Suitcase for Curve D3?
 

I am considering the Curve D3 for an upcoming vacation thinking that it would be easier to fit a 16" into a regulation suitcase for air travel. Does anyone know of a suitcase that would fit the Curve D3 with only the standard folding (not taking it apart)? It does not appear that the Samsonites would work since they do not have room to cover the 13" dimension of the folded bike.

I really do not want the big Dahon travel suitcase ($200 and 73" linear), but if that is the only choice I might as well reconsider the Dahon 20" bikes.

If a standard suitcase does not work, I wonder if their are any "coolers" that would accomadate the Curve D3.

Thx...Paul

Does anyone "fly" with the D3? What do you pack it into?

I have a Curve SL and I haven't flown with it yet, so I don't know how helpful I'm going to be. But I've thought about it a lot because it is something I do and have done in the past with my Speed pro.

Just by looking at it and doing some rough measurements. It looks like, if you remove the front wheel (easy),stem/handlebar, seat/ seatpost and maybe the pedals. You should be able to fit it into a standard 30" (Say 30x20x12 or possibley smaller) suitcase with plenty of room to spare (You can pack your clothes with it in bags for padding). If you remove some air from the tires, you might get it into a 29".

To get a narrower fold with the front wheel removed, you rotate the fork so it is 90 degrees from straight and fold the handlepost down the other side of the frame. You could then take your front wheel in your carry on if you want.

I think when I fly, I'm going to remove both wheels and carry them on and put the frame and my clothes etc in a 26" suitcase. The only problem is the rear wheel is a little fiddley to remove so a 30 inch would be much faster to pack and unpack.

I hope this helps a little, I love to hear from people who have done it.