Shipping a bicycle: Deciding on how to pack your bike
After deciding to take my bicycle with me overseas the next major decision to be made was how to ship it.
There are a few packing options available to someone deciding to ship their bicycle overseas. Having gone through the experience myself, today I thought I’d share my thoughts on the various methods available.
When wanting to ship your bicycle the first major decision that needs to be made is what you’re going to ship it in. There are basically three options available to you and here’s a run down of each.
A cardboard box
This is the cheapest and simplest way to ship your bicycle, however it’s also the most dangerous to the bicycle itself.
Sure bicycles arrive in bike stores in boxes but this is usually via delivery where the driver is somewhat responsible for the cargo. This is vastly different to airline freight crew who don’t really give a crap about your bicycle.
Whilst more economical then a bicycle suitcase or bag, a cardboard box also requires some pretty major disassembly for a bicycle to properly fit in one. Remember whatever you disassemble will have to be reassembled when you arrive wherever you’re going.
The final major issue with a cardboard box is durability. If it gets wet it’s going to be pretty useless and if storing a non foldable cardboard is a pain. They are a one time use consumable so if you’re doing a bit of travelling and relying on cardboard boxes, beware that you might have trouble sourcing one in more remote regions.
Having said that if you’re in the vicinity of a bicycle store obtaining a cardboard box is a relatively straight forward affair. Most bike shops should be happy to store a box or two upon request ready for you to pick up.
A bicycle case
A bicycle case is a purpose built case deisigned for the sole purpose of shipping your bicycle securely from point A to point B. Unfortunately although being the most secure and robust method of shipping, a bicycle case still has some strong drawbacks.
The first is the price. Bicycle cases do not come cheaply and at a minimum you’re going to be looking at a couple of hundred of dollars for a cheap one. Obviously robustness and build quality will increase as you go up in price.
Secondly, like cardboard boxes, bicycle cases are cumbersome and can weigh quite a bit. Storing a bicycle case is the same as storing a cardboard box, only unlike a cardboard box you paid good money for a case so you’re not just going to dispose of it.
Being a sturdy case, bicycle fit is very important. Unlike cardboard boxes and a bicycle bag you’ve got no leeway when it comes to bicycle size and a hard case. Either the bicycle fits or it doesn’t so be sure to carefully measure or even take your bicycle partially disassembled to test if it fits into the case if you’re buying locally.
Weight can also be an issue if you’re paying per kg or travelling by air with a fixed allowance. Not much point shipping your bicycle around if you’re going to be paying a ridiculous weight tax on it everywhere you go.
Negative aside, the big drawcard of shipping a bicycle in a case is that they provide the strongest level of protection. Freight handlers can throw your bicycle case around as hard as they want and your bicycle will remain snugly safe and sound inside.
A bicycle bag
Somewhere inbetween the crude cardboard box and sturdy expensive bicycle case lies the bicycle bag.
For me a bicycle bag was the obvious choice for shipping my bicycle with due to a number of reasons.
Firstly a bicycle bag has a lot of similarities of a cardboard box. You’ve got flexibility as to how you can pack things and your bike doesn’t need to be majorly disassembled to fit inside. If you want the protection of a cardboard box you’re also free to pad out the inside of a bicycle bag with cardboard too.
Unlike a cardboard box though a bicycle bag won’t become useless if it gets damp or wet and is much more convenient to carry around. Being lockable with a padlock a bicycle bag is also more secure.
Cost wise you’re probably looking at a hundred dollars minimum but this is a far cry from a bicycle case which will set you back five hundred dollars or more easily.
I managed to pick up a ‘Veloman’ bicycle bag from a local store which set me back just one hundred and fifty. In this bag I was able to pack my entire Surly Long Haul Trucker (which is a notoriously large frame), full length mudguards, two pannier bags, my helmet, lock, track pump, rear rack, both wheels, saddle and seat post.
Disassembly wise all I had to do was remove the wheels, unscrew the handlebars from the stem (didn’t have to undo any of the brake cables) and remove my mudguards, seat post and rear rack from the frame.
I’d be hard pressed to fit all this gear into a bicycle case and wasn’t prepared to leave it to chance that a cardboard box wouldn’t get damaged during shipping. A bicycle bag was the perfect compromise between the two.
Additionally once you’re done you can simply fold it up into a nice tiny package ready for use again when you need it. Be aware that on its own though a bicycle bag doesn’t offer much protection so be sure to source some cardboard to pad it out with before packing your bicycle again.
I wouldn’t bother with a bicycle case unless you’ve got a really, really expensive bike with no accessories. Bulk wise it’s just not worth the hassle.
A bicycle bag on the other hand is a nice mix between the two and is very competitively priced in comparison to a bicycle case. I used a bicycle bag to ship my Long Haul Trucker from Australia to Taiwan and don’t think I could have made it any easier on myself.
Currently my bicycle bag is sitting folded and tucked away in a closet. If I ever have to ship the Trucker anywhere else again I know I’ve got a freight system that works and can fit my bicycle securely along with all its accessories.
January 9th, 2011 at 8:05 pm salty(Quote)
hi ozesoapbox. QUESTION:
Have you got any ideas for a quick and easy way to PROTECT GEARS AND COGS when putting your bike in the luggage carriage on a V-LINE TRAIN? Only on the velocity trains you can keep them upright.
i’m talking about regular 1 hour v-line trips. The V-Line conductor usually lies the bike down. nowhere to tie them to. They lie them down either gears up or down depending on space and so they don’t slide towards the door etc.
when more bikes get on, they are sometimes put on top of the first bike.
The gear protection has to be light enough to then ride around with all day until the return journey.
I was thinking of carving out some dense foam and maybe use cable ties.
Like others, I found the dissertation on Huffy bikes and related info great reading and useful. I found an old huffy for $1 at op-shop, thought i might use a few bits, but now I think I’ll leave it on the street for someone.
January 10th, 2011 at 2:02 am ozsoapbox(Quote)
Hey Salty,
You’re on the right track with foam and zip ties. A much easier material to source would just be some cardboard squares. Maybe you could cut out 3 or 4 and zip tie them to the bike.
Before you attach them though, make sure you secure the rear hanger (the rectangle bit with a cog that sticks down) as this is the most fragile bit.
Cardboard and zipties should be easy enough to carry around for a day. Might even be a bit more durable then foam which might crack and splinter if a few bikes are thrown on top.
September 27th, 2011 at 3:13 am McKenna Jaymes(Quote)
Can you recommended an inexpensive way to ship a bicycle from the US to Adelaide, AU?
It will be packed in a cardboard box as described above. Can it be stowed on the plane as extra baggage?
September 27th, 2011 at 10:31 am ozsoapbox(Quote)
It can but you’ll pay the excess baggage fees if you’re over your limit. Check with your airline as to what this cost is and then call some freight companies and compare.
Go with whichever is cheapest.