Originally Posted by
Thalia949
Helpful pics! I never thought of banding my wheels together when I pack my travel bike. And the small piece of cardboard is a good idea too.
My TSA story of the day - I have many BTW - I had to take my Ritchey break away to the large bag / TSA check in Santa Ana, CA. I asked them if I could help, they said no. I left that area, walked by 10 minutes later, the entire case was unpacked and they had three guys trying to figure out how to get it back in. I told them I was the owner and asked if I could repack it, they said no. I stood across from them and instructed them on how to get each piece back in the case. Almost missed my flight.
Only once have I been where I could observe TSA. I told them I would stand there until they told me if they needed to unpack my bike. They put my bike ahead of the others to X ray it and said they did not need to unpack it.
I usually type up a sheet of paper that says if they have to inspect it closely, there are a few loose items, after they remove the loose items the rest if it is bundled together so they can lift the entire bundle out and visually inspect it from all sides. And I note that there are no combustible gases or liquids or Li Ion batteries in the case, but there may be some small coin type batteries in the bike computer. And I usually also include my phone numbers and my itinerary printed out for them.
A friend used to have a Bike Friday, he said that he had been called a few times on his cell to go to TSA to tell them how to re-pack the bike.
The photo you saw above was my folding bike, that is why the 24 inch wheels were so much smaller than the case.
The sheet of cardboard in the bottom and the one I put on top have been replaced with Coroplast. I am surprised you could see the cardboard. The wooden center support was a homemade item, I wanted better support in the middle.
My heavy duty touring bike with 26 inch wheels, below. I am slowly replacing the velcro straps that I used to strap my bundle together with zip ties. In the photo below, I have a mix.
The pedals, rear rack and saddle are not in the above, the rack does not fit and the other parts came out to get it below 50 pounds. You can see the white coroplast under the bike in the case.
I have not yet flown with my Ritchey Break Away. It is a Raleigh Grand Prix, but the Ritchey logo is cast into one of the seatpost clamps, so I know who made the frame. Considered it a few times, but have not done it yet.