Joe Sheehan Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 I am looking to emigrate to Australia within the next couple of months and I am struggling to find solid answers on here and Google. Has anyone had any experiences from either of the two methods for transporting a bike with an airline, or by posting it inter-continentally? I.E. receiving the bike damaged at the other end, preventing the damage and what airlines/postal service(s) to avoid in terms of cost and handling? Weight won't be an issue, it is only a Trials bike after all, and a Mod at that. I will most likely fly Emirates and you do get an extra allowance for sporting goods, but if I can't find flights with them then I will have to look elsewhere and rules on prices and packaging requirements are iffy at best between airlines. So if anyone has experiences they would like to share then that will be appreciated! Ultimately if the bike is likely damaged as baggage with an airline then I would rather pay to post it as I can make sure it is properly packaged as I won't have to worry quite so much about weight. And as to keeping the bike clean (customs control) I will give it a thorough top-to-bottom clean and fit new tyres beforehand to save from aggro as customs won't want a spot of dirt on the bike. Cheers in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Harrison Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 I've flown lots of times with a BMX. Emirates might give you 30kg on those flights even in economy class, and they'll treat your bike as baggage if it's properly packed. I've taken my BMX in a proper bike bag but also in a cardboard bike box. Either way you can stuff the bag/box with clothes and other junk. I've never had any damage, but then a BMX is perhaps a little more durable than a trials bike. I'd say it's unlikely it'll get broken, at least no more likely than posting it. Make sure you secure everything, pad it out. Don't zip-tie metal directly to metal - put bits of foam or old towel between parts, ensure nothing rattles or moves. Downside of sending by post is that you might get customs charges etc - I'm no expert on that but when I had a bike flown from the US to Asia they made me pay duties on it. If you're going to Australia then yes, definitely clean it, they can be funny over there about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bikeperson45 Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 I flew British Airways and paid an extra £60 for mine. I went with the ask a shop for a bike box option and used that with some padding in. I packed it so it was solid and no damage was done, so I’d personally go for a box over a bike bag. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Harrison Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 I flew BA and they took my bike bag as normal baggage at no extra charge - check airline baggage rules before booking. Infact if you have a mod you could check out the (not cheap) BMX bike bags - I have the DK Golf bag and it's awesome. Also Odyssey just brought one out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark W Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 /\ That Odyssey one looks kind of shit - I'm not really sure how much I'd want to roll with that one... I flew over to New Zealand earlier this year and had a few of the worries you've got before I left. I flew with Etihad who have a broadly similar allowance to Emirates from what I can remember, where basically I didn't have to pay for excess baggage or for it being a 'sporting goods' thing, but just had to take my bike through the oversized baggage area. I flew with it in a TartyBikes bike box, which also contained a bunch of my clothes, a big camera tripod and a bunch of other random shit (it came to a shade under 29kg both ways). I didn't do an especially amazing job of packing my bike and it was fine there and back. In the past though I've flown with it in the soft-style bike bags and had damage (although that was with Easyjet flying within Europe), so of the two I'd recommend a bike box not least because once you're there you can just flatpack it and recycle it. For packing the bike itself, getting hold of some frame/forks spacers is a good shout, as are the 'UFO' style hub covers/spacers for your wheels. I took my bars off and zip-tied them to my toptube complete with levers and stuff on, and had the wheels to the side of them in the box. With a mod you should be able to pack it up really easily/neatly In terms of the cleanliness thing, I think it's partially overblown although it's better to be safe than sorry. I cleaned my bike pretty thoroughly, although the tyres weren't exactly spotless (just because they're old rather than dirty). I was stressing a bit about what customs in NZ would be like, but it was totally fine. Basically, they just don't want you bringing a bike in with clumps of mud and crap hanging off it. The woman opened my bike box and didn't even take it all out - she just saw that it looked pretty clean, thanked me for going to the effort of cleaning it and that was that. It's been similar for people I know who've done a similar trip too. Even if they were sourpuss about it you have the option of cleaning it there so it's genuinely not worth worrying about too much 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Sheehan Posted April 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 Superb! Thanks for the concise replies. I think I will most likely hold out for an Emirates ticket then. My sister works for flight centre and she's just guaranteed the fact that she can get me a ticket around the time I want to go. Even if it costs more, I hadn't thought of import duty so it will most likely be cheaper in the long run. Plus Emirates is a decent airline of which I thoroughly enjoy. However I have heard different stories on Emirates about the bike being part of an extra quota of baggage, yet also heard of it being a part of your total 32kg allowance, so I will get a definitive answer from Emirates. Worst case scenario is that I buy a huge suitcase, Dis-assemble the bike and just put it in there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Harrison Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 Get the definitive answer from them, yes. I flew Emirates with a BMX in the DK bag last month with no issue from Kuala Lumpur to London. The 26kg bag was just treated as normal (oversize) baggage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jigga Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 (edited) Ive lived in both NZ and Aus and have flown my trials bike back and forth to UK numerous times. With Emirates and Etihad its just included in your 30kg checked baggage allowance , as it is with most airlines. Though most dont give a 30kg allowance. 24kg is more normal. A cardboard bike box is usually 4kg. Ive used these until it pee'd down in Mancs the night i was due to flyback to Aus and the box was soaked btwn train station and airport. I had to find spare cardboard in the airport and reconstruct it as best i could. Now made my own box with wheels from corrogated plastic stuff that looks similar to cardboard construction. Ive never had any damage having flown to asia numerous times too. Wrap the frame in pipe insulation foa m tube from B&Q,ask a bike shop for all the platic bits new bikes are delivered with to stop pertruding hub axles etc sticking out through the box. Theyre free. Id buy new tyres and tubes when u get there. Biketrials direct or Expressive bikes both stock mod tyres and the 4kg youll save u can bring better stuff. Yes Aussie customs are v.anal and will often take tour wheels with tyres away to wash them before you go through. I would forget all about posting it. It'll cost at least £160+ if u can get a deal similar to what tarty can ship to aus for. Probably way more than that. Anything going into Aus valued OVER $1000 INC shipping will incur customs and Gst if its unaccompanied and u might have to prove the value. I know that from buying on ebay over there. Edited April 30, 2015 by jigga Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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