, cardboard bike boxes even? > > At first, I entertained the idea of installing S&S couplers on the Ram (it > needs new paint anyways) but together, the retrofit would cost large $$. So > now I'm thinking about just flying with it, as is. The Ram is a 66cm, so > finding a box that would accommodate its sprawl would be one of the chief > concerns. > > Any good experiences? Things to avoid? Anything to report with various > airlines' policies and costs, as well? > > Thanks! > > Kieran in Toronto > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
