Firstly is it worth me buying my own or should I rent?
I'm not likely to travel with my bike on an aircraft beyond next years summer holiday so maybe renting is the way to go but then again it's a useful thing to have as I fly a lot on business to US where bikes are cheaper, n+1 and all that. Best hope her indoors isn't reading this.
So any recommendations? I'm lucky to have 2 bikes a winter training bike and a best bike, would you trust your best bike in one?
Thanks.
Comments
Borrow one?
Buy a bike box Alan, cos they're brilliant (although very expensive), then sell it to me for a hugely knocked down price after you've used it once and then decided you don't need it any more and have nowhere to store it.
Alternatively, rent one, as it will be much cheaper.
I am trusting my bike in a semi-rigid case. Whether that is misplaced trust or not remains to be seen!
I'm guessing the Alan is the most expensive for a reason!
I've got a Wiggle DHB bike box which has taken my race bike half way around the world and back twice and assorted other people's bikes to USA/Europe on various occasions, all without damage.
It's starting to look a little battered now but certainly did the job.
Yep, they're the dogs danglies.
Thanks guys, I've found a rental for an Alan for £75 for the duration, I'm going to reserve it tomorrow.
Go to LBS and get a cardboard bike box...even cheaper still
The Triathlon Shop (based in Bristol) used to do bike box rentals, not sure if they still do.
There are a few firms that do them, it's worth shopping around.
the problem with hard cases is that they are a pain to store when you're not using them so think of one of the new generations of soft bags which have a lot of extra features and can pack down for storage.
there's been a lot of good reviews of the Biknd inflatable bike bag which does pack down small when not in use
http://www.biknd.com/case/index.html
alternatively, look at the Evoc bag
http://www.evocsports.com/en/bike/bike-travel-bags/bike-travel-bag.html
both are in a similar price league to an Alan but in my view, more usable.
Wiggle sell both of them
alternatively a standard soft bag will do for most purposes - you just need to make sure you pad the bike very well and line the box with cardboard for extra prevention to knocks. I've used both soft and hard boxes for road bikes without problem
I'm renting from these people in Farnham, Surrey.
http://www.bicycleboxhire.co.uk/Welcome.html
Having popped into my LBS this morning to pick up some brake cables it turns out they rent dhb boxes as well.