Bike Bag Quandry

Here's a dumb riddle-me-ree for you:

If I buy a bike bag how fold-uppable is it?

Because surely at a certain point you want to ride off from the airport / Gare Du Nord etc. and not have to think about the bag.

No?

Is that when they get more pricey? i haven't got much to spend.

depends on the paddedness of the bag. if for planes, then quite padded, so not very. if for trains, just get a big sack, roll it up, job done.

but this is my problem - i'd like to ride light, if possible from where I touch down..

It depends I bought a cheap one for decathlon for 40 gbp that folds up into it's own bag but it's does not offer as much protection as the more expensive bag so I used some pipe lagging and some old skewers + plumbing pipe to protect the fork and frame spacing.

EDIT: I had two bikes in this bag plus other stuff it was heavy but it worked.

i think it's a bit of a trade-off..... fold-uppability vs. protection

i've got a slightly padded bike bag which you can roll up to about the size of a tent. it's quite manageable on the bike, and with a bit of extra bubble-wrap i didn't feel bad about slinging my bike on the plane in it. just don't start thinking about how those baggage handlers will treat it... you'll cry

In short no. All the bags I've seen are either hard case or reasonably padded, and not likely to fold up very small at all. Even a unpadded bag big enough for a bike would not fold up very small and if it is going to be of any use it must be padded, hence even bigger. Perhaps you would be better off riding to the airport and then just buying a bike box there and throwing it away at the next place. I've done this a few times and will probably do it again since bike boxes are reasonably cheap compared to a taxi to the airport (well in Australia anyway)

cool, I thought I was being stupid and missing some fundamental aspect that retailers never mention. So it's as I thought - bike boxes aside, there's no easy way to actually make your flight / train to your destination the only other transport you need...

Tommy I think it might be a good idea to pm you for more info on this - although I guess the next question for anyone who's done it is -

• how good a chance do I have of getting a bike box at any given airport?
  

check with airline, sometimes you dont have to brake your bike down you can just roll it on, also euro star now has i bike carrige so you can travel with you bike built up for an extra£20

I've got two bike bags and a hard shell case. If I'm travelling by train, which is my preferred option to France these days, then I use the unpadded bag (the same as Tommy's by the sounds of it).

If flying then there are two schools of thought;

1. Make the bike bombproof (which means I pack the bike in the hard shell case and then into the other bike bag which makes it easy to carry).
   
2. Leave the bike as bike-like as you can (I've toured before by riding to the airport, removing the pedals then handing the bike over the the oversize baggage folk and it's turned up the other end unscathed)
   

bet it wasn't the merckx though Andy... ;)

how good a chance do I have of getting a bike box at any given airport?

Most airlines will issue you with a large, see through bag to carry your bike in if you turn up without a box or bag. It's next to useless.

Most bike shops will, in my experience, give or sell you a cardboard box but you then have to get it and the bike to the airport.

number 2 is an intriguing solution. I kind of get it but you'd have to be prepared for the bike to be mistreated too I suppose..

also euro star now has i bike carrige so you can travel with you bike built up for an extra£20

at last!! good news...

Everytime you fly with a bike you have to be prepared for the fact that the bike might get damaged. In 15 years of travelling with one I've only ever suffered minor damage. Maybe I'm lucky?

Btw, if you want to borrow a bag let me know.

at last!! good news...

I've better news for you - if you bag your bike and carry it on as normal luggage there is no charge. I've used Eurostar at least 5 times and have never had any problems doing this.

when you did the "unscrew the peddles and hand it in" i take it you secured it / wrapped the frame in lagging or something..?

Nope - handed it over to them as is. They did make me deflate the tyres so when the luggage handler at the other end tried to ride it across the luggage hall I was somewhat concerned. He learnt some excellent new English words that day that he could share with his children.

All interesting stuff - my friends are doing a round the world ride in a couple of years' time, and I plan on joining them at various points along the way. They're fine in the sense that they're cycling everywhere they need to go, but if I'm going to meet them at said various points, I'll be flying (I'm certainly not going to be playing catch-up!). If I don't necessarily need a bag to fly, I might get away with that option, however if there's a small lightweight bag I can use, then that's got to be better...

Nope - handed it over to them as is. They did make me deflate the tyres so when the luggage handler at the other end tried to ride it across the luggage hall I was somewhat concerned. He learnt some excellent new English words that day that he could share with his children.

ha! that's quite mad though - that it might be a better option just to be brazen about it so handlers know it's a bike they're dealing with, rather than break it up and bag it only for it to be slung into the bowels of the craft..

talking of bowels you notice I managed not to talk about when andyp did his number 2 in the airport...

something also worth exploring if its a short visit and you are departing from the same point you are arriving is leaving your bike bag with left luggage - but best to check whether service is available and affordable. tried this at Lisbon airport once

hey peeps, can i borrow a thin foldable bike bag for weekend of 31st Oct, just for polo bike?

I've got a bag like the following, slight rip in the bottom but nothing a bit of cardboard doesn't provide for.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/dhb_Elsted_Wheeled_Bike_Bag/5360032373/

supposed to fold down the middle but to be honest doesn't fold up neatly

PM if interested. Pick up from Clapton

thanks, i've used one of those b4 but a real PITA!

ive got a cycle surgery bike bag if you need one, dogs. it's one of them rebranded neil pryde ones.