Sportsman9

I need to get my bike from NY to California this spring for a tour; am considering FedEx, versus using a hard case and taking bike on plane w/ me.

For FedEx: how much dismantling of bike do you need to do? Can you pack it in basically a cardboard box with some padding? Do they supply a box?

Do you generally ship it to a hotel or a bike shop or what?

So far, in searching about a hard case, looks like Thule is the top model, though one person reported difficulty fitting a mountain bike inside (I have a hybrid). Any opinions?

Yinkgo

You can usually get a used box from your LBS for free. They can also disassemble and pack the bike for a small fee. If you choose to disassemble the bike yourself, remove the pedals handlebars and front wheel. Wrapping the frame with pipe insulation foam protects the frame. I also cut small rectangular block of ridgid insulation and place them around the rear derailleur. It helps protect it from damage due to compression. In my opinion, shipping to a bike shop is the best option. They can assemble your bike and have it ready when you arrive. This also eliminates storing a hard case during your tour.

staehpj1

Personally the hard case doesn't work for me so I use a cardboard box even if the bike flies with me. I would seldom fly to somewhere and fly back from the same place when touring so dealing with the case would be a huge hassle. If I just want to have a bike along on a trip (as opposed to touring) I have a folder that bits in a normal suitcase.

So far I have always flown with my bike. Airlines are getting worse and worse about baggage charges so I may have to do the fedx thing at some point. If you use the airline box it doesn't require much disassembly. They usually charge about $20 or $25 for the box. Last time I flew with my touring bike I think they charged me something like $75 (in addition to the box), but that was over a year ago.

rodar y rodar

Don`t forget to block the forks and dropouts with something so they can`t get squooshed. It`d be a major bummer to unpack your bike on the other end and find out it`s cold set itself in transit and now needs a track hub in back.

I`ve shipped frames before, but never a whole bike. To do that (whether for airlines or a shipping company), what do you do about the wheels? Do you normally box them up with the rest of the bike? If you pack them in a separate box, do they go side by side (axels together) or front and back? Any extra precautions for them?

kpfeif

Send it on the Greyhound. It'll cost less and be much more likely to arrive without damage.

John Nelson

The best bet is to leave the wheels on the bike if the box is big enough to allow it. If you get a bike-shop box, you can usually leave the rear wheel on but usually have to take off the front wheel. If you get an airline box, you may be able to leave both wheels on.

If you do have to remove a wheel, it is usually packed in the same box alongside the frame.

JimF22003

I asked my bike shop today if they do this, and they do... for $45. They said they're planning to increase the fee to $65 by summer. I love these guys, and they do a lot of free work/adjustments on my bike, but this seemed really out of line to me.

spinnaker

Yes at it will cost you a fortune. Fedex and UPS have "magic" numbers. Go over the a certain size and your shipping charges will skyrocket. You will be lucky to get a 22 inch frame in a box with rear wheel on and front will off, under the "magic number"

As far as forks. You need to protect them. The LBS will have a plastic spacer that fits into he dropouts. But you should place something like a sturdy foam rubber under the fork. Fedex slammed mine down and bent the dropouts. If I had something underneath, it may not have been damaged.

raybo

This page has 4 links to pages that have some information about shipping a bicycle. Three of the pages cover lots of bike touring topics of which shipping is one. The other one points to two ACA articles on shipping a bike.

Ray

rodar y rodar

Wow. Now all I need is a plane ticket.

tom cotter

I recco using a good LBS to box and ship the bike for you. I shipped a Trek 520 NJ to FL. The lbs did an excellent job of packing the bike. The wheels were packed in a seperate box to protect them and the frame from damage. THe bike arrived in FL on time and without damage. I used UPS>

Insure your bike. In fact insure it for more than it's replacement cost. The extra dough will cover any addional equipment you've added to the bike.

All up, it cost me about a $120 to have an lbs disassemble the bike and ship it, and have anothe lbs reassemble the bike. So not an expensive trip.

Sportsman9

How do you do this? I'm not good with a lot of forms.

Anyway -- Original Poster here. Thanks for all the suggestions. In researching this, it seems that each method is associated with some people doing fine, and some people having horror stories.

If you take it on your airline, apparently the clerk plays "Wheel of Fortune" to decide what to charge you.

Actually though, cost isn't much of an issue. I'm okay with up to $100 each way; I just want reliability and convenience. It's looking like bike store to bike store is the best way; certainly easier to get the bike to the store than the airport.

BengeBoy 

https://www.sportsexpress.com/

Camel

Most airlines are currently charging $150 to $175 one way CONUS. Most cost effective is boxing it up and using UPS, second is FEDEX. (I'm in the proccess of shipping 3 to 5 bikes OR to MA)

Safest cardboard box is to double box. Get a slightly smaller box to fit into a large one, provided your frame & wheels fit. Also, as others have suggested, pipe insulation for frame tubes along with some type of deraileur hanger protection. Don't forget to get some of those plastic thingys that fit between your dropouts (front & rear).

Shore up the box by using rolled up cardboard or some such at various points, in case the box is laid flat and stacked upon. Kind of like pillars, they will also help protect the frame/wheels.

bokerfest

I have only shipped one bike before. However I learned a lot from it. If I did it again I would go to a bike shop and ask if they could hold some of the hub plugs and pipe isolation so you would not have to buy that when it comes time to ship.
The double boxing idea Camel talks about, sounds like it would fix most of the issues of parts sticking through.
When I was looking for boxes I was told that the bigger boxes are ones that beach cruisers are shipped in.

tom cotter

The lbs took care of it. I instructed them to insure the bike for X amount and they did it. If you go the lbs route they should take care of it for you. That said, I've shipped inured packages thru UPS and FedEX. Usually they ask if you want to insure the package (it's a revenue stream gor them) and they just put it on the bill. No forms to fill out. it's a simple process.

Also let me amend my first post. The all up cost was about $160. Forgot to add in the assembly fee at the other end. So about 80 bucks total to the bike shops on each end and about 80 bucks to ship.

Camel

Just adding in that Greyhound (the bus company) has package express at very good rates for shipping coast to coast. A bike box is about 60$ for OR to MA, transit time listed is 3 to 5days. Declare value is only up to $300.

I'm choosing not to use them, but you should be aware they are available. Other folks on this forum have used them, and recommend them.

balto charlie

At these prices ~$120-150 to ship, it might be prudent to rent. If traveling 1 week or less then you'll break even and save the hassle. I know we love our bikes but think how much easier it will be to leave the bike to them. I'm thinking of a tour in Glacier Park this summer. Local touring bike rentals are about 150 for a week. I'm thinking: leave my bike, bring pedals, seat and panniers w/ gear. Haven't decided but if the cost are close I'm leaving my ride behind.

Camel

Nice suggestion & a very good idea! Likely depends on the local one would like to tour, and when.

Around the big parks (Yellowston/Tetons, Glacier, Yosemite/Kings Canyon etc) it shouldn't be too difficult to rent a reasonably nice mid-range touring bike from an outfitter. I saw a couple big outfitters leading sagged groups in Yellowstone and Glacier. I talked with some of the folks who operate in Yellowstone/Tetons and saw them putting there rental bikes into storage (while I was putting some of my junk into storage). OK bikes. Nice folks. Sorry I don't recall the company.