Hi Katie, I love your videos. I've just come out to Gran Canaria, bringing my carbon bike, for the first time. I've borrowed a B&W box from my lodger (an Ironman -woman- Triathlete). I stressed about getting it in, had to take off the wheels, derailleur, pedals, handlebars and seat post (ok, I failed and took it to my local bike shop - bless you Scot!), and required a video link with my son to get it back together! It is heavy, 29k laden with bike paraphernalia (although there fortunately was no limit on my jet2 flight), and the wheels are hard to maneuver in transit, so I'd definitely have preferred a bike box Alan (given a choice!) for ease of transport after seeing your video. But my bike was protected, so all good really! Definitely wouldn't trust a soft bag, personally, with an expensive bike.
Great round up. Cardboard is great for touring when you're landing in one place and leaving from another because you can just recycle it and get another at the end. 😀 I ordered the B&W box with my canyon (they brand it as their own and sell it for £180 when you buy a bike so I thought It'd be worth getting). I'll have to keep an eye on the weight though. Bike box Alan was great when I used it no complaints. Soft side.... Never for a flight with a carbon frame. I worked in the travel industry for too many years and I've travelled too much to ever think that a good idea.
Yes good point, I should have said that about the cardboard. Great for touring. Yeah the B&W is pretty heavy to start with. Not sure if I will keep it to be honest. It's great for fitting into a car / taxi though!
When my wife and I tour in Europe we use our Surly Long Haul Truckers with S&S couplers. With the couplers installed the bikes come apart at the top tube and down tube. They are then packed in special bags that look like regular suitcases. The bags also have backpack straps built in for easy transport. We then take our panniers on board the plane as carry on luggage. When we arrive at our destination I assemble the bikes, attach the bags, and then tri-fold the bags and strap them across the panniers. Unfortunately, flying from the states to Europe with a bike is incredibly expensive so by going this route we save a ton of money. So far we’ve done enough tours that the bikes and bags have already paid for themselves. BTW, I have used cardboard boxes in the past and wouldn’t hesitate to do so again with a steel or aluminum framed bike.
I think the bike box Alan is the best. Although I have used cardboard ones in the past. Thanks for the awesome and informative video Katie! Much appreciated.
Great overview, fabulous conversation starter. I have the Scicon. Minimal stripping of bike (remove wheels and pedals), runs well on its own wheels, relatively lightweight and the steel frame and webbing belts inside hold the bike firmly. It leaves the brake levers vulnerable in spite of the generous padding. Having said that, I've flown several times and my (titanium) bike has come out unscathed. But there's always going to be a worry with any softbag. I never sleep well on flights when my bike is in the hold.
Rented a Bike Box Alan for the first time last month. Would definitely recommend it, and unless you are travelling regularly rental makes complete sense.
First of all, taking your bike by air is no problem provided you know how to remove stem and pedals and put ‘em back right and bike is packed with appropriate packaging. Airport baggage handlers chuck stuff around and stack luggage so think about how to protect vulnerable parts of bike - rear derailleur for example. Your precious bike will at some point be crushed at bottom of stack. If you have an expensive frame (or carbon) it needs to be fully protected in a bike box alan which is “bullet proof”. I own a bike box alan that has made over 50 round trips, that’s over 100 flights - never had a problem, wheels on box still work and box is as solid as ever. Easy to rent on EBay to try out.
I use bike box alan for about 3 years now. I don't need to worry about my carbon frame being cracked since the box is very sturdy. The only problem is the crush pole took a little tricky to jiggle and TSA doesn't care if it sits on the recessed hole or not. They just jammed it and closed the box. I rarely used the crush pole when I travel domestic, but it reduces the strength of the box considerably. I'm just not trusting TSA to jiggle the crush pole in place without crushing the spoke of my tire. I wished BBA changes the crush pole to be mounted like VeloVault 2, so when you close the box, the pole will line up with the hole nicely. On the other hand, my biggest problem with VeloVault 2 is they trying to cater their box to be used for both road and mtb. I hate that. Because it makes the box unnecessary longer for the road bike. By far, Bike Box Alan's dimension is the "perfect" sizing because it on the sweet spot of sizing that fits on any car even a small car. So for that, I still give Bike Box Alan thumbs up, except that stupid crush pole.
