Bike Box

Matthewfalle

I use a soft bag and wrap the bike in bubble wrap - 50m of it costs £9 at my local stationary supplier (but see the SQMS and it's nothing - thank you tax payers!).

This gets me around Europe with no problems at all and the roll of wrap lasts 2/3 journeys.

Dippydog3

I have a Velovault. Newer design, similar to the BBA. Very happy customer.

MikeWW

I got the EVOC about 3 months ago and have done 3 flights with it
Also got the frame and fork protector.

It packs quick. I reckon about 10 mins in total-just deflate the tires, take out the skewers and remove the handlebars-which strap to the frame protector

Pretty light, stable and had no protection issues ( so far)

Boxes obviously provide more protection but I do like how quick it is to pack/unpack and its lower weight

earth

drlodge wrote:

A few people (apparently) buy an Alan Bike Box and then rent it out when not using it. Might be worth enquiring at your local club to see if anyone has one for rent.

A chap in my club (Guildford) has just done exactly this and is offering it for rent.

That's an interesting idea but what do they do about damage or people who might decide to pinch it and claim it was lost or stolen? I doubt home insurance would pay up if the item was rented to someone else and specific insurance for it would see it as a business venture.

jazgill

I have one of these and it's been a great investment for me.

http://www.buxumbox.com/ventoux-box/

Superb bit of kit, and I got lucky as the owner of the company was flying into Heathrow so got it personally delivered therefore, no shipping charges etc.

Been to the Alps, Mallorca etc. and emerged intact each time. Definitely worth the money for high-end frames.

HiDidleyHi

I bought an Elite Vaison because it appeared to be a good price. It has done three trips now with the bikes arriving in perfect condition, but it is the heaviest bike box in the world and a complete embarrassment against other nicer looking boxes my mates were using. Thank heavens for Easy Jet lifting their weight limit to 30kg as it just about scrapes under without having to pay the excess.
I think I'll try and flog it on ebay next spring and get a bike box alan

gethinceri

I bought a BW box from Rose, it works fine. Took it to Spain & back earlier this year and found a crack on the corner when it came onto the carousel at Gatwick. Went straight to the complaints desk, filled in a firm, had a call from their approved repairers a couple of days later who said they couldn't repair it and gave me a reference number. Called BA baggage and gave reference code, BA transferred full value of the case a couple of days later. Mixed up some Araldite to fix the crack (maybe 3cms long). Tidy, as we say around here.

thegreatdivide

I watched my new BBA and a load of other bikes boxes of varying types getting thrown onto an Easy Jet flight and worried my way through the trip to Geneva but it was worry for nothing – the bike and box were perfectly fine. However one of the cheaper models of box had a side latch smashed to bits. They take a right beating thanks to the handlers.

redjeepǃ

I did a multi day cycle ride which started in Munich during the summer which meant flying my bike out, but the organisers didn't want people to use hardcases due to the space they take up in the support van. Rather than trust a softcase I built a hardcase out of two cardboard bike boxes (I split the first in two around the narrow side, and inserted portions from the other one to widen it), which I then reinforced with that laminated plastic sheeting you see signs made from. I was quite proud of it and there's a few photos of it on here somewhere.

The idea was that I could easily split it and collapse it down for transport in the van if I needed to (I didn't in the end).

Anyway the point is, that my bike managed the trip completely unscathed, but the box was far more damaged on the return trip when I had it picked up by a large courier company, than on the trip out with Ryan Air where it was unscathed. On my way out at Munich airport the bike was brought out on a baggage trolley separate to the rest of the luggage.

There was no damage to the bike on the way home, but the wheels had punctured through both sides of the box including the plastic board which made me think that it had been laid down flat and stacked, despite the 2 foot long "FRAGILE" and "THIS WAY UP" signs stencilled onto the box. I had assumed that it would have been safer with the courier company. Obviously not.

Everybody else on the trip used softcases, most people had done plenty of similar trips before and nobody had ever had any damage to their bikes, so I think it's safer than we think. As a final comment, the one case I saw that really impressed me was the Scott softcase.

Dippydog3

Soft cases work most of the time.
Cardboard boxes work most of the time.
Bubblewrap works a lot of the time.

Hardshell cases work all of the time. If they do not then it is clear who to sue.

£4000 bike. £400 hard case. How complicated is this decision?

apreading

I have seen a fair bit of anecdotal evidence of problems with hard cases, because baggage handlers tend to give them less respect than other options where it is obvious they need some more care. Have also seen alot (particularly in the USA) where people have had to pay a fortune to transport hard cases but soft cases going free.

Personally, I think hard cases are slightly better odds of a good outcome but also give a fair bit of piece of mind which may or may not be well founded. With soft cases etc you worry more but it comes out OK almost or just as often as with hard cases.

gsk82

i bought a bike box alan a couple of years ago. i now don't spend 3-4 hours in between checking it in and picking it up worrying about it. plus as long as the cable ties on the locks haven't been cut i know there's no need to the bike inside. if anything happens to your bike while on a plane you're not getting anything from the airline for it an unless you've got very expensive travel insurance you'll get nothing from them either.

also you can buy a bike box alan for £430, use it a couple of times them sell in for £350. if you can stretch to a BBA and have somewhere to store it then get one, you won't regret it for a second