I like these videos.get to really see how they work. Haven’t taken my bike abroad yet.been nervous about doing so. Clueless when it comes to taken apart bikes. In fact that would be a cool video as well. Especially for the clueless like myself lol
Ive had a Scicon bag for years and traveled the world with it. I CANNOT recommend this bag. Had a cracked carbon frame on one occasion and the last time I used the bike I got home with broken brake grip and bent handle bars. The wheels on the model I had were rubbish although I believe they have changed these. I've replaced my wheels 3 times now and on the last trip the bag arrive with 2 wheels completely snapped off. Now living in EU so I use Tribike to transport bike although if you do this enough buying a new bag makes sense although I love the piece of mind I get from Tribike. Next time I have to travel with bike I think ill get the Bikebox Alan. Great review !!
Cardboard box that it came in is my choice. All I had to do was remove the front wheel and pedals. Handlebar turned 90 degrees and it dropped right in.
I used a VeloVault last weekend for my trip to Geneva. It's similar to the BBA but I think slightly better. It has recesses for disk rotors (which I don't think BBA does?), and more foam padding I think. The clasps are really chunky and four of them have little levers that mean they can;t just be flipped open. The other two are lockable (or can take a cable tie). Wouldn't hesitate to recommend them. (I have no first hand experience of anything else, mind.)
@@emaniebo Thanks heaps for the quick reply. I just can't decide between a hard case and a soft case. The practicalities of the soft case is so high but just worried.
I've got a dhb bike box, several years old that's served me well. Up until then I used a bike bag, what I was thinking I don't know, I got away with my bike intact, but if you value your bike(and I do), a box is the only choice, there's too much of a chance it'll get squashed at bottom of the pile of baggage.
Bike box Alan worth the investment as we all love our bikes , you also get a 7 year guarantee with them buying direct , so easy to manoeuvre & virtually indestructible
When I traveled to IM Malaysia 2018 with Scicon bike bag, they broke my frame (Canyon speedmax) and now I used Alan Bike box and carbo box (when travelling to the camps) Thank U for video, really useful
I have a Scicon Aerocomfort 2.0. I’ve only used it once and that wasn’t even flying. The sheet of plastic reinforcing the base cracked at the point the wheel was attached while I was wheeling it across the car park of the hotel. Reckon I must’ve had a faulty product as it otherwise seems rock solid. Currently going through the warranty system. If they honour the warranty and sent me a replacement/part I’d totally recommend it, otherwise steer well clear 😜
This is of great interest to me, I have my first ever cycling holiday to Mallorca in September and have already booked to take the bike but I have yet to buy a box. I’m torn between hiring one at around £100 for 2 weeks or buying one as I’m likely to go on a cycling holiday every year :) out of the boxes you reviewed I thought the B&W one looked best as it was a little more compact, rigid and cheapest, I’ve seen these for £229. I think I’d worry too much to consider a cardboard or bike bag!
Interesting topic. I prefer the cardboard box over the expensive case/bag options which are bulky and heavy. Not all of us can afford the extra luggage allowance on flights. Have you seen the corrugated plastic type boxes which are one step up from the cardboard. Obvious advantage is that they remain robust after getting wet but their main disadvantage is they are not strictly disposable as they will last a few trips at minimum.
Yeah I saw someone with one of those. I really like the look of them to be honest. They will pack away small too and are very light. Hmmmmm let’s see if I can find one to review 😀😀
Great video, very timely! I’ve just returned from a trip using the bike box alan, it was great! I particularly appreciated the front wheels pivoting to allow me to steer the box. The metal rod to prevent your bike getting crushed was also a reassuring feature. I’m my last trip I used a Thule box which was good but wheels did not turn and it was a pain to navigate with.. I wouldn’t feel comfortable using a cardboard box, I’d be a nervous wreck until I got to open the box at the destination. I’m interested in buying an alan box but it looks like I have to get it from the UK. The guy here wants to charge me $1,100 Cad which I think is expensive . I know there may be duties on it but his quote is still pretty expensive. The BandW looks interesting so I will look into that some more.
Thank you very much for this review Katie. Thank you for comments too. I was recommended the Sci Con. I live in China and my options are limited. The Scicon is cheaper here, $440. My friend sells it and says that he uses it and his bike has never been damaged. Having listened to this and read comments; I am worried. If you look at online reviews, there seems to be no comments that suggest a bike is in danger inside these. I noticed that on packing, some of the frame was exposed and foam is not provided. Perhaps using bubble wrap taped on instead of the foam and placed around all the exposed parts would save the problem? I used bubble wrap to ship a carbon bike safely in a cardboard box before. Would appreciate any reply about this. Thank you. Subscribed! 🙏
Nothing beats the Quantas Bike Box at Adelaide Airport and Emirates to handle your bike :P No need to take your back wheel or even your pedals and there you go XD Great video, really how thorough you were with the review :)
Very interesting, thanks Katie, planning a trip to Majorca based on your enthusiastic vids for the place, looking at bike boxes and found this very interesting, did your bike box fly as standard hold luggage or was it ‘oversize extra’?....
what i hate is having to dismantle my bike before i travel and then having to rebuild it when i arrive at my destination. I'm torn between the need to protect my cervelo and find the easiest way to bring my bike. Cardbox looks easy but not the safest...
I use a Decathlon softbag, just for transporting in the car. Wouln't trust a baggage handler with it but it only cost £40 & does avoid getting oil on the missus best coat, LOL
Re soft bag: Frames have been crushed or cracked? That's the jury firmly in for me. If theres a way it can happen, it will. A few dollars or pounds saved isn't worth replacing a frame. Same goes for the cardboard box. If your bike is a couple hundred dollars, maybe (but then why not just rent a bike at the destination?) For my $$$$ I'm not going to skimp on protection for my bike while traveling for a BIKE TRIP. Really!
Great vid!!! Would you happen to have any additional information on the excess fees that accompany having a bag or box? Do you find it cheaper to have bag over a box or vice versa? #critwhit
Jensen Healey I think it really depends on the bike. I wouldn’t put my Infinito CV in a cardboard box for a trip to Tuscany but for my aluminum Diverge or any of my steel bikes cardboard is fine. On a trip 2 years ago we had 4 bikes shipped from California to Spain and back with no damage either way. For most of my European tours though I use a Surly LHT with S&S couplers in the frame. I can then take the bike apart and pack it in a specially made soft bag that’s no bigger than a standard suitcase. The only drawback is that they don’t have wheels so I have to use the built in backpack straps. Not a big deal for me but my wife has the same setup and she’s 4’11” and 95lbs. She tipped over backwards in Liege on one trip which we still laugh about!
In fact the more I think about traveling with a bike, I am not really sure I would want to take any of my high end carbon bikes on a trip to some of the places in Europe that I want to ride. I think I would be too worried about them getting damaged in route or even worse stolen while I was there. I might just want to stick to traveling with something like an aluminum Cannondale with less expensive components, like 105 stuff. Then I think how nice it would be to ride one of my light carbon bikes in a sweet scenic locale. I guess I will have to think about this much more. :)
Jensen Healey Yeah, I’ve done some iconic climbs in Switzerland, Austria, and France and the whole time I’m suffering I’m also wishing I was on my Bianchi or Lapierre. That said, I’m also riding in Europe so I can’t really complain too much. Most of the time we’re riding through small towns or villages so theft isn’t much of a concern. We do carry locks though and use them in the bigger cities. We’ve toyed with the idea of maybe taking our carbon Bianchi’s and just doing day rides out of one town or city. However, we like touring across a country or countries depending on where we are. My wife normally picks the country and plans the routes and lodging. Half the time I only know what country we’re flying into. I’m just there to keep the bikes going!
I like the Alan. Buy a genuine bike box not the Chinese rubbish because I’ve seen videos on a genuine that can stand more abuse than the cheap rubbish Chinese copies that fold and also damage your bike. Or you could rent a bike box xx